1.

Introduce yourself
 My name is fikri ahmad furqan, you can call me fikri. I am a civil servant at National
Research and Innovation Agency. My occupation is a nuclear science researcher. My
interest is mainly in nuclear fuel research.
2. Academic background, activities during college
 I graduated from Indonesian Polytechnic of Nuclear Technology. I held a bachelor
degree in nuclear chemical engineering. During my college years, I was a member of the
student executive board in research and technology division. I also often become a
committee member in events which held on campus.
3. Why applying to lpdp?
 I applied to lpdp because because lpdp obliges their awardees to contribute to the
country and I’m the person who want to contribute to my country through my
knowledge in nuclear science. I want to dedicate myself for the country besides being a
civil servant. I hope LPDP can bridge me in achieving my goals.
4. What program which university? Why applying to those programs? What will you learn at those
programs?
 Currently I planned to apply to 3 different majors in different university. I chose tokyo
institute of technology majoring in nuclear engineering, then university of birmingham
majoring in physics and technology of nuclear reactors, and the last is university of
southampton majoring in chemistry. I chose these university by considering my abilities
right now. The factors that are taken into account are the GPA and the score of the
required language certificate. So for the first why I choose tokyo institute of technology
majoring in nuclear engineering? Because they are one of the best institutions of
nuclear engineering in Japan. I’m interested in applying to them because they have
nuclear chemical engineering courses in their module. This is the same course I have
studied at undergraduate level and I want to learn more about it. Secondly why I chose
university of Birmingham majoring in physics and technology of nuclear reactors?
Because this programme began in 1956 with the build of the first nuclear reactor in
Britain and made them one of the pioneers in nuclear engineering institution in UK. I’m
interested in applying to them because their research mainly in nuclear fuel modelling
and I want to expand my knowledge in that kind of research. And the last why did I
choose university of Southampton majoring in chemistry? Because energy is one of their
main research and they have nuclear magnetic resonance course in their module. This is
the course I want to take for a long time ago because I didn’t have it in my
undergraduate.
5. Where is the connection between your programs to your academic background?
 I am a nuclear chemical engineering major, the programs that I have planned to take is
closely related to my majors. Because nuclear chemical engineering is a major where
you learn nuclear engineering and chemical engineering in the same time.
6. Why youre not applying to other programs?
 Because there are not many people study in this program in Indonesia and I want to be
an expert in this specific major to contribute in energy sector in Indonesia.
7. Why do you have to go abroad?
  Because the major I want to expertise is very limited in Indonesia. the only one
institution that provides the program is ITB. The advantage of studying this course
abroad is that there will be a field study of working in nuclear power reactors. This
experience cannot be obtained in Indonesia because we do not have nuclear power
reactors.
8. Why do you choose those countries?
 I choose Japan because Japan along with south korea are the most advanced in nuclear
research in asia. I prefer Japan to south korea because their culture is more diversed
and friendly to international student. I also choose UK because UK is one of the pioneers
in nuclear research. So their research quality in nuclear science is top notch. They are
also one of the United Nations Security Council members, a council whose members
possess nuclear weapons.
9. Explain the curriculum how long the program takes? Is it a research or taught program?
 Basically all of these three programs that I would like to take is a postgraduate taught
study. The nuclear engineering program in Tokyo institute of technology will last for 2
years that consist of 4 quarters each year. So there will be 8 quarters in total. In the first
year I will be studying the basic and advance courses of nuclear science and It will end
up with projects and experiments. In the second year the program will fully focus on
research thesis. Different from Japan, in UK the postgraduate study will only take a year.
The Physics and Technology of Nuclear Reactors program in University of Birmingham
consists of 180 credits. all of the core modules consist of 120 credits and the research
project consists of 60 credits. The Chemistry program in University of Southampton
consists of 4 semesters. Each semester includes 12 weeks of study followed by 2 or 3
weeks of exams. The taught part of the course takes place over the first 2 semesters.
The research project will carry out in semester 3 during the summer.
10. Tell your undergraduate thesis
 My undergraduate thesis is about drug delivery with nanomaterials. the drug was the
radioisotope iodine 131 and the delivery medium is carbon nanomaterial. This research
principally was chemical adsorption and desorption. The purpose of this study was to
determined the adsorption isotherm model, thermodynamic parameters, kinetic model
and the value of activation energy.
11. Tell your thesis
 In nuclear engineering major I would like to take I want to take the topic of separating
nuclear materials between uranium and thorium by the adsorption method. The
adsorbent is a nanomaterial that can interact by physisorption or chemisorption with
nuclear materials. Ive done researched in this topic in my undergraduate thesis and I
would like to take it to higher level. This topic can be applied to chemistry major as well.
But maybe I need to change the nuclear material to non-nuclear material such as
Zirconium and Hafnium. The separation between zirconium and hafnium might be
similar to uranium and thorium. Whereas in Physics and Technology of Nuclear Reactors
program I would like to take a topic about nuclear fuel modelling. We have our own
nuclear fuel which made of uranium silicide. I might be conducted a modelling regarding
to that fuel in a similar condition with our research reactor in Indonesia.
12. What effort have you done to do your research? Have you had your supervisor?
  I haven't contacted the supervisor yet but I already have several candidates. In Tokyo
Institute of Technology I would like to propose Professor Yukitaka Kato as my
supervisor. In University of Birmingham I l would like to propose Professor Paul Norman
as my supervisor. In University of Southampton I l would like to propose Professor
Phillip Warwick as my supervisor. All of these supervisors are people who working in
nuclear research.
13. What kind of activities you would like to take during your study?
 I want to join the Indonesian Student Association to expand my professional
networkship also to contribute to Indonesia while being abroad. In campus activities, I
might be joined the chess club or martial arts club.
14. Contribution to Indonesia, short and long term! Explain how your plan will contribute to
Indonesia! What problem you want to solve in Indonesia? What challenges will appear when
you execute your plan?
 I want to contribute to Indonesia by educating the public about nuclear science and
technology. I want to solve the issues in energy sector. I believe nuclear energy and
renewable energy will become the solution to the energy crisis in Indonesia. My short
term plan when I return to Indonesia is that I want to be a mentor for undergraduate
interns at my institution. Then I would like to proceed to doctoral study and mastering a
topic regarding to nuclear fuel research. My long term plan is to become an expert in
the nuclear fuel research field and to contribute to build the first power reactor in
Indonesia.
There will be challenges in my plan such as lack of funding, human resources and
equipments. And how I tackle those challenges? First I would like to
15. How will you respond to job offer abroad?
 I am a civil servant as well as a researcher, the offer to work in other agencies, especially
in abroad is something that I must refuse because of my commitment to my country.
but I will accept if it is a collaboration research which I will still involve my research
agency in Indonesia and that is a good thing because it can bring our research move
forward. My plan is to build research collaborations that can enable high-quality
research with overseas institutions. This is possible to happen because I can get this
through building the professional relationships through our overseas student
association during my college years with some research institution abroad like college or
research agency.
16. What do you think about lpdp awardee who studied abroad and do not return to Indonesia
afterward?
 I think it's a selfish act because the purpose of this scholarships is to build the nation
through the education, so we should go back and contribute to our community in
Indonesia because the scholarships that we get are come from their tax money.
17. How do you contribute to Indonesia when youre studying abroad?
 I will be able to contribute to the country by any kind of activities that I would have in
Indonesian Student Association. For instances, I can share my knowledge about study
abroad, nuclear science, or anything that I can share with Indonesian students. Also I
would like to help my research agency in Indonesia, because in some occassion my
 research agency often need help to find the international testing standards documents
such as ASTM and ASME. It will be my pleasure to help them.
18. What is your biggest achievement?
 I once got the highest score during the CPNS Basic Competency Selection (SKD). My
score was 394. With this score, it automatically makes me rank 1 in the field that I am
aiming for. I actually never thought I would get such a high score. Moreover, all of my
competitors have average academic abilities above me. I almost know all my rivals
because we are from the same college. However, I don't think I've won over all my rivals
because I don't feel like I have to prove anything. I just feel very satisfied and proud of
myself because my hard work can exceed my own expectations.
19. What is your terrible experience? How do you overcome those difficult times? What lesson can
be learned?
 My mother had a tumor due to miscarriage. Almost half a year my mother was
hospitalized. I am very close to my mother and seeing the financial and health
difficulties at that time was very difficult for me. But thanks to the support from my
relatives and friends who always strengthen me and my family so that we can get
through those difficult times. That experience gave me many valuable lessons to respect
my family and try my best to always give the best for my parents.
20. What is your strength and weaknesses? How do you overcome your weaknesses?
 I think my strength are I’d love to learn new things, I have good analytical and critical
thinking skills, I am a detail oriented, I'm a conscientious person and I have good
emotional control. The drawbacks that ive got is that I can't multitask. For me quality is
more important than quantity. So when Ive got to do a lot of work to be done I usually
start very early more than anyone else and I'm the type of person who doesn't like to
procrastinate. I am also person who cannot forgive others easily. I tend to be picky in
making friends to avoid to get hurt. To overcome this Ive tried to get used to myself
joining a group in a community since when I was still in college and I think it worked. I
sometimes also have excessive anxiety about something. Sometimes this feeling is
useful to get me more prepared to face something in the future. But in some occasion, I
usually divert it by keeping myself busy with various activities like doing sports, playing
guitar, playing chess and so forth
21. What is the last thing you teach yourself?
 When the COVID-19 pandemic occurred in early 2020, I was more often at home than at
work. This makes me unproductive. I tried to do something the least I can do at home. I
tried to read the manuals of the instruments in the laboratory that I had never
operated. I chose to further read the manual of the Graphite Tube Analayzer. And finally
I understood the working principle of the instrument and I was able to operate it. I get
appreciation from my co-workers because actually the previous operator of the
instrument has retired so I can replace him and the instrument still can be used
properly.
22. How will you survive abroad? How will you adapt to new culture and circumstances? If theres a
conflict how do you solve it?
 I've been living far away from home since I graduated from high school until now. I think
I've been living independently for 8 years and there are no significant problems since
 then. But I've never been abroad before. I think the only way to survive abroad is to
master the language and build a good relationships with local residents. Also by joining
the Student Association we can help each other if one have problems. So whenever I
have conflicts I can get through it with a help from friends and relatives. As Indonesian I
love my culture, I will always stick to my roots and values during my study abroad. Im
also a moslem so I will use my religion as a guidance everytime Im introduced to new
culture and circumstances.
23. What are Indonesian cultural values that you want to introduce there? And how do you do it?
 Im an Indonesian I proud of it. Indonesia has many cultures and values. The values that I
want to introduce is our hospitality. Whenever I meet someone on the street I will be
the first to greet even I don’t know him/her. Because our country is famous of this kind
of hospitality and I want to keep it everywhere I go. The culture I want to introduce is
our batik. Batik is something that never goes out of style. Like the batik that I'm wearing
right now is kenikir batik. I bet foreigners will like it because it uniqueness and
authenticity.
24. What if you are busy with activities outside of campus?
 I will go back to the original plan that i will prioritize my study over anything else and if
in the end i am still faced with that situation i am sure i can manage it as best as possible
with a good time management so i can keep my education in the first priority.
25. Are you sure you can finish the course in time?
 Yes I feel confident that I can excel academicly because I will be prepared by preparing
course resources in the program long before I go to there so I can be more ready to
keep up in class. However I know that I still have to work very hard to always keep my
commitment to study and finish the program in time.
26. What is the difference between you and other participants?
 What makes me different from other participants is that my field of expertise is very
specific and there are only a few of human resources are available in this expertise in
Indonesia. I graduated from Indonesian Polytechnic of Nuclear Technology majoring in
Nuclear Chemical Engineering. There is only one campus in Indonesia in this area of
expertise. I think the human resource in this major are very much needed to achieve the
goals that have been designed in the RPJMN and RPJPN. Because at this time the
country is experiencing a crisis in the energy sector that uses fossil fuels. Therefore, I can
say that I am the right candidate for this scholarship.
27. What are you afraid of when you studying abroad?
 I am afraid of unexpected things that possible to happen to myself like become a crime
victim such as muggings, stabbing, robbery or something that happen beyond my
control like fire accidents. It is important for me to build a good healthy relationship
with local residents in my neighborhood, classmates in my college, and also to my
Indonesian fellow in the student organization association to build a support system
between each other. So everytime we face a problem we can get help from one
another. The thing that I will have to pay attention to is that I will always keep my
important files in both physically and digitally form to anticipate the unexpected things.