Amid the blare of traffic horns and scorching asphalt, there is a quiet struggle that deserves recognition. Wahyu Aji Ramadan, a 2020 cohort student at the Faculty of Law, Universitas Gadjah Mada (FH UGM), spent his college years working as a food delivery driver to help support his education, while his family’s limited financial capacity made it difficult. Throughout his studies, he received no scholarships, prompting him to seek alternative ways to support himself, including food delivery services.
“At that time, I did not receive any scholarship at all. I wanted to have my own income, and at least help ease my parents’ burden,” Aji said on Tuesday (Feb. 3).
As both a student and a food delivery driver, Aji found that balancing academic responsibilities and part-time work was far from easy. He had to manage his time carefully so that both commitments could run in parallel.
If he had afternoon classes, he used the morning to look for orders. Conversely, when his classes were scheduled in the morning, he worked in the afternoon or evening. The areas of Kaliurang, Pogung, and Kotabaru became silent witnesses to Aji’s perseverance in sustaining his livelihood.
From his work as an online motorcycle taxi driver, Aji explained that, when delivering food orders through digital platforms that connect customers with restaurants and MSMEs, he earned commissions ranging from IDR 6,400 to IDR 7,200, and up to tens of thousands of rupiah depending on the delivery distance. However, securing orders and commissions was far from simple.
“Honestly, it wasn’t easy to go through. There were tense moments with restaurant owners and even threats around two in the morning during Ramadan when I tried to pick up an order, but the restaurant had already closed. I’ve also had a customer’s order fall on the road and had to compensate for it. I was willing to ride through heavy rain just to get bonuses, endure the heat while searching for orders, only to have a flat tire on the road,” he recalled.
In addition to working as a food delivery driver, Aji also held a part-time position at the Department of Civil Law, FH UGM. There, he assisted with journal management, administrative processes for faculty promotions, preparation of teaching materials, and other technical and administrative tasks.
On campus, Aji was known to be actively involved in various student organizations, including the Forum for Legal Research and Writing (FPPH), the Asian Law Students’ Association Local Chapter UGM (ALSA UGM), the Business Law Community (BLC), and the Speech and Law Debate Society (Speciality). Beyond faculty-based activities, he also served on the Tennis Student Activity Unit committee.
Not limiting himself to organizational activities alone, he also began building his professional career while still a student.
Ahead of semester breaks, Aji frequently applied for internships at various legal institutions, including the Regional Representative Council (DPD RI) Yogyakarta, district prosecutor’s offices, law firms, notary offices, legal aid organizations, and legal research institutions such as the Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR).
He also worked as a content writer for social media platforms, focusing on legal issues.
Despite his busy schedule juggling academic life at UGM, food delivery work, and organizational involvement, Aji consistently pursued excellence in both academic and non-academic fields.
He recorded numerous achievements by winning scientific competitions at the national, university, and faculty levels.
Among them were First Place in the Airlangga Law Competition Scientific Writing Contest 2023, First Place in the Scientific Article Competition at the Constitutional Law Fair of Universitas Brawijaya 2022, and Second Place in the Legislative Drafting Competition at Universitas Indonesia 2022.
At the university level, Aji also earned distinctions in research competitions, digital video contests, and tennis tournaments.
Even in his final semesters, Aji was involved in various research projects with lecturers from Law UGM and several legal research institutions.
He served as a research assistant in a study on amendments to the Hajj Financial Management Law and was also involved in database management and tracking of death penalty cases at ICJR.
Amid the many pressures he encountered, Aji chose never to give up, even as challenges continued to arise.
“Fatigue is inevitable because problems come from all directions. It’s not about wanting to give up, but rather choosing to take a moment to rest, reorganize what needs to be improved, carried out, completed, and achieved in a more focused way,” he added.
Today, Aji is enjoying the fruits of his perseverance after completing his undergraduate Law degree at UGM. He graduated cum laude with a GPA of 3.55. For Aji, completing his studies is a personal responsibility to his parents and a dream he must fulfill.
“During college, graduation is certainly the moment we look forward to, along with the aspirations we strive to achieve,” he said.
Looking back, Aji views the entire journey as deeply meaningful.
“Perhaps the path was not easy. But it may be God’s way of granting joy after the bitterness of hardship,” he concluded.
Author: Zabrina Kumara Putri
Editor: Gusti Grehenson
Post-editor: Jasmine Ferdian
Photographs: Wahyu Aji Ramadan