I was placed at RKKI in 1995, when I was 5years old. Here, I was given the life of any ordinary kid - food, accommodation and education. Throughout the years, everything has been taken care of. In May 2007, I enrolled in a pre-U programme in Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, majoring in Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) Accounting. During the first year of foundation, everything went smoothly. Still living under the care of the home, I was doing well in my studies and had managed to score a CGPA of 2.85. In May 2008, I left the home to pursue my accounting degree in Kampar, Perak. On my own, I took up a PTPTN loan to finance my studies. I had managed to get by with the first two semesters. In the third semester, my CGPA went below 2.0 and my loan got temporarily suspended. Not wanting to give up easily, I started traveling back and forth KL to work during the weekends just so I could pay off the rental and my living expenses. At first, the plan seemed easy. I have 4 hours of train ride to study, in between waiting times and yet have enough to live off. However, as weeks passed, I find myself struggling to find time between studies, traveling and work. I can still remember rushing to catch a late night train right after my work, only to have missed the train back to Kampar and waited up in McD's till 5am just so I could attend my 8am class in Kampar. I was having a tough time and that, obviously wasn't a smart move, as I find myself feeling exhausted to even study on train rides, especially after having to stand eight hours a day and convince customers to purchase my products. After a while, it came to the attention of one of the home's volunteers, and he tried to help by paying for my school fees while another helped with my living expenses. Soon after, the home started to help me out financially and academically. Today, I had successfully completed my degree and have managed to get a job in Puchong Jaya.

~Chia Shin~