Bahau:Overcoming significant personal challenges, Lim Mei Zhen, a 23-year-old graduate of Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP), has been awarded the prestigious Chancellor's Gold Award. Despite being abandoned by her mother and orphaned at the age of 18, Lim transformed her hardships into motivation, culminating in this esteemed recognition.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Lim, the third of four siblings from Bahau, Negeri Sembilan, faced adversity early in life, including surgery for a neck tumour at 12 and the subsequent loss of her father to COVID-19. The financial strain from medical costs and the loss of family income posed significant challenges. However, inspired by her elder brother's educational success, Lim prioritized her education over immediate financial gain.

After losing their family home, Lim's aunt and uncle provided her with shelter, allowing her to focus on her studies. A full scholarship from Yayasan Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS enabled her to pursue a degree in Civil Engineering at UTP. She graduated with First Class Honours, achieving a CGPA of 3.80.

Lim's academic journey included innovative research on using chickpea waste to create a biopolymer-based flocculant for microalgae harvesting, which achieved 96.15% efficiency. Her work gained recognition at the PETRONAS CHESS Innovation Challenge 2024 and is set to be published by Springer Nature.

In addition to her academic pursuits, Lim co-founded a trading company providing professional attire and wigs in South Sudan and Uganda. She also offered free online English tuition to underprivileged primary school students, driven by her own challenges in language proficiency during scholarship interviews.

Lim aspires to enter the finance sector following her graduation, aiming to inspire others by showcasing the opportunities available through education and perseverance.