Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

The Brunei Students’ Union would like to announce that we will be holding our Annual General Meeting on the 9th of April 2016. As part of the AGM proceedings, new office bearers will be chosen to BSUnion Council to lead and manage the Union for 2016-2017.

BSUnion hopes to represent all the Bruneian students in the UK and Eire, as well as to provide guidance and leadership to the to the 42 affiliated Societies across the country. Being a part of the Council opens up several opportunities for students to make a difference, not only within the Union, but for the entire Bruneian student body.

On 27th Rejab of the Islamic lunar calendar, Muslims worldwide celebrate the historic events of Isra’ and Mi’raj annually to commemorate the one-night journey and ascension of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) to the heavens.

Bruneians residing in and around London gathered at Brunei Hall to commemorate the Israk Mikraj, in line with Brunei’s Vision 2035 to instil core Islamic values in every generation of the Bruneian community. The event took place at the Surau of Brunei Hall in Norfolk Square, London.

Present at the event as a special guest was the Deputy Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, Dato Paduka Awang Haji Mohd Roselan bin Haji Mohd Daud. Also present are the High Commissioner of Brunei Darussalam to the United Kingdom, His Excellency Major General (Rtd) Dato Paduka Seri Haji Aminuddin Ihsan Bin Pehin Orang Kaya Saiful Mulok Dato Seri Paduka Haji Abidin and Datin, the Deputy High Commissioner of Brunei Darussalam to the United Kingdom, Hajah Rooslina Weti binti Pengiran Haji Kamaludin, Lieutenant Colonel (U) Muhammad Azmi Hj Muhammad Husain and the Director of Studies at the Brunei Students’ Unit, Awang Ahmad Faisal bin Haji Zainal Abidin.

The event was chaired by Lieutenant Colonel (U) Muhammad Azmi Hj Muhammad Husain.

Also in attendance are officers and staff from the Brunei High Commission in London, the Brunei Investment Agency, Kensington Palace Gardens, as well as representatives from the Brunei Students’ Union and the Brunei Reading (BruKnights) Society.

A conversion ceremony was held for Najrien bin Juani to coincide with the Israk Mikraj celebrations. After a formal recitation of the declaration of faith (‘Syahadah’), Najrien bin Juani who officially embraced Islam took Muhammad ‘Atiq bin Juani as his new Muslim name. The conversion ceremony was conducted in front of a Senior Imam from the London Central Mosque, Sheikh Khalifa Ezzat.

Muhammad ‘Atiq bin Juani is a recipient of the Ministry of Education scholarship and is currently in his second year, studying for a BSc in Food Science at the University of Reading.
After the declaration of faith, the Dikir Marhaban was recited and Muhammad ‘Atiq was sprinkled with the scented ‘Bunga Rampai’ led by the special guest, Dato Paduka Awang Haji Mohd Roselan bin Haji Mohd Daud. The new convert was then presented a gift during the event by the Deputy Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, Dato Paduka Awang Haji Mohd Roselan bin Haji Mohd Daud and the High Commissioner of Brunei Darussalam to the United Kingdom, His Excellency Major General (Rtd) Dato Paduka Seri Haji Aminuddin Ihsan Bin Pehin Orang Kaya Saiful Mulok Dato Seri Paduka Haji Abidin. The conversion ceremony concluded with the recitation of the Doa Selamat, read by the Religious Officer of the Brunei Students’ Unit Ustaz Haji Muskriman Safari bin Mustafa.

On the sidelines of the event, Muhammad ‘Atiq said that he is truly inspired with the glory of Islamic life since he was in primary school.
“I have observed some of the beauty of Islamic practices and learned about them from my humble muslim lecturers and colleagues. I even tried some of their practices before I have converted to a muslim, such as fasting in the holy month of Ramadhan; teaching myself to control my hunger and practice polite behaviours, following the Sunnah (record of teachings, deeds and sayings, silent permissions (or disapprovals)) of Prophet Muhammad Rasulullah SAW (Peace be Upon Him); smile (senyum) to people, conducting charity or donation (sedekah) and other little meaningful practices,” he added.

“One of my favourite Islamic phrases I always applied in my life is Alhamdulillah; All the praises and thanks be to Allah. The feeling of being appreciative and thankful for what is gifted, no matter how much I have with my life. On the honourable date, 5th of May, 2016, I would heartily to express Alhamdulillah to the Almighty, Creator and Sustainer of the universe, Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala, for the meaningful gift(hidayah) of a muslim, as I have declared Shahada (an Islamic read declaring belief in the oneness of God (Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala) and the acceptance of Muhammad Rasulullah SAW as God’s prophet) with the great blessing from Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala and my beloved family. I am truly proud to be a muslim, as it is my dream to be one of my muslim brothers and sisters.”

Muhammad ‘Atiq also shared his feelings after becoming a Muslim. “After I have converted to a Muslim, I am feeling calm and progressively learning about the glory of Islamic life, with the assistance and dedication from my muslim housemates, friends and also a kind-hearted religious officer from Unit Penuntut-Penuntut. I could not express how I am truly appreciate and proud to be a muslim, and with every blessing from Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala. “Being a muslim, it is not just teaching myself about the world(dunia). It is also teaching myself about the hereafter, as it creates my life full of meaning, “ he remarked.

The conversion ceremony was followed by a special lecture on the importance of prayers, delivered by the Religious Officer of the Brunei Students’ Unit Ustaz Haji Muskriman Safari bin Mustafa. The Isra’ and Mi’raj celebration ended with a mass Maghrib prayer and Solat Hajat at the Surau of Brunei Hall.

More than 40 undergraduate students from the Loughborough Brunei Society (Lufbru) gathered last Saturday at Queen’s Park in Loughborough (United Kingdom) to celebrate their Leaver’s Picnic.

Joined by first and second year students, the annual event this year was dedicated to final year students who will soon be completing their studies at Loughborough University and Loughborough College.

The gathering started with the recitation of surah Al-Fatihah, led by Lufbru’s Male Religious Officer, Hafiz Baha and followed by welcoming speech by the society’s president, Nur Syahirah Rambli.

During the half-day event, Leavers participated in a series of activities that were designed to put their teamworking skills and collaborative spirit to the test. Society members also enjoyed some leisure time and recreational sports including frisbee to further cultivate bonds amongst themselves.

The event was held to show appreciation for their Leavers who have played a crucial role in the growth and development of Lufbru by forming a close-knit Bruneian community.
In line with Lufbru’s tradition of providing ‘a home away from home’, senior members of the society form a strong peer support network by providing assistance and guidance to younger students to help ease the transition into their new lives in the UK. Their active involvement in the society’s weekly religious, sporting and social events have also maintained the presence of the society since its inauguration on 7 February 2007.

The event concluded with presentation of awards to winning teams and appreciation gifts for senior members of the society and finally, recitation of surah Al- ‘Asr.

Coverage in the press

This story was published by Borneo Bulletin on 22 May 2016 under the headline Loughborough Brunei Society holds Leaver’s Picnic.

The BruNotts Society recently held an alumni night at Badi’ah Hotel in Bandar Seri Begawan.

The event which is hosted once in every four years, was attended by both the founding president and vice-president of BruNotts, Hajah Rozaimah binti Haji Abdul Rahman and Nur Adiyani binti Haji Yusop who founded BruNotts in 2003 and graduated from the University of Nottingham in the year 2004.

A crowd of more than 60 people gathered at the alumni dinner. The night event saw, among others, a performance and lucky draw sessions.

The event started with the national anthem followed by the recitation of Surah Al-Fatihah led by the Male Religious Officer of BruNotts, Awangku Syazwan bin Pengiran Sulaiman.

The current President of BruNotts, Nur Syarfa Syazwana binti Ahmadyani, in her speech congratulated BruNotts, highlighting the successful thirteen years of establishment and recent achievements of the society.

“This is the third BruNotts alumni night, after the previous one in 2012 and 2008… BruNotts Society will try to keep the prestigious alumni night as a tradition,” said the president.
According to Nur Syarfa Syazwana, the society celebrated its 13th anniversary last February and has hosted numerous religious and social events held in both Brunei and Nottingham. One of the more profound events that they hosted is the annual BruNotts Easter Games (BEG) during Easter holiday in the UK.

“BruNotts Society was established in conjunction with Brunei Darussalam’s National Day back in 2003. The purpose of the society is to gather all Bruneians studying in the city of Nottingham and not to leach off other society,” said Nur Adiyani.

“To see that up to this day, BruNotts has held the same events as we did back then for 13 years, is really heartwarming,” she added.

BruNotts is a society managed by students studying at the University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University in the United Kingdom. It has affiliation with the Brunei Students’ Unit and Students’ Union of Nottingham University.

The event was organised by the BruNotts Executive Committee and sponsored by Aewon.

The Brunei Society of the University of York, better known as Bru-York Society, held its annual alumni gathering on 11th September at Seasons Restaurant in Gadong.

The event began with the recitation of Surah Al-Fatihah by a member of BruYork Society, Mohammad Raihan Bin Haji Abdul Rahim.

The 17 people who attended the event were alumni and current students of the University of York, including freshers.

The main objective of the alumni gathering is to foster a supportive relationship between the alumni and current students of the University of York and York College.

The event presented an opportunity for freshers to get to know the faces they will see often when in York.

Bru-York Society is a ratified community-based organisation comprising mainly of Bruneian students studying at the University of York, UK.

Its objective is to offer support and welfare to all Bruneian students studying in the University of York and York College and to form connections in the form of friendship with other Brunei-UK societies.

Besides the alumni gathering, the society also holds internal events, such as game night and Leavers’ BBQ, and motivational forum. The motivational forum usually held in April is open to all Bruneian students studying in the UK, and can also be viewed by anyone via livestream.

The Brunei Sheffield Society (BruSheff) along with BruLeeds Society and BruYork Society, will be hosting the Brunei Yorkshire Games (BYG) for the 6th time!

The Brunei Yorkshire Games 2016 will consist of two well-known team sports which are Dodgeball and Indoors Ultimate Frisbee. These sports are not usually offered in regular sports meets, so this is the time to show off your skills!

When?
19.11.2016 (Saturday)

Where?
Concord Sports Centre
Shiregreen Ln, Sheffield, Yorkshire S5 6AE

Who can participate?
– ALL Bruneians in the UK
(BSU card or Bruneian IC needed for identification)
– ONE international import player allowed in EACH team.

————————–————————–————————–————————––
REGISTRATION

FIRST COME, FIRST SERVED BASIS!

£10 off for first 5 teams to register for each sport during early registration!

Early registration start date:
20th October 2016

Normal registration start date:
25th October 2016

Registration end date:
8th November 2016, 2359 GMT.

Dodgeball
– £75 per team (normal fee)
– LIMITED to 10 TEAMS (5 male teams, 5 female teams)
– 6 MIN number of players
– 8 MAX number of players

Indoors Ultimate Frisbee
– £55 per team (normal fee)
– LIMITED to 16 TEAMS (8 male teams, 8 female teams)
– 5 MIN number of players
– 6 MAX number of players

This Lost in London Treasure Trail involves teams of three people solving cryptic clues, finding their ways around the busy city of central London, completing checkpoint challanges and many more!

Each participant will be provided with a complimentary lunch, an exclusive event t-shirt and all information that you may need for the event.

On top of that, teams must also check this event page from time to time and follow the official Instagram account (@uclbruneians) for important updates.

Registration starts on Monday, 6.00 pm, 17th October 2016 and ends on Tuesday, 1st November 2016.
The participation fee is £6.00 per non-UCL students, and £5.00 per UCLU Bruneian Society members.

There is a limit of 50 teams, so register early as the process of the registrations on a first-come-first-serve basis!

Join the Facebook page to follow important updates or/and ask any queries!

For more information on registration and a sneak peek of previous year’s Lost in London events, please go to: https://uclbruneians.wordpress.com/

REGISTRATION FORM FOR PARTICIPANTS: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1_DGXHg5YTN7rX9xiX5q8T7DOo2Q4aKdNZd5QITVvfQs/edit
REGISTRATION FORM FOR VOLUNTEERS: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1MgAe1esCucurvLFgpYrNSwmx6GFd9shkI9yw9uFceqQ/edit
Rules and Regulations for Participants: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DM8mBrkEwbt32pQWHhaGkGAypBK14b6tveZbTesXxHA

[REGISTRATION NOW OPEN!]

THE LONG AWAITED LOST IN LONDON IS BACK AGAIN FOR ITS 8TH TIME RUNNING THIS YEAR!

The Prizes are as follows:

Grand prize: £600.00
Second prize: (to be announced on 26/10/2016)
Third prize: £150.00
Volunteer’s reward: 1 week Fitness Zone FREE VIP Passport & a volunteer’s certificate

By Ainun Ahmad and Iznan Tarip

In anticipating to enter Brunei’s labour market, gone were the days in which a simple degree certification reassures the capabilities of a graduate in taking a role and its responsibilities to an employer. In today’s working world, further transferrable skills are required in addition to academic excellence.

In align to realise Brunei vision 2035, the first Percambahan Minda (intellectual discussion) was set up last Sunday, 13th November 2016 at Brunei Hall, London. The event was organised by Brunei Postgraduate Society in the UK with the theme “1st Class is not enough”: Relevant Skills for Realising Brunei Vision 2035. As part of the vision to turn Brunei Darussalam into a nation widely recognised for the accomplishments of its well-educated and highly skilled people as measured by the highest international standard, the discussion aims to assist students in shaping their way of thinking as a nation-builder that requires them to not only think on what they want, but on what Brunei and its region need.

The format adopted for the session was a panel discussion with guest speakers Yang Mulia Cikgu Ahmad Faisal bin Haji Zainal Abidin, current Director of Studies of Brunei Students’ Unit; Yang Mulia Awang Muhammad Ayyub bin Haji Kamaludin, current PhD candidate in engineering at Imperial College London and is active in supporting UK students in his position as former President of Brunei Student Union; and Yang Mulia Khairunnisa Ash’ari, the Co-Founder and Community Engagement Director of Green Brunei currently studying in King’s College London under the prestigious Chevening Scholarship.

Some of the highlights from the discussion is the need to focus on latitude, love and literacy. As Ayyub explained, latitude refers to the breadth of skills and opportunities one can go after finishing his/her studies. He illustrated this latitude with the example of how only 30% of engineering students ends up doing engineering, 30% in banking and another 30% in consulting. Specialisation is not the only way to success, but interdisciplinarity can be a game changer and gives graduates the flexibility in a constrained job market.

Love refers to the feeling of connectedness from diversity, which is a key strength in a globalised world. Financial, economic, and political literacy were also called out to be lacking among Bruneian, and these should be improved. This can be done by knowing the vocabulary in the field as a first step.

Khairunnisa shared her experience after graduating from UBD in 2011. She volunteered a lot to fill her time, but still found them to be less fulfilling in the beginning. It was until she went to a youth conference where she met inspiring youth that made changes in their respective locality did she actually discover her passion. The lesson here is to push ourselves to go outside of our comfort zone by attending conferences to meet new people with diverse way of thinking.

She also shared one of her secret to being productive, which is to “Buat dulu, pikir karang.” or “Do first, think later.” Students need to do more and not to overthink. By exploring and experiencing, students can find what they are personally passionate about. From finding your passion to you get the energy to push forward even against obstacles and adversities. Only after finding her passion that people started to notice, and within 5 years of graduating, she received various award including the Queen’s Young Leaders Award and Pingat Indah Kerja Baik.

Cikgu Ahmad Faisal highlighted three aspects for students development: Knowledge, Skills and Attitude, or in short KSA. Academic knowledge and broad sets of skills are important, but the right attitude is even more important to have. For example, being egoistic in a workplace is counterproductive as it drags the whole team down. This is where the need to inculcate love within each other is needed, which goes back to the point raised by Ayyub.

In summary, the panel discussion emphasises the importance of active acquisition of skills and knowledge while working towards graduating; personal development to create a career path over preparation for a job title; and networking as resources for the future.

There is a need to expose students to further studies, and insecurity can be attributed to obscurity and lack of preparation. This workshop aims to tackle this issue. With a line-up of credible speakers, students are hopefully well-informed and inspired to pursue higher levels of education and expand their academic capabilities.

FORMAT

The workshop will have various sections of presentations followed by Q&A:

1. “Meninggi Tahap” process by Cikgu Siti Huzaimah binti Haji Jahri/Azahari, Academic Coordinator Officer from Brunei Students’ Unit, United Kingdom
2. Chancellor’s Scholar application by Sarah Ghazali
3. Yayasan ‘Sultan’s Scholar’ application by Vance Tan

Participation is limited to 40 students and certificates of participation will be handed out. There will be a £3 registration fee.

If you are interested, just click this link for more information and the registration form: https://goo.gl/forms/aO7pkVPl1BOnbxCH2

The Youth Dialogue between Yang Berhormat Dayang Khairunnisa binti Awang Haji Ash’ari, the youngest member of the new Legislative Council, and students currently studying in the UK took place on January 28th, 2017 at Brunei Hall, London. The event was attended by 17 students on both postgraduate and undergraduate levels, with officers from Brunei Student’s Unit as observers. The event was also broadcast live through Brunei Postgraduate Society’s Facebook page, with viewers interacting in real-time.

In the beginning YB Khairunnisa explain that as a member of the Legislative Council, she would like to take this opportunity to gather a list of concerns from students as well as recommendations that can be highlighted to other stakeholders such as the ministries..

The event started with a simple ice-breaking session. YB Khairunnisa then asked each participant to write their three top concerns on three separate post-it notes to be placed randomly at the centre. Participants are then asked to stand up and see the post-its, and try to categorise them according to similar themes. In the end, a number of themes emerged and become discussion points across the room. Themes include development of manufacturing versus service sector, the creative industry, renewable energy, tourism, professional mobility in the region, job availability and education. From the discussions, issues were raised and noted, along with participants’ recommendations for improvement.

One of the recommendations was to improve the graduate training program to bridge between life as a students and life at work. Awang Iznan Tarip, a PhD candidiate from Lancaster University, highlighted how graduate training programs and industrial placements are very competitive in the UK. It’s a good platform for students to gain relevant work experience, to top up existing skill set, and open up more opportunities for them in the future. These programs would be attractive to fresh graduates looking to add more values to themselves and be more marketable.

Employers in both private and public sectors would also benefit in terms of having more energetic manpower with fresh ideas. Employers would also be able to identify potential employees in the future, which would then ease their recruitment process. This is also a potential solution for companies looking work experienced workers, but is struggling to find any.

However, in Brunei, these programs are still underdeveloped and underappreciated. For example, governments do allow for short attachments, but these can be rigid because they only accept people taking specific courses, e.g. engineering and accounting. This does not reflect the current reality, where nowadays, you can find engineering graduates taking jobs in finance and investment, for example. So opening up applications would be more beneficial to allow for more explorations.

On behalf of BruNotts:

BruNotts Society held “Acara Malam Nisfu Sya’ban” yesterday night (10th May 2017) at the ESLC, University of Nottingham. “Ya Allah, apabila Engkau telah mendatangkan malam Nishfu Sya‘ban (malam pertengahan Bulan Sya‘ban) kepada makhluk-Mu, maka curahkanlah kepada kami kurnia dan pembebasan-Mu (pembebasan dari api neraka), dan tentukanlah kami sebagai orang-orang yang mendapatkan kurnia-Mu, kelimpahan rezeki-Mu, serta jadikanlah kami sebagai orang-orang yang melaksanakan di antara hak-Mu.”

BruNotts Society held “Acara Malam Nisfu Sya’ban” yesterday night (10th May 2017) at the ESLC, University of Nottingham. “Ya Allah, apabila Engkau telah mendatangkan malam Nishfu Sya‘ban (malam pertengahan Bulan Sya‘ban) kepada makhluk-Mu, maka curahkanlah kepada kami kurnia dan pembebasan-Mu (pembebasan dari api neraka), dan tentukanlah kami sebagai orang-orang yang mendapatkan kurnia-Mu, kelimpahan rezeki-Mu, serta jadikanlah kami sebagai orang-orang yang melaksanakan di antara hak-Mu.”

A post shared by BruNotts Society (@brunottsofficial) on May 11, 2017 at 10:15am PDT

On behalf of Brunei Hall Students’ Committee:
Please find below photos from Nisfu Sya’ban celebration at Brunei Hall on the 10th of May.