How I See Examination And The Lesson Behind It - Happiness

University life is not as easy as most people suggest. Apart from assignments, quiz, tutorial and tests, the Final Examination is the culprit to bring tension and stress to the students. As a Civil Engineering student, I deal a lot with various kind of stresses, tension (or even compression.. Lol.) in structure theory and analysis but stresses and pressure and real life are not as easy as simply putting supports. It really challenge a student's EQ and composure. Now talking about the Final Exam, let me share with you how different am I as compared to the one a year ago in seeing the examination and the way I treat it.

When I was first year, the only mission I had when I was in the hall is to make sure I can answer one or two questions + some 'anak soalan' for the other three questions (normally we need to answer five out of six questions) so that I can pass and no need to retake the subject. Everytime after the staff had collected my answer script, I would be busy calculating and estimating the marks I would get. I just need a pass or grade C to say goodbye to those subjects. Probably because I was seeking for a mere grade C as compared to some of my friends who were constantly aiming for A and Dean List, honestly I did not have much pressure and anxiety. Life was easier and happier.

Then here comes the second year of my USM journey. Before the first sem started, I had received a warning letter from JPA, my main income source for CGPA below 3.0 and it put me in an alarming state. During the MOV 10' in May, I made my mind very clear that since I had chosen Civil Engineering and scrapped the idea of transferring course, I must do well for it, score well for it no matter how hard it takes. Thus, during my second year, I have taken a few important measures to make sure my Academics Revival Plan going smooth. I notice that I am never the Foong Han Yang as I was, whose daily routine was : wake up-->go class/ponteng--> Play FIFA---> Nap ---> Play Football Manager ---> Sleep early. Now, I do the assignments by my own and I say NO to procrastination. I attend every class and PC Games are never my daily activity again (although Facebook is). Up to this point, I would like to say Congratulation to myself for these positive changes. My efforts were eventually paid off as my GPA and CGPA recorded an increase of around 5% and 4% respectively. I am close to the 3.5 level and I have seen the hope of scoring Dean List if I work harder. For the first time, I knew it was no longer an impossible mission. While men have left their footprints on the moon, me too can get above 3.5 and I that as a challenge for myself.

The date 18 April had finally arrived and the three week exam period kick started. Even though TITAS is relatively small Wigan to me but the subsequent papers are as tough as the likes of MU, Chelsea and Barca. supposed they are no big deal but my quest to score at least A- for these subjects had made me experiencing the pressure my friends had suffered. It intensifies everytime I begin to answer the question. The worst was during the Hydraulics paper which I took more than an hour to calm myself down and overcome the panic. I always feel proud of myself for I never buckle under pressure in life but I still have a lot to learn to beat this exam-panic syndrome. Hopefully, the increasing trend of both my GPA and CGPA continues.

I have derived some lesson from these two cases. In life there are people like my previous self - not craving for anything, as long as survival is guaranteed, life is happy. Another type of people is like my current self - have higher ambition or desire, always looking to achieve higher than the average. Happiness comes in different way and have different values to different individuals. Anyway, I am still proud with being the latter. During the process, I may need to sacrifice some happiness and give up something I really reluctant to but I do believe I will be rewarded with greater happiness and achievements which I think that's what life is all about. I. M. FOONG HAN YANG is never contented of just being normal and average. I will do something great to the society, nation and if possible, the world. Life is only once, I want a colourful and meaningful one. How about you ?

I. M. FOONG HAN YANG

'The higher you aim, the higher you achieve.'