“I found that there were two such universities in Japan, Tohoku and Kyushu, but eventually I chose Tohoku University because of its character,” she said. By character, she meant the “research-oriented” aspect of the university. “I was attracted by that so I submitted application materials, and thanks to God I’m here!” she laughed.
After graduating from a local high school, Lailatul went on to the matriculation course of the University of Malaya (UM) in Kuala Lumpur. There, she studied hard to prepare for university education for one year, and later became a student of UM majoring in actuarial science. When asked about the reaction of her parents to her change of mind, she said “they were not surprised. Now I am in the same grade as my younger brother, but it’s good. We share a lot of talk since he majors in electrical engineering, another faculty of engineering.”She has always made much effort when it comes to studying her favorite subjects, such as mathematics, from an early age. This way, she figured out what suits and does not suit her. So now Lailatul has a picture of the days ahead: she wants to continue her research at Tohoku University until acquiring a Ph.D, and become an engineer in the field of aeronautics.
She saw snow for the first time in her life in Sendai. “When I saw snow in the light at night, it was so beautiful.” In fact, it snowed so much in many Japanese places in February that it set an all-time high record since observations began. Sendai was not an exception: the city awoke to more than 35cm of snow on the morning of February 9th. Sendai is famous for having snow every year but it had never snowed so much all at once. So this year’s snow is unusual. She is now enjoying her spring vacation in Malaysia, but must bring a lot of winter clothes to Sendai!
The FGL students so far are from 13 countries, but Lailatul is the first Malaysian student to be accepted to the FGL program. Having been in Sendai for six months, she really wants to recommend Malaysian students apply for Tohoku University. She said with a smile that, “Sendai is so beautiful and safe. I love this city. The area damaged by the earthquake is limited now. If not, why are there people here? Be positive!”