Learning, Living, Belonging Abroad

Zainab was scrolling through her phone that evening in Lahore when a message appeared on her phone. It was a Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta (UMS) IPS scholarship. The deadline was hours away. Thousand students would apply for twenty spots. In her hand, between her thumb and the screen, lay a fork in the road she hadn't seen coming.

“I was thinking that it's just the last day. Just don't apply for this one. Just skip this one,” she said. Yet she applied anyway.

A month after that late-night application, the email came. She was one of the twenty. The acceptance arrived at a peculiar moment, months after a different scholarship abroad had fallen through when a courier service lost her documents, erasing all records of her application.

"Even in my heart. I was like okay, Allah surely has something better waiting for me."

Zainab, whose legal name Nurul Ain means “light of eyes” in Arabic, radiates energy that comes from knowing exactly what you want in a world. She's her father's eldest child who rejected his vision of her as an army doctor. 

“Everyone goes doctor, doctor, doctor,” she explained. “I want  to be a chartered accountant. It is my choice.”

Her father, an army man himself, understood her ambition but worried about the hours. Doctors work shifts, return home at predictable times. Accountants start at eight and finish when the work is done, maybe ten, maybe midnight, maybe later.

He came around eventually. When it was time for Zainab to leave her country, both parents supported her decision to go.

She'd researched the curriculum extensively before applying to the UMS Accounting Program. Having already started chartered accountancy studies back home, she knew what traditional programs looked like, years of theory before application. Zainab wanted something that would distinguish her CV and open doors to international firms.

The accounting program surprised her with its immediacy. No waiting years to apply knowledge she was building financial models and running business simulations from week one.

“People just think that Indonesia is just for tourism. But when I came here, everything was totally different. The education system is also very good. A lot of emphasis on practical things” she explained.

Tying back to her ambition, Zainab mentions what she called an explorer's personality. “I want to explore more and more, the knowledge in this field is endless and it continuously expands.”

“A chartered accountant itself is not a person who will just do the accounting things. They will be responsible for all of the stuff. And it would be like multitasking,” said Zainab.

While Zainab was a drop in the sea of international students at UMS, she was the first to join the regular class instead of the international one. Which entails a problem unique to her.

“Tidak ada yang berbahasa Inggris,” switching briefly to Indonesian before catching herself. “All my classmates are Indonesian, They are using the translators and everything. But it's so touching, I didn't even expect this thing.”

Most international students spend a full year in the BIPA program (Indonesian Language for Foreign Speakers). Zainab, however, had only three months because of her academic schedule.

The three-month program, in her own words, treated international students “just like a kid.” The instructors were patient whenever she stumbled and never made her feel bad about mistakes.

The city itself has become part of what makes this work. Coming from Pakistan's second biggest city, with its noise and traffic, she welcomed the change to a slower pace of life, “slow living,” as she put it.

“If you are a person who doesn't love noise, then yes, you should come to Solo. For me, I really wanted to escape from there to somewhere very serene. So, for me, Solo is a great place.” said the first-semester student.

The people of Solo have proven their generosity again and again. When she asks for directions, strangers don’t just point, they walk her there. On one occasion, when she and a friend got lost without phone data, two locals spent half an hour with Google Translate figuring out what they needed, then personally guided them back to the university dormitory.

“They came from so far away, just to take us through the roads and drop us at UMS Pesma (student dormitory). It was really helpful for us. I think it was the greatest help I’ve received so far in Indonesia.”

When asked whether she wanted to pursue higher education, her answer was emphatic. “For me, in my perspective, you can learn more from YouTube and everything with your practical experience. So first, I would try to land my job.”

That pragmatic view is shaped not only by ambition but also by responsibility. As the first in her family to study abroad, and the eldest, only daughter, she feels deeply tied to home. “When our parents are getting old, it’s our responsibility to take care of them. Because they already took care of us when we were kids,” she explained.

It’s this blend of practicality and duty that frames her advice to future international students. “You should have to come to UMS,” she urged, pointing to the improving facilities, the dedication of teachers, and the real-world exposure. 

“If you are a person whose parents are annoyed because of your discipline, just come to Indonesia. You will be disciplined. After just two months,” she joked.

Writer: Farizal Luqman Majid

Editor: Al Habiib Josy Asheva