PENANG, 23 January 2021 - A small gesture can surely make a big difference in someone's day, and that was what happened to an international student of Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) after he received a visit from someone whom he did not expect at all.

“I was truly surprised when the USM Vice-Chancellor dropped by to visit me at my hostel to say farewell. He was so humble and I learnt a lot from him especially about humility.”

That was the reaction from USM international student, Dr. Mustapha Muhammad from Nigeria who was extremely excited after the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dr. Faisal Rafiq Mahamd Adikan met him with his friend at Desasiswa Bakti Permai recently.

Mustapha, a graduating Ph.D student and his friend will be returning to their homeland soon after they had successfully completed their studies here at the USM School of Physics.

Besides Mustapha, his three friends who were also around were Ahmed Ashigar, Shuaibu S. Safiyanu and Abubakar Muhammed Jibril.

“I am grateful and in awe. This will surely go down as one of those moments I would cherish for a long time. My friends and I were actually really surprised to see the Vice-Chancellor, let alone receiving some souvenirs from him to take home,” he said.

For the record, the number of Nigerian students enrolled at USM has increased over the years. At present, there are 285 postgraduate students (Ph.D: 258 and Master: 27), and 4 undergraduates (number of active students as of 23 January 2021).

Text: Marziana Mohamed Alias/Photo: Courtesy of Yussuf Yakubu (USM alumnus from Nigeria, 2020)