Experience is Khair’s Best Teacher

A Story of Khair Fadhillah, Bangkit 2023 Batch 1 Graduate from Informatics Engineering, Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta

“Success only comes to those who dare to attempt.”
Mallika Tripathi, Indian Author

When most people think talent determines success, Khair Fadhillah (22) proved it wrong. This Informatics Engineer student believes effort contributes the most to someone’s triumph. Therefore, since high school, Khair has equipped himself with many working experiences―the blue-collar ones.

From delivering food to becoming a chicken slaughterer, Khair realized that his decision to be independent as early as possible built his toughness and helped him to survive and achieve more in Bangkit. How was Khair’s journey in this program? Let’s check it out!

Been Familiar with Blue-Collar Jobs since High School

Born and raised in Tangerang Selatan, Khair is the oldest of four. His parents are lecturers at a university. Although from a middle-class family, his desire to be financially independent has existed since high school. He wanted to become a good role model for his younger siblings.

Therefore, Khair saw that working as a food delivery driver was the only opportunity he could get. From door to door, he delivered food to earn extra money so that he shouldn’t depend on his parents anymore. This experience expanded his network, and from this job, Khair became familiar with problem-solving and could practice his patience.

Besides bustling in delivering food, Khair also helped his grandfather, who had a chicken farm. He was usually assigned to carrying dozens of sacks of grain. It was a valuable experience for him since his involvement in these blue-collar jobs developed his resilience.

A Delivery Person Who Wants to Be a Reliable Tech Talent

Having more than one part-time job didn’t hinder Khair from doing great at school. He graduated from high school and enrolled at Universitas Islam Negeri (UIN) Syarif Hidayatullah. His parents suggested he study Informatics Engineering. Without any further consideration, Khair obeyed his parents’ wishes.

As a person with the principle of “just love what you do,” Khair didn’t encounter any difficulties when his life as an IT student began. He loves conquering challenges, and it made him enjoy his college life. Attending lectures on campus while delivering food or slaughtering the chicken became Khair’s daily routine.

In the middle of his bustle on campus and at a chicken slaughterhouse, Khair met Bangkit. At that time, Bangkit was held under the auspices of Kampus Merdeka for the first time in 2021. Khair was intrigued to participate because he wanted to expand his horizons and dive deeper into tech; knowledge obtained from campus was quite basic and wouldn’t be sufficient to prepare him to be a tech talent.

Unfortunately, Khair hadn’t reached the 5th semester then. Therefore, he only got to participate at the beginning of 2023. Finally, his long wait culminated in acceptance to Bangkit 2023 Batch 1, the Mobile Development (Android) path.

Implementing Time Management Skills from Bangkit

We can’t win every battle, and Khair understood this since he became Bangkit 2023 Batch 1 Cohort. Hence, he signed off his job at the chicken slaughterhouse to focus on Bangkit. However, sometimes, he delivered food from door to door to earn extra money.

Being convinced by the method of “learning by teaching” and to get himself more prepared before taking the plunge into the professional world, Khair taught programming to high schoolers and became a professor assistant on campus. All of these activities were exerted while Khair was learning in Bangkit.

“Without implementing time management skills gained from Bangkit, I would never make it in balancing my activities on campus, teaching at school, delivering food, and learning in Bangkit. That situation prompted me to have more discipline.”

In addition to Khair’s gaining from Bangkit, he was also interested in a soft skills class that discussed adaptability. It mattered to Khair since adaptability was considered the thing he relied on the most in switching his roles―a blue-collar worker, a part-time teacher, and a student―back and forth.

Created an App to Help SMEs and Chicken Suppliers

It wasn’t easy for Khair to survive and give his best in Bangkit while playing multiple roles―a student, a part-time teacher, and a delivery person. Staying up all night, even until 5 a.m., was something Khair used to do as he underwent 900 hours of learning in Bangkit.

After obtaining abundant tech and soft skills insights, his time to implement his knowledge in the capstone project came. He teamed up with his Machine Learning and Cloud Computing peers to create AyamHub, an app that connects small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with chicken suppliers.

“The inspiration to create AyamHub with the team came from my experience working in the chicken slaughter industry. I saw that the SMEs have difficulty finding the right chicken suppliers. They still rely on Facebook or word of mouth, which is impractical for them.”

Working on that project helped Khair to develop his leadership skills as he was assigned as the project manager. This capstone activity got him to understand that soft skills matter to tech talents to collaborate with others.

Khair’s Fruitful Endeavor

After going through the ups and downs of striving in Bangkit, Khair’s effort bore fruit. He didn’t only successfully graduate from Bangkit 2023 Batch 1 but was also entitled to hold the title of “distinction graduate.” It means Khair’s learning achievements are among the top 10% of all Bangkit 2023 Batch 1 Cohort.

Now, Khair wishes nothing but his immediate graduation from campus. He couldn’t wait to launch his first tech career and develop AyamHub further.

“Great opportunity rarely comes twice, and it will only come to those who dare to try,” is what Khair wanted to emphasize to the Bangkit 2023 Batch 2 Cohort, a statement he picked to close his interview session.

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