“Education is an important issue in human life. I believe that education can help us in getting a good career, good social status, and growing high self-confidence. In addition, education can also polish the way of thinking, character, and human behavior. Today we are faced with a massive transformation that occurs in all sectors of life. So in the present and in the future, it is people with high knowledge and education who can seize opportunities for success. However, formal education alone is not enough to face today’s global challenges. We need to equip ourselves with the 4Cs, namely critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and communication that we can get from the organization. Organizations provide great opportunities for collaboration and make it easier for us to connect with many parties, so that we are not placed into narrow coverage areas. It will be very beneficial for us to be able to accept opportunities from various parties,” conveyed Afriza Ni’matus Sa’adah, a graduate of Diponegoro University from the Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering who received a GPA of 4.00 who was inaugurated at the Undip 167th Graduation Ceremony.
Furthermore, Afrizal said that being busy other than studying is not far from the four goals she had set while she was a student at Diponegoro University, namely academics, research, organization, and competition.
In the academic field, she has been a teaching assistant and research assistant at the Advanced Materials Laboratory (AMaL) Undip; participated in scientific discussions and was a speaker at various international conferences; participated in the summer school program at the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Nottingham, Malaysia; as well as participated in various kinds of training that can improve technical skills and soft skills according to educational background (General K3 Expert, ISO, Hysys software training, etc).
In the field of research, she participated in various kinds of research, ranging from research on fortification of noodles, manufacture of biodegradable plastic, waste treatment with Dielectric Barrier Discharge reactor, manufacture of bio-scrubber beauty products, and manufacture of coating materials. The results of these researches led her to publish 9 international journals and international proceedings indexed by Scopus from Q1 to Q3. Through all these research activities, she created innovation to provide solutions to current problems.
In the field of organization, Afriza has held several functional positions in various organizations. First, being a treasurer at the UNDIP Chemical Engineering Student Association in 2019. This organization focuses on serving UNDIP Chemical Engineering students in academics, research, interests and talents, regeneration, and entrepreneurship. Second, being the secretary of POCALUNAR Chem-E Car Group UNDIP in 2020. This organization focuses on assembling car prototypes based on chemical reactions that can produce pressure or electricity. Third, becoming treasurer at the Society of Petroleum Engineer (SPE) UNDIP Student Chapter in 2021. This organization is an international organization engaged in the Oil and Gas sector. In 2021, she established a small community named “Student Research and Innovation Center (SRI-C)”. She shared knowledge about research and provided services to Undip students in the fields of LKTI, PKM, and publications through this community. All of these organizational experiences have finally given her a lot of experience regarding leadership, public speaking, problem solving, networking, and other lessons that I could not get from the learning process in class.
“In terms of competition, I have participated in various competitions from national to international level and have received more than 10 awards. Through this competition, I was able to update and upgrade myself to make me a person who doesn’t give up easily. Some of the achievements I have achieved include the gold medal in the poster category at the 34th National Student Scientific Week (PIMNAS) in 2021, ranked 5th Outstanding Student at the National Level PILMAPRES, 2nd place in the presentation category at the summer school programme organized by the University of Nottingham Malaysia,” she said.
She also has achievements in the field of publication, including successfully publishing 9 international journals and international proceedings indexed by Scopus starting from Q1 to Q3 and publishing 4 books with ISBN. One of her journals is entitled “The Nutritional Enrichment of Dried Noodles by Using Phycocyanin Extracted from Spirulina sp as an Effort of Food Fortification, In Journal of Physics: Conference Series”. She has published a book in 2022 entitled “Implementation of a Circular Economy through the Use of Plastic Waste as a Particle Board Composite Impregnated Cellulose Fiber to Achieve Sustainable Development Targets”.
“In 2018 I entered the Department of Chemical Engineering at Undip through the Independent Examination (UM) path. Chemical Engineering finally became a bright path for me. Undip is the most comfortable place, the best for upgrading myself, and has provided so many facilities and services so that I can grow well. So many lecturers who are highly dedicated to their students, Undip also creates many opportunities to help their students continue to grow,” concluded Afriza. (Lin – Public Relations)