Stephani Gabriella Wijayawati, 21, from Sumbawa Besar, West Nusa Tenggara, is among 3,664 undergraduate and bachelor’s degree graduates of Universitas Gadjah Mada who attended the graduation ceremony on Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2025, at Grha Sabha Pramana UGM. The average Grade Point Average (GPA) for undergraduate graduates in this period was 3.59, and Stephani successfully completed her studies in four years, achieving a perfect GPA of 4.00.
Stephani expressed her gratitude for completing her undergraduate studies with a perfect GPA at the age of 21 within four years.
She admitted that this achievement was inseparable from the support of her parents and her self-motivation.
“Honestly, achieving a 4.00 GPA was not intentional. I just wanted to make my parents proud and reassure them that I have used the opportunity to study as best as I could,” she told reporters on Thursday, Aug. 28, 2025.
She considered herself fortunate to have had the chance to pursue higher education, as many of her peers in Sumbawa could not continue their studies due to financial constraints.
“In Sumbawa, many children are unable to pursue higher education, or if they do, they often drop out halfway because of sudden economic hardship. I constantly remind myself that every step I take in Java comes at a high cost to my parents, so I must not waste this opportunity,” she said.
Fond of Challenges and Competition
Stephani revealed that her motivation for studying law stemmed from her interest in the challenges of handling cases in court, where there are winners and losers.
“Winning a case in court is a real challenge. Beyond that, the Faculty of Law is also very versatile; its knowledge can be applied in many different professions,” she explained.
Throughout her academic journey, Stephani embraced a simple principle: always set new goals, whether in success or failure.
“I was often told that the simplest way of living is to always have a purpose. When you achieve a goal, create a new one. When a goal fails, make another. Always live with an orientation toward the present and what it can contribute to the future,” she shared.
She also adopted the philosophy of legendary tennis player Roger Federer as her personal mantra: a point is just a point.
For her, this meant that life must go on; one should not dwell too long on either achievements or failures.
“You must always move forward in life with new goals,” she advised.
Stephani’s accomplishment serves as an inspiration that pursuing higher education is a responsibility to be carried out wholeheartedly.
It also demonstrates that young people from the regions can excel at both national and international levels.
Currently, she is starting her career as a trainee associate at the prominent law firm Assegaf Hamzah & Partners.
Author: Kezia Dwina Nathania
Editor: Gusti Grehenson
Post-editor: Lintang Andwyna
Photographs: Stephani Gabriella Wijayawati