Getting the highest education is the dream of many people. The same goes for Muhammad Arifin Ilham (18), who is determined to pursue higher education. Despite being born and raised in a modest family, his desire to achieve his aspirations is as powerful as the tsunami that devastated his hometown in 2004.
Now, Arifin’s dream is becoming a reality. His goal of becoming a diplomat is within reach. He has been accepted into Universitas Gadjah Mada through the 2023 academic excellence-based entrance selection (SNBP) in the International Relations program at the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences.
Being accepted to study at UGM is a source of pride for him. He was admitted without an entrance exam and received a 100% subsidized tuition fee (UKT 0) from UGM, which exempts him from tuition fees for eight semesters. He is also a candidate for the Smart Indonesia Card (KIP) scholarship from the government.
Arifin is the eldest of three siblings from Mukhlis (46) and Afrianti (40) from Lamgeu eu Village, Peukan Bada, Aceh Besar. His father is the family’s sole breadwinner and runs a small grocery store. With this business, he earns an average monthly income of IDR 1-1.5 million to support his large family.
Arifin grew up in a humble environment. He spent his early life in a temporary shelter. He was born three months after the tsunami struck Banda Aceh, including his hometown.
From birth until age two, he had to live in a temporary shelter tent because his parents’ house was destroyed. Born prematurely at seven months gestation, he weighed only 1.3 kg.
“When the tsunami happened in December 2004, my mother was five months pregnant with me. Alhamdulillah, my parents managed to survive by running to the hills,” he said when interviewed at his home recently.
Two years after the tsunami, he and his family returned to their hometown and lived in a government-provided tsunami house. Since then, his father restarted the family’s inherited grocery store business in Keudebing Village, about 4 km from home.
Despite living in modest conditions, Arifin never lost hope. He never gave up on his dreams, especially of attending college, to break free from limitations. Since elementary school, he has strived to excel academically.
His efforts never went in vain. From elementary to junior high school, he consistently ranked in the top three in his class, and in high school, he always achieved the first rank and received scholarships.
Arifin has also achieved numerous national-level accomplishments, such as championing the 2022 Genius English Language Competition, the 2022 FPCI UGM essay competition, and the English Language Olympiad held by PT. Bima Competition.
His desire to go to college grew stronger with encouragement from his teachers at MAN 1 Banda Aceh. Arifin chose UGM as the place to continue his studies.
“Since junior high school, I wanted to study at UGM. People say that studying outside of Aceh is better if there is potential. So, I became more determined to choose UGM because I had spent 12 years studying in Aceh,” he explained.
He sought permission from his parents to take the university entrance exam with UGM as his choice. Coincidentally, his parents gave their blessing on the condition that he must seek scholarships because they couldn’t afford to finance his education.
“When I was accepted into UGM, I felt both happy and sad because I was still concerned about whether I would be able to complete my studies due to financial constraints,” he said.
Mukhlis and Afrianti felt a sense of joy when they found out that their eldest son was accepted into UGM without an entrance exam. They were well aware of his strong desire to experience college life.
“Our son has always wanted to study in Yogyakarta. We are happy that he was accepted into UGM for free,” said Afrianti.
Afrianti mentioned that she and her husband were relieved because their son could achieve his long-cherished dream. However, they were surprised that Arifin was only exempted from tuition fees. He still needed to find a way to support his living expenses during his studies.
“It turned out that the scholarship didn’t cover everything, such as dormitory and living expenses. At that time, I told my son not to accept it because we couldn’t afford it. I suggested he help with our family’s small business at home instead,” she explained.
They went to Arifin’s school to discuss the situation. However, the school advised Arifin to continue his studies. After all, Arifin was one of the two graduates from MAN 1 Banda Aceh who succeeded in being part of the first batch to enter UGM.
“Regarding living expenses, the school said he could apply for the KIP scholarship. Hopefully, he will receive it. If not, he can look for other scholarships to support his life in Yogyakarta,” Mukhlis added.
Soon, their son will depart to pursue his education at UGM. However, they are still concerned about the high transportation costs to Yogyakarta.
“We don’t have the tickets yet. Hopefully, we can gather the funds little by little to send our son to Jogja,” he said.
Mukhlis hopes his son can have a smooth college journey, graduate on time, and find a job as soon as possible.
“We can only pray that he can study smoothly and become a successful person who can help our family in the future,” he said.
Arifin is among thousands of young individuals accepted to study at UGM. Although born into a low-income family, he has proven that financial limitations are not barriers to achieving the highest level of education.
UGM, as a higher education institution, is committed to providing broad access to education for all members of society, including those from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, the 3T (frontier, outermost, and underdeveloped) regions, and people with disabilities.
This commitment is aimed at realizing quality education that is inclusive, equitable, and accessible to all in support of the achievement of sustainable development goals.
Author: Ika
Photographer: Firsto