A Journey of Discipline &
Determination
(50年信心之旅)
Dr Sam Man Keong (岑文强)
HP: (65) 9674 0515
Email: sammk1951@gmail.com
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
1
Highlights
• Introduction : Kota Tinggi – my
hometown.
• 1958 – 1963: Pei Hwa (Chinese) Primary
School
• 1963 – 1969 : Laksamana Secondary
School
• 1971: To College or Poly ?
• 1971 – 1974 : My 3 years in SP
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
2
Highlights
• 1974 – 1981 : Preparing for ‘University Studies’
• 1982 – 1983 : Back to Universities
(MelbU/RMIT)
• 1984 – 1986 : NUS
• 1992 – 1995 : NTU
• 2002 : Venture overseas
• Summary
• Concluding Remarks
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
3
Introduction
• An ‘old’ town in Johore, West Malaysia.
– The last Sultan of Malacca was buried here.
[Sultan of Malacca ... Sultan Mahmud Shah
(died 1528) ruled Malacca from 1488 to 1511]
• River – Mountain – Waterfall.
• Floods – almost year during the ‘Monsoon
Period’.
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
4
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
5
Kota Tinggi Waterfall
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
6
Floods in Kota Tinggi (December 2006 - January 2007)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
7
Kota Tinggi, Johore, Malaysia:
Old Timber Bridge (built during WW2)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
8
Kota Tinggi – New Concrete Bridge
(built early 1960s)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
9
Pei Hwa (Chinese) Primary School
• 1958 : Primary 1
• 1963 : PSLE
• What is next after PSLE?
– No Chinese Secondary School in Kota
Tinggi, Johore, Malaysia.
– Nearest Chinese Secondary School : Johor
Bahru…
• 1964 : To English or Malay Secondary
School in Kota Tinggi ??
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
10
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
11
1963 - PSLE
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
12
Laksamana Secondary School
[English School]
• 1964 : “Remove Class”
• Form 1D  Form 2C  Form 3B  Form
4A  Form 5A
• 1967 : Lower Certificate of Education
(LCE) Exam
• 1969 : Cambridge School Certificate
(CSC)/GCE(O)/Malaysia Certificate of
Education (MCE) Exam
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
13
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
14
Laksamana Secondary School,
Kota Tinggi, Johore, Malaysia
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
15
Laksamana Secondary School
[English School]
• What is next after CSC/MCE?
– No Junior College in Kota Tinggi, Johore,
Malaysia.
– Nearest Junior College (English College –
now Maktab Abu Bakar): Johor Bahru…
• 1970 : Choices ?? Can you afford the
tuition fee & living cost to study in JB ??
– Working….temporary teacher (Primary
School)….jungle …construction site
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
16
Johore River @ Kota Tinggi (1970)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
17
To College or Poly ?
(1971)
• KL :
– Tunku Abdul Rahman College (TAR College)
– Technical College (now : Universiti Teknologi
Malaysia)
– Federal Institute of Technology (FIT)
• Singapore :
– Singapore Polytechnic
– Ngee Ann Technical College
• 1971 : Singapore Polytechnic
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
18
Before SIET : SPCES 1972/1973
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
19
1974 – Tech Dip (Civil)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
20
Preparing for ‘University Studies’
[1974 – 1981]
• UK Professional Examinations in
Engineering:
– The Society of Engineers (SOE) :
• Part1 (General)
• Part 2 (Design)
• Part 3 (Management)
– Council of Engineering Institutions (CEI) :
• Part 1
• Part 2
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
21
Statistics : LCCI (1974) – IOS (1977)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
22
The Society of Engineers, UK
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
23
RSA - CEI
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
24
Back to Universities
(1982 – 1983)
• 1981 : SP Fellowship to study overseas
• University of Melbourne :
– Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) – Full-time
• RMIT :
– Graduate Diploma in Applied Statistics (with
OR) – Part-time
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
25
Australia – University of
Melbourne/RMIT (1982 – 1983)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
26
Geology Field Study 1982
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
27
RMIT(1983)/MelbU(1984)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
28
NUS….NTU
• 1984 – 1985 :
– NUS – MSc(Civil Engineering)
• 1992 – 1995 :
– NTU – MSc(Geotechnical Engineering)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
29
1986 – MSc(Civil Engineering), NUS
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
30
1995 – MSc (Geotechnical Engineering), NTU
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
31
1993 – NTU – Group Photo
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
32
Venture overseas
[2002 ….]
• Papua New Guinea :
– PNG University of Technology (Unitech) at
Lae
• Philippines :
– Western Mindanao State University (WMSU)
in Zamboanga
• PR China :
– HKUSPACE Global College in Suzhou.
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
33
Papua New Guinea (2002 - 2003)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
34
Main Entrance to Unitech (2002)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
35
Materials Testing @ Unitech (2002)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
36
Materials Testing @ Unitech
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
37
Graduation – Unitech - 2003
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
38
2005 – WMSU – Philippines –
Prof (Civil)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
39
2007 – Doctor of Education (EdD) - WMSU
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
40
China (2006 – 2008)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
41
Suzhou, China (2006 – 2008)
A canal in downtown Suzhou
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
42
2006 - 2008
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
43
2008 (January) – Snow in
Suzhou, China
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
44
Winter in Suzhou –
2008 (January)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
45
Suzhou – Badminton - 2008
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
46
In Summary
• "The secret of success is constancy of
purpose (意向)." So Be focused (集中)
on what you are doing.
• "Discipline is the bridge between goals
and accomplishments." So Your
Goals/Outcomes must be SMART. T =
the importance of Time - Good Time
Management & Good Attitude or
Mindset!
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
47
A Journey of 50 Years : 1963 - 2013
1963
1970
1974
1980
1990
2006
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
2013
48
My Learning Journeys….
Johore, Malaysia
Cambridge HSC [1971]
[1958 – 1969]
Singapore
Polytechnic
SOE Parts 2 (Design) & 3
(Management)
[1971 – 1974]
CEI Part 2 (Structural)
Melbourne
University
NUS : MSc(Civil)[1984 – 86]
[1982 – 83]
NTU : MSc (Geotechnical)
[1992 – 1995]
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
49
My Journeys to become a qualified ‘Engineer’
Year
Registration
1976
TEng(CEI), United Kingdom
1978
1987
1988
PEng(UK)
CPEng, Australia.
CEng, India.
1991
CEng – Production, UK.
1993
CEng – Materials, UK
1993
1995
1996
CEng – Structural, UK
CEng – Civil, UK
CEng, Ireland.
2002
Registered Engineer, Papua New Guinea
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
50
Other Registrations …..
Year
Registration
1988
Chartered Member, CIT-UK.
1994
Chartered Builder, UK.
1998
Chartered Mathematician, UK.
2005
Chartered Scientist, UK.
2008
Chartered Quality Professional, UK.
2009
Chartered Environmentalist, UK.
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
51
Concluding Remarks
• Believe in yourself (相信自己) and all that
you are, i.e. Know yourself (认识你自己)–
your strengths & weaknesses; your talents
& constraints. Know that there is
something inside you that is greater than
any obstacle.
• Never Give Up (永不放弃) & Never Say
Die (永不言败)
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
52
把握當下，
莫等待。
A Journey of Thousand Miles
begins with a single step.
…..a Chinese Saying
A Journey of Discipline &
Determination - 2013
53