In Focus ALUMNI: Zahar

Admin has received many requests to do In Focus on the alumni of IHS. Many people would like to know the whereabouts of IHS graduates. So here goes! Let us start with Zahar, who is actually one of the previous authors of this blog. He is not only famous in IHS, he is also known in other faculties, because he is an outgoing person and extremely active in sports. So what is he up to after IHS?

What is your full name?

Zaharuddin Hj Abd Rahman

When is your birthday?

25^th April 1989

Which course did you take in IHS, and which cohort?

Bachelor of Health Science in Biomedical Science Cohort 1

When did you graduate?

2012

Which module did you enjoy the most, and why?

Genetics, even though it’s a hard subject, but I enjoyed learning new things with regards to genetics and every single thing I learnt, the more eager I was to explore it in details.

What (or who) do you miss the most when it comes to IHS?

I miss the ‘IHS Environment’ basically the people and environment throughout my time in IHS. I miss the lecturers, colleague and the learning environment. I also miss the time when we used to study at the small old IHS building, although the infrastructure and facilities is not as great as the current one, but I really miss how we all crumpled together in one building and we had to drive to the Chancellor Hall and the Male Residential College, as most of our classes were there. I also missed doing my final year project, even though that time was really stressful, but I kinda miss those too, tying to finish the practical side of the project within a given deadline and I enjoyed doing virus research, extracting DNA and etc. And lastly the convocation day! For me that was the climax of our journey throughout the 4 years in UBD. I understand how my coursemates and I have to struggle in getting the journey towards the end, but all the hard work and commitment was really worth it after all.

From UBD Convocation Day until today, what have you achieved?

Just after the graduation, Alhamdulillah I got the scholarship to pursue my master study in United Kingdom. I took Master in Public & Environmental Health Science at University of Birmingham. It was something different from my degree, but my interest was really into those area. Alhamdulillah I managed to get distinction for my final year dissertation of my master and currently working at the government sector. Doing my master degree in United Kingdom was something that I really dreamt of especially after visiting my dream place, Stamford Bridge in London since Im a big fans of Chelsea Football Club, haha..

What are you doing right now (working/studying/etc), and where?

I'm currently working as health, safety, security and environment (HSSE) instructor at Mechanical Training Centre (Pusat Latihan Mekanik), Institute of Brunei Technical Education as well as holding the position of HSSE Officer at the training centre. Currently we are in the midst recruiting and producing local people under the programme of Energy Industry Competency Framework (EICF). I love the job, as teaching is really something that I fond of and the subject of my teaching area also something that I learnt during my postgraduate study and I am passionate of my work. I also had the opportunities to do training and placement in oil and gas companies in Brunei like Brunei Shell Petroleum and Brunei Methanol Company.

Lastly, please give few words of motivation and inspiration to your current and future juniors.

I know studying for a Bachelor's degree in UBD is something that is really challenging and you have to be committed and motivated in your study. You have to set your goal so that everything that you do is going to be fun for you. Don’t give up too early, and do not hesitate to ask your lecturers whenever you are in doubt and having trouble with your study. Make full use of the learning experience in your university life as you gonna miss them when you start working already. Especially to my Biomedical Science juniors, enjoy your laboratory experience at IHS, whatever you learn, Microbiology, Immunology, Genetics. Pharmacology and etc, make love with it and hope you will finish your degree with flying colours!

BHSci BiomedSci Cohort 1

The Cohort 1 of Bachelor of Health Sciences (Biomedical Science) has just graduated on the September 15th, 2012 during the Majlis Konvokesyen Ke-24 Universiti Brunei Darussalam. Big congratulations to Fakriedzwan Fitri Hj Idris, Zaharuddin HA Rahman, Nur Aqilah Mursidi, Siti Sarah Othman, Siti Nur Bazilah Ghazali, Fuitze Tan, Zety Erwinna Hj Ali Adin, Masliza Liussin, Nurul Adhwa HA Rahman, Dk Hjh Nadirah Pg H Ahmad, and Hazirah Zainal Abidin. Good lucks with your future endeavours!

Internship programmes during the Discovery Year session 2011/2012

As explained in UBD website, in the GenNext programme, students are required to participate in the Discovery Year programme to broaden their knowledge and give invaluable experience in a real world setting. This is normally undertaken in the third year of study, in the 5^th and 6^th semesters of a candidature. During the 2011/2012 session, Biomedical Science undergraduates Cohort 1 went during their fourth year of study, while half of the Cohort 2 went during their third year of study.

In general, the Discovery year options are as follow: 

1. SAP 1 semester (16 mc) and 4 breadth modules in UBD (16 mc).
2. SAP 1 semester (16 mc) and Internship/Community services/Innovation or Incubation projects 1 semester (16 mc).
3. Internship/Community Service/Innovation or Incubation projects  1 semester (16 mc) & 4 breadth modules in UBD (16 mc).
4. SAP 2 semesters (32 mc).

Students are required to undertake any one of the 4 possible options in the Discovery Year.  In some cases, a student may have a one year internship programme or innovation and incubation projects.  In such cases, the student will be required to take at least 8 additional modular credits of breadth modules at UBD. The actual programme to be undertaken should be worked out with the Faculty or Programme advisors and is subject to the availability of places as well as a selection process. 

During the 2011/2012 session, the undergraduates from Bachelor of Health Sciences (Biomedical Sciences) Cohort 1 and Cohort 2 went for internship programmes during their Discovery Year (DY). The programmes were successful in exposing the undergraduates to real life working and research experiences. It was the first batch of undergraduates to go for these programmes in UBD. The following are the undergraduates and their respective internship employing organizations.

1. The Otto-Meyerhof Centre and Clinical Research in Heidelberg and Krankenhaus Nordwest, Frankfurt am Main, Germany. The undergraduates are Fakhriedzwan Fitri Hj Idris, Dk. Nadirah Ahmad and Duratul Ain Durani.

Photo taken with Dr. Andreas Fritz (supervisor) and Professor Datin Seri Laila Jasa Dr Uta Meyding-Lamadé (supervisor), who is also a consultant neurologist at NSRC and Head of the Neurology Department at Krankenhaus Nordwest (KHNW) Hospital

2. United Arab Emirates University, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology. The undergraduates are Siti Nur Bazilah Ghazali and Nur Syamimi Matzin.

3. Faculty of Medicine, Alexandria University, Egypt. The undergraduates are Siti Sarah Othman, Nurul Fatini Binti Haji Abdul Malik and Mohd Hanis Bin Awang Masri.

4. Dr. W. Colin Duncan's research group, Medical Research Council (MRC) Centre for Reproductive Biology, The Queen's Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, UK.  The undergraduates are Hazirah Zainal Abidin and Zety Erwinna Hj Ali Adin.

Photo taken during their trip to an island

5. Molecular Biology and Bioinformatics laboratory, Biomedical Sciences Department, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University Putra Malaysia. The undergraduates are Nurul Adhwa Hj Abd Rahman, Nur 'Aqilah Mursidi and Zaidah Rizidah Murang.

Photo taken with Shawn Keng (a final year UPM undergraduate)

Photo taken with Associate Professor Dr Cheah Yoke Kqueen (supervisor)

6. University of Malaya, Medical Microbiology Department of University Malaya Medical Centre, Malaysia. The undergraduates are Zaharuddin Hj Abd Rahman and Fuitze Tan.

7. Jerudong Park Medical Centre. The laboratories are Specimen area, Hematology, Microbiology, Blood bank, Biochemistry and Immunology. The undergraduates are Masliza Liussin, Nadzirah Hj Md Said, Ummikalsum Dayan and Eric Lim.

Finally, we wish the juniors of our faculty and other faculties in UBD to have an enjoyable internship programmes for their Discovery Year in the coming academic session. 

In Focus: Fakhri

After a very long time, InFocus section is back in action! Let us get to know this young man from Cohort 1 of Bachelor of Health Sciences (Biomedical Science). He has officially finished the 4-years degree programme, and will InsyaAllah be graduating this coming September. 

Fakhri in general

What is your full name?

Fakhriedzwan Fitri Haji Idris

Where do you live?

Kg. Peninjau, Jerudong

When is your birthday?

30^th June 1988

What are your hobbies?

Hiking, surfing the net

Describe yourself in three phrases.

Responsible, organized, loyal

What are the 3 things you can't live without?

Money, laptop, handphone

What is your favourite quote?

You have to go through the worst to get to the best - anonymous

Fakhri as a Biomedical Scientist at IHS

Describe BHSci BiomedSci based on your experience.

It is an enjoyable programme where you experience a lot of things definitely. Covering a variety of topics and you get to experience different sorts of experiments during the practical sessions. If you are a type of person who likes laboratory and doing experiments, then this programme may be suitable for you.

What are your favourite modules?

Microbiology and haematology.

Describe your most memorable moments at the faculty.

The most memorable for me was basically the time spent with my coursemates especially when IM was still at the old building, fighting for a parking space at the bus stop.

Describe your final year project.

My final year project was on the salinity tolerance of mosquito vectors of human disease in Brunei. So basically I had to visit different places with brackish water (water that is salty but not as salty as seawater) around Brunei which were potential sites for breeding of mosquitoes. Larvae were collected and species were identified. Subsequent experiment was monitoring the larval development of identified species in brackish water from the egg stage to adult mosquito. It was tiring but fun.

Where did you go for your internship programme during the Discovery Year? Describe your experience.

I went to Germany for the Discovery Year and did my internship at the Otto-Meyerhof Centre and Clinical Research in Heidelberg and Krankenhaus Nordwest, Frankfurt am Main. It was a valuable experience. First, my colleagues and I have to be independent (you have no option), commuting between Frankfurt and Heidelberg for the first two weeks (just imagine if you commute from Bandar to Belait every day), a couple of morning runs to catch the train, meeting interesting people, you did experiments which you’ve never done in UBD, visiting places (sponsored), cool weather. The difficulty was that it’s hard to find halal food if you don’t know where to go.

Fakhri on personal matter

How do you define love?

Love is when you can give and receive equally, respect and understanding.

What do you look for in your ideal lady?

Someone who can be a good wife and a good mother.

Do you have celebrity crushes?

A lot..hehe..

What is your favourite song? Do you wish to be a singer?

You are my love by Kim Yeon Woo and I don’t want to be a singer because I just don’t have the voice.

You are titled to be the Mr Metrosexual and Mr Perfectionist in Cohort One (based on the votes). Any comments on that?

Am I? I don’t consider myself as metrosexual because I’m miles away from being one. Mr. Perfectionist? I’m not denying this fact. I just want to be organized and I know whatever you do things won’t be perfect as a whole but I believe it is those little things that you perfected makes the whole thing seems perfect.

Why do you use only one single blue pen throughout the semester? Is there a hidden secret behind it?

Well it’s not only throughout the semester but I have been using the same brand since I was in Form 3. There are no special reasons as to why I choose to stick with it.

Fakhri's future plans

You have officially finished the 4-years Bachelor's programme. What do you wish to do after the graduation?

Sleep!!! And just do nothing..haha..I’m planning to continue with master after this.

Which branch of Biomedical Sciences do you want to pursue?

Medical microbiology but more towards virology.

Any advice/words of success for the juniors?

Work hard and try to keep the flame burning all the way.

In Focus: Nurul Adhwa

Nurul Adhwa is a cohort 1 biomedical science student (final year student). She is a very creative person. She has designed some posters, shirts, banners, etc for several events in IHS. She's also one of the blog authors. It’ll be interesting to know more about this perky young lady.

Adhwa in general

What is your name?
Nurul Adhwa Haji Abdul Rahman

Where do you live?
Kg Mulaut

When is your birthday?
24^th October 1988

What are your hobbies?
Exercise, cooking, baking, Tumblring

Describe yourself in three words?
Designer, Organised, Talkative

What are the 3 things you can’t live without?
Phone, laptop, money?

What is your favourite quote?
“Don’t be sad or afraid, He is with us.” (9:40)

Adhwa as a biomedical student at IHS

Describe your life as a biomedical science student.
I studied health sciences together with Medicine Cohort 4 throughout my first year, and then studied modules specialised in biomedical sciences such Clinical Microbiology (Bacteriology, Virology, Mycology and Parasitology), Histopathology, Medical Genetics, Clinical Immunology and more for the next two years. Also, as partial GenNext undergaduates, I also took external modules (which are usually our time to clear our minds from health sciences) such as Children’s Literature and Maths & Technology. Then being in a special first cohort, we did our academic final year in the third year, allowing us to do our Research Projects (my most heavy-reading and time-spent module!) throughout the year. Then in the final year, we will be heading for our Discovery Year. Not forgetting, my cohort only has 11 people, and being a small group makes us close to each other as family.

What do you think about IHS? 
IHS has taught me so many things, academically and personally. It is a place where I really learnt independence. The admin and teaching staffs, also the technicians are very friendly and approachable, making my university life worth it.

What is your favourite subject(s)? 
Firstly, I like Anatomy in my first year because it is my opportunity to draw stuffs on my notes and even on the whiteboards (and trust me, I even drew on my exam paper too!) Apart from that, I like it for the sessions that we have practically, which involved organ dissections. And then also, recently I am in love with Research Project as we were given the chance to perform our experiments by ourselves. It is the hardest module I ever had so far as a biomedical scientist, but we survived impressively!

Describe your happiest moment in IHS.
My cohort has this tradition that we started in the first semester – we went out for movies, ambuyat, or beach on the exact day of our final exam paper. It’s like our run of freedom. It’s funny that during the exam week, we seemed to be more excited about the tradition outing than to worry about our final paper! In addition, there is another tradition involving the whole faculty in which the juniors must perform during the seniors’ graduation night – I performed for two senior cohorts! The dance rehearsals and performances were memorable and full of laughter. I never qualified myself as a dance expert, but I had fun anyway!

Adhwa on personal matter

Adhwa and her colleagues at the Cohort 4 Medicine Graduation Night Event

How do you define love? 
Hard question. I’ll say it’s indescribable.

What do you look for in an ideal guy?
Beckham’s well built height and shoulders, Niel Caffrey’s jawline, McSteamy’s voice, Gong Yoo’s hiding eyes… opst! Did I go overboard? Haha! Just kidding!

Do you have any celebrity crushes?
See above.

What is your favourite movie?
The old school 10 Things I Hate About You

What is your favourite song?
Too many.

What is your favourite food?
Desserts.

What is your favourite smell?
Victoria’s Secret’s Secret Charm

Justin Bieber or Rebecca Black?
Baby~ Baby~ Baby oooooh~

Adhwa’s future plans

Adhwa's published research project at the 7th Malaysia Indonesia Brunei Medical Science Conference

Where are you going for your discovery year?
Molecular Biology and Bioinformatics laboratory, Biomedical Sciences Department, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University Putra Malaysia. 

Which area of biomedical sciences would you like to purse?
To be honest, I am not yet sure. I might go for Public Health or even, Experimental Research. But you may never know, since I will be going to a Neuroscience based institute, I might eventually choosing that path. My wildest dream would be to be a designer for the Anatomy models and research experiments – if it ever exists!

Any advice/words of inspiration to the juniors?
Just express yourself. Be heard, and love your coursemates!

IHSSC

A Small Gathering for Intake 2008/09 and 2009/2010

On 29th May, a small gathering between Intake 2008/2009 and 2009/2010 of IHS were organised. For an academic year, we have not formally get to know each other especially for the Medics. This was a great opportunity for us to get to know more of each other. Games were organised to facilitate the Ice Breaking session.

Ah, the special walk games, could you guess who is this?

Model!

Nice one!

Eagerly waiting for their turn~

Nice smile!

Truly a Medics, could you figure what kind of walk is this from his action in the picture?

Ah, our conductor for the games! =)

Discussion time!

Drinks and food should not be missed in any Bruneian's meeting!

Although the number of students came were not appalling, I would say we did have a good time and the gathering was a success. Oh, Adhwa thank you for the cheese cake! Love it. I should have taken some pictures of that. People reading the article would have salivate for cheese cake!