EXCLUSIVE: UPM Graduate, Misha Nanthakumar Outshines With Her Royal Education Award

Isn’t it a dream for all children to make their parents proud one day?

Moments of having my parents up the stage to celebrate my success serve a bliss-like sentiment to me. I am totally thankful for these blessings -Misha Nanthakumar

Recent graduate Misha Nanthakumar not only completed her bachelor’s in Business Administration but also received prestigious awards from Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). A proud moment for the 23-year-old arises as she receives both first-class honors and The Royal Education Award from The Royal Highness, Duli Yang Maha Mulia Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Alhaj Ibni Almarhum Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Alhaj. The Royal Education Award is one of the most prestigious awards endorsed by Majlis Raja-Raja Melayu and awarded to graduates with notable achievements in their academics, co-curricular, leadership, and community work. Adding to it, Misha also gave her valedictorian speech during UPM’s 46th Convocation Ceremony.

“This award certainly reflects a high family sentiment to me for being the youngest in my family to receive the Royal Education Award after my sister, ” said Misha proudly as she looked up at her elder sister, Dusha. Dusha Nanthakumar was also a recipient of the Royal Education Award and recently got graduated on June 2022 from Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI).

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This bright student that scored an average CGPA of 3.911 had her dark times too and managed to overcome those challenges. “ Mental health is very important for an individual, especially for a student to take good care of. I personally went through breakdowns knowing I had to let go of good opportunities to chase and complete what was on my plate instead. For instance, I received an offer to go to Japan for a short-term study semester. Unfortunately, I had projects and major team events that were ongoing and had to be prioritized. But at moments like that, I often motivate myself that such opportunities would come again and there is nothing to worry about. You have to trust the process, know your priorities at the moment, and don’t give up too easily,” said Misha during an interview with Varnam Malaysia.

Misha previously served as the Malaysian Representative executive intern member in the Hult Prize Global Accelerator Program 2021 organized by Hult Prize Foundation and the United Nations at Ashridge Business School, United Kingdom. She was selected to receive internship exposure in the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) National Internship Support Programme hosted by different NGOs across Malaysia in 2020. Besides all that, this talented young lady was also a Merit Listed Candidate (Malaysia) for ASEAN-Australia Strategic Youth Partnership (AASYP) Speaker Series.

So much for a business and active volunteering student, she’s very passionate about music and has a special space for that too. Misha is a talented pianist that owns an International Certificate of Excellence in piano for classical music. She often does covers of her favorite tunes and shares them online through her social media platform. Most of the time, students tend to put more focus on their academic journey and lose interest or let go of their hidden talent. Unlike Misha, she proves that it is possible to succeed in education and prioritize talents or things you love to do. With the right mind and well mental health, anything is possible to achieve.

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-One of Misha’s favorite covers she tuned with her Keyboard.

Misha is currently working as a Procurement Executive and plans to gain some work experience before considering her Master’s/Ph.D. Her main goal is to build her career path by engaging with supply chain-related conferences and actively seeking opportunities to share and gain further insights on Sustainable Procurement through platforms like Tedx.

“ To all the youngsters out there, education is the key to every door you dream to open. Learn as much as you can and develop yourself not only intellectually, but also emotionally and spiritually, added Misha.

Congratulations on the amazing success Misha and keep inspiring!