Fendryan Gabriel (25), a young man from East Nusa Tenggara, is the son of migrant workers born in Sabah, Malaysia, and raised in Tanah Bumbu, South Kalimantan.
Despite growing up in a migrant community with economic limitations, he never gave up on his dream of pursuing higher education.
Now, he has fulfilled that dream by earning a bachelor’s degree from Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM). Along with 1,408 other Bachelor and Applied Bachelor graduates, he was conferred his degrees on Wednesday (Feb. 26) at Grha Sabha Pramana.
As he is fondly called, Fendi shared that his family moved frequently during his childhood and teenage years, allowing him to experience various communities’ unique cultures and characteristics.
After completing his elementary and junior high education at Sekolah Indonesia Kota Kinabalu (SIKK) in Malaysia, he continued his high school studies at SMKN 2 Simpang Empat, Tanah Bumbu, South Kalimantan.
Although he had returned to Indonesia, Fendi admitted he felt like a stranger in his own country.
“Immigration even visited our family because there were reports that there might be illegal immigrants in the area,” he recalled on Monday (Mar. 3).
Fendi did not let that hold back his ambitions despite his parents’ limited educational background; his father only graduated from junior high school, while his mother nearly completed elementary school.
With limited access to information about higher education, he remained persistent. Fortunately, some of his teachers at SMK were alumni of universities in Yogyakarta, inspiring him to pursue further studies.
After gathering information from various sources, he confidently chose Universitas Gadjah Mada as his next academic destination.
“Like a frog under a coconut shell, I had very little information about university-level education in my area,” he said.
The year 2019 marked a turning point in Fendi’s life. He was accepted into the English Literature program at the UGM Faculty of Cultural Sciences (FIB UGM) through an affirmative pathway for children of Indonesian migrant workers.
This pathway opened access for students from disadvantaged backgrounds to study at top state universities like UGM.
He also received the ADik Affirmative Scholarship from the Republic of Indonesia’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology.
Fendi encountered various challenges while adapting to his new environment in Yogyakarta. However, it did not take long for him to feel at home.
Thanks to the support of his dormitory friends, many of whom were also from outside Yogyakarta, the adaptation process went smoothly. This sense of community helped Fendi feel comfortable, as he was far from his native South Kalimantan.
The sound of gamelan music, often heard around the Darmaputera Baciro dormitory, became one of the early memories that made him feel at ease. “A good omen, isn’t it?” he said.
In the early years of his studies, Fendi focused on academic routines, becoming a “butterfly” student, attending classes and heading straight home.
However, in 2022, he began participating in various campus activities. One of his proudest achievements was being selected as part of the first cohort in the Kampus Merdeka student exchange program at Universitas Al-Washliyah, Medan.
“Despite the challenges and conditions of COVID-19, I am grateful to have completed it. This program gave me new experiences that enriched my academic and non-academic knowledge,” he said with gratitude.
Another experience that helped shape his leadership was participating in the Community Service Program (KKN), where he learned the importance of taking the initiative to start conversations with new people.
He said he gained valuable experience building strong social relationships through KKN, an essential skill for future success.
Writing his thesis was one of the most difficult challenges Fendi faced. After changing his thesis title following a proposal seminar in his sixth semester, completing the final work took him over two years.
He admitted it took time to overcome his internal struggles.
Everything began to progress more smoothly once he finally opened communication with his thesis advisor.
In his 11th semester, he graduated with a B+ grade and completed a thesis titled “Translation Techniques for Compound Nouns in Indonesian News Articles on Antara News.”
“I believe in the crucial role of advisors in this process. Discussions, criticisms, feedback, and deadlines from my advisor were the fuel that kept me going,” said Fendi, who graduated with a GPA of 3.59.
Having completed his studies at UGM, Fendi feels that the long journey has taught him many valuable life lessons.
He encourages other students who are still struggling with their studies not to be afraid of starting their final thesis.
“Don’t forget to communicate with friends who have finished, with your advisors, and don’t be afraid to make mistakes. There’s always room to improve, and in the end, all those fears are just in your head,” he concluded.
Author: Lintang
Editor: Gusti Grehenson
Post-editor: Afifudin Baliya
Photographer: Firsto