Meet Saminur Fauzan, an inspiring young man from Bukittinggi, West Sumatra, born in January 2001. He's a shining star for Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta (UMS), Through a series of victories in various competitions, he has repeatedly brought honor to his university.
For those who know him well, he is often called Sami. Growing up in a religious family, he studied Islamic studies and Arabic at Pondok Modern Darussalam Gontor, following his parents' advice. As a santri (student at an Islamic boarding school), he graduated with the title of Mumtaz (Excellent) and later chose to study Nutrition Sciences at UMS, of course being granted the Hafidz Al-Qur’an Scholarship in 2021.
When asked why he decided to pursue cross-curricular studies the eldest of three siblings just chuckled while shaking his head.
“Previously, I tried several scholarship selections to study abroad. My choices were the Islamic University of Medina (Saudi Arabia), Ma’had Al Haram (Saudi Arabia), and Al-Azhar University (Egypt). For the Medina campus, I passed the entrance test but not the scholarship. Since I had to pay my own expenses, my parents did not agree. For the Egyptian campus, I passed the scholarship, but my parents still said no because many friends from Gontor were there. My father said, ‘You won’t even get out of your comfort zone,’” recalled the alumnus of Gontor.
He followed his mother’s advice. Initially committed to pursuing his interest in Qur'an tafsir studies and Arabic, Sami suddenly switched to studying nutrition.
“The majority of my mother's family works in the health sector, so I enrolled in the Bachelor of Nutrition Sciences at UMS,” he said.
About three years ago, Sami, who was not used to studying science, felt overwhelmed during his first year in the program. The high achiever student received an unsatisfactory Semester Achievement Index (IPS). Realizing his mark is not good enough, Sami admitted that he did self-learning by watching videos on YouTube and purchasing several books to enhance his understanding.
“When I started studying regularly, it still felt like it wasn’t enough. Finally, I decided to study with a senior from the same organization, the Research and Community Service Unit of the Faculty of Health Sciences (FIK) UMS. Her name is Salma, and she encouraged me to compete in various competitions,” said the 6th-semester student.
Sami clearly remembered the first essay competition he participated in, where he met Salma, his inspiring teacher. His approach to learning is unique, like a way of killing two birds with one stone, he’s learning while participating in various competitions
“It was a funny experience! In the essay competition, Salma won first place, while I got second. It was the first competition I participated in independently, not in a group. From that competition, I started to believe in my abilities and eventually got addicted to trying other competitions. It feels good, you know? Winning while also making money,” he said honestly.
Competing became a new step for Sami to challenge himself against other competent students. One thing that became clear to him was that competition is also about the process of learning and self-development.
The Minang youth divided the adaptation phase into two parts: lesson adaptation and schedule adaptation.
“In the third semester, I started to improve my grades and actively participated in competitions. Besides joining the Research and Community Service Unit of FIK UMS, I also served as chairman of the Research and Scientific Development Division at the Muhammadiyah Student Association (IMM) FIK UMS, and general secretary 1 of the Mahasiswa Pencinta Qur’an (MPQ),” he added.
His debut on the national stage turned out to be sweet. Although he did not immediately take first place, he was not discouraged. Instead, he became even more motivated to achieve more.
Since starting to participate in competitions in his third semester, Sami has won many national and international awards. In fact, he and three of his friends became the first representatives from FIK UMS to advance to the World Young Inventors Exhibition (WYIE) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
“Together with Lu’lu’ul, Haira, and Madha, I came up with an innovation called ALOEVIA (Aloe Vera and Stevia) Jelly Candy. We are the first team to represent FIK in an international competition. It feels amazing!” exclaimed the ALOEVIA Team leader.
Read more: Sweet Victory: UMS Students Transform Mundane Product Into Diabetes-Friendly Delights
At that time, he felt the pressure of representing his university at such a prestigious event. He tried to mentally strengthen himself and his friends. After approximately four months of well- preparation, their innovation was rewarded with a silver medal.“Initially, we researched nutrition cases in Indonesia and found that diabetes cases in children were rampant last year due to excessive sugar consumption. So we came up with an idea. How about making candy? Because children love sweets,” said Sami, recalling the inspiration behind their innovation.
Of course, ALOEVIA candy has undergone proximate testing (chemical testing to determine nutrient content) and antioxidant testing (a method to measure a compound’s ability to ward off free radicals). This delicious candy combines jamblang leaf extract, aloe vera, and stevia leaves as natural sweeteners.
“So far, ALOEVIA candy is still my biggest achievement. From the first experience of going abroad, being the first team to represent FIK, to our booth table being packed with visitors. It was so crowded! All the children there were fighting over it, even the judges and global investors were interested in buying our product, which at that time had not been commercialized,” said the WYIE 2022 silver medalist.
Sami's during the Indonesia Inventors Day 2023 event in Bali. personal doc.
Sami also felt special when he discovered that the antioxidant levels in his candy were high. The urge to jump up and shout “Alhamdulillah” crawled through his body instantly.
“Alhamdulillah. I was really surprised! Usually, natural foods have antioxidant levels in the range of 40-50 percent. But our candy reached a level of 70 percent, and it turned out that the result was obtained from jamblang leaf extract, a plant native to Indonesia,” remembers Sami with a bright smile.
Day by day, Sami continued to pursue his passion for becoming an outstanding nutritionist. On December 21, 2022, he took the initiative to form the Nutrition Community (NUTRICOM). This community aims to encourage eagerness among his peers to engage actively in nutrition science.
“Its members have reached 60 students, and it is specifically for UMS Nutrition Sciences students only. In the first year, it was a struggle because there was no formal structure, curriculum, or anything like that. Not many people knew about this community either. But, thank God, in this second year, everything has started to come together,” he explained.
Later, the Student Executive Board (BEM) from various faculties, study programs, and organizations at UMS also participated in NUTRICOM’s International Event Preparation class.
“Just recently, students from the engineering faculty, pharmacy faculty, and economics and business faculty joined our event preparation class. Our class dissects strategies to win competitions, so they are curious about the techniques we use. For me, that is an extraordinary form of support,” he said.
Sami’s journey has not been without hurdles. He often felt overwhelmed when inviting his fellow Nutrition Sciences students to join the community he had formed. His initial promotions were done conventionally, reaching out from person to person.
“But now NUTRICOM has begun to be recognized by students and officially stands under the umbrella of the UMS Nutrition Science Study Program,” explained Sami.
The young man with thick, oval glasses seemed to enjoy the interview. His laughter frequently punctuated our flowing conversation.
Amid Sami’s laughter, we remembered his achievement in early 2024. This outstanding student received the Top 1 SOYJOY Nutritionist Award in the Nutrition Student Organization category.
“I just can’t get over it. I didn’t even spend much effort to participate in this competition,” Sami said.
“It was actually my Student Creativity Program (PKM) from last year about socio-economics for nutrition handling, so I reworked it. Plus, I included some nutrition work programs that I had run before, summarizing everything into ten PPT pages. As short and compact as possible,” he added.
Entering the top five alongside tough opponents from Universitas Gadjah Mada, Universitas Brawijaya, Universitas Andalas, dan Politeknik Kesehatan Kementerian Kesehatan Malang, Sami had to be highly motivated while presenting his nutrition project online in front of the judges, including Professor Hardin, a senior Indonesian nutrition professor.
Unexpectedly, Sami’s optimism during the SOYJOY Nutritionist Award brought him luck. He received a professional offer from SOYJOY Indonesia.
“Their board at that time said, ‘Alright, if you want to work here, just tell our top manager that you are the Top 1 SOYJOY Nutritionist Award 2024.’ But I didn’t take it because I had other goals. I want to continue my master’s studies abroad, I hope I qualified for the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) scholarship,” he said.
Sami’s goal is why he rejected Dr. Nuryanto’s offer of doctoral studies. Dr. Nuryanto is the top-ranked SOYJOY Nutritionist Award winner in the Nutripreneur category.
“During the awarding ceremony at the Auditorium of Mercure Sabang Hotel, Central Jakarta, I spent quite a long time chatting with him. It turns out that Dr. Nuryanto has an extensive background. Long story short, he offered me the opportunity to pursue a doctoral degree through PMDSU (a scholarship program for outstanding scholars to accelerate education towards a doctoral degree at a young age). He even offered to recommend me to the professor who oversees the PMDSU Program,” said Sami
When asked about his current activities, Sami lightly ran his finger through his hair and adjusted his sitting position for comfort. Shortly, he answered, “Right now, I’m just doing internships and Field Work Practices (PKL). I began working on my thesis in the third semester.”
UMS Public Relations/Muhammad Imam Safi'i
Sami's passion for research has become well-known. His study, titled “Iodine Fortification of Poor Rice to Address IDD in Indonesia as a Hidden Cause of Hunger in Children and Adolescents,” was successfully published in the proceedings of the International Conference on Health and Well-Being (ICHWB) 2022. This accomplishment allowed Sami to work on his thesis early. His research focuses on the effectiveness and causes of micronutrient decline in iodine-fortified rice, specifically aiming to combat Iodine Deficiency Disorder (IDD).
“It was my first publication that went straight into international proceedings, and it really motivated me to pursue my academic and professional career in nutrition science,” added Sami.
At the end of the third semester, Sami’s enthusiasm for innovation led him to undertake another experiment. He was motivated to submit his scientific article to the International Conference on Health and Well-Being 2022. UMS has been fully supportive of its students publishing their research in international proceedings as an alternative to a traditional thesis.
“Just believe in your own abilities. Whenever there’s an opportunity, go for it, even if you think, ‘Oh, but I’m still a newbie!’ That’s how it’s been for me,” said Sami, adjusting his glasses.
For Saminur Fauzan, hope for the future is cultivated with every endeavor he undertakes. He diligently prepares, though he often wonders whether his current achievements can pave the way to even greater dreams.
“Everyone experiences their share of failures and successes, so it’s best to learn from them while we’re young. Especially at my age, when we still have the energy Choosing to pursue nutrition wasn’t easy for me, it took a lot of self-convincing. If I had given up in my second year of college, I wouldn’t be where I am today,” he said.
Writer: Genis Dwi Gustati
Editor: Al Habiib Josy Asheva
Designer: Salsabila Kamila Wardah
Translator: Farizal Luqman Majid
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