Top 100 uni? Full-ride scholarship? Big job offer before graduation? We see these A students and “holy airballs” heirs all over social media.
But what about the “less successful” students?
No viral post. No shiny headline. Just figuring it out. Their stories matter too.
Dr Jarrod Sio was one of them. He started out as an average student but eventually became the Assistant Director of the Sarawak State Education Department in the Malaysian Ministry of Education.
Meet Dr Jarrod Sio
At first glance, Dr Sio has it all; the holy trinity of an education degree – a bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD. A prominent government position that oversees the implementation of federal English language policies across the state.
Yet another shiny master’s degree – from the University of Cambridge, no less.
No one could tell he had been just okay in his exams, denied a sixth form offer, and even dropped out of engineering school.
“I had a really idyllic childhood in Sibu, and throughout my schooling years, I was constantly surrounded by high-performing, wealthy students, while I was pretty average,” says Dr Sio. “In that kind of setting, I was considered extremely underperforming by everyone around me, especially my teachers and family.”
Because he didn’t do well in school, Dr Sio went through the typical ups-and-downs of an Asian family, such as being compared with other high-achieving students, having his poor results plastered onto the classroom wall, and the judging whispers of other parents.
“My father approached his friend, who was a teacher, to ask if he could tutor me,” says Dr Sio. “To my father’s outrage, his friend turned him down, saying that he only took on students who were already smart to begin with. I wasn’t good enough, apparently!”
It wasn’t the first time Dr Sio would be rejected. After finishing his SPM – Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia, or the national Malaysian Certificate of Education, with mediocre grades, he was denied entry to sixth form, the country’s equivalent of the A-Levels.
“The lady that rejected me was actually a family friend that I’ve known my entire life,” he confesses. “She looked at me, smiled, and said – ‘Jarrod, I’d never accept you.’ This also happened in front of my mom, mind you.”
While Dr Sio was lucky enough to have a naturally happy-go-lucky disposition and ignored the comment, his parents were less overjoyed.
“My father decided to send me to (an) engineering school without consulting me, because he was a radiologist, and his friends told him that engineering would make big bucks,” he says. “So he signed me up for the most difficult one – electrical and electronics engineering. He handed me the application, told me to sign in, then essentially shipped me off.”
Looking back, Dr Sio knew that his father had always meant well. When he struggled in engineering school, his parents pointed out a newspaper clipping advertising an education programme.
“At that time, teaching was considered something of a last resort,” he says. “I applied for the heck of it, got the interview, and then dropped out of engineering school one semester before I graduated. But that turned out to be the best decision of my life.”
Finding his calling
Dr Sio knew he had found his calling. He had to travel across the South China Sea to attend classes at the University of Malaya, the country’s oldest institution of higher education, and then take a two-year foundation programme before starting his degree.
After graduating with his bachelor’s, he was immediately posted to a rural school in Selangau, a small town in Sarawak. He taught on weekdays, then took three-hour boat rides back and forth on the weekends to attend classes for his master’s programme.
It was tough – he had no free time, but Dr Sio says he wouldn’t have traded the experience for anything else.
“One moment that was pretty memorable to me was when a female student told me she wanted to become the Prime Minister of Malaysia,” he reflects. “The whole class roared with laughter – but I told them that other countries had female prime ministers, so who’s to say we won’t eventually have one? It was incredible because these kids are from a rural area; not even urban kids aim for a career in politics, much less a prime minister.”
He taught there for several years, even spending some of his weekends as a part-time lecturer at a university in a nearby town, teaching sociology and English to aspiring preschool teachers. It was only a matter of time before he started considering his next step.
Dr Sio visited the UK for the first time and started considering picking up another master’s degree there. Source: Dr Jarrod Sio
“The thing about a master’s degree is that it encourages you to go further,” he says. “With that in mind, I took up a PhD – mostly out of curiosity. It took me five years to finish, and by then I was already holding a full-time position in office, but only at the district level.”
Over the years, Dr Sio worked hard in the ministry, mainly overseeing the implementation of federal English language policies. He eventually worked his way up from the district level to the state, even taking a year off for a one-year stint at Cambridge, where he pursued an M.Phil in Educational Leadership and Improvement in 2022
Today, the man who was once rejected from the sixth form is now in charge of it across the state. Amusingly, he’s come full circle, he admits.
“I also deal with parents who come to my office wanting their children to enter sixth form, and of course, these kids feel dejected about not being eligible – so I tell them my story,” he says. “I tell them they don’t have to go to sixth form – they can try polytechnic studies, teachers’ training, or enter private local universities if they have the chance to.”
That’s not all he had to say, either. Here’s some of his best advice for students today:
Looking at him today, you wouldn’t have known he used to be an average student and an engineering school dropout. Source: AFP
Dr Jarrod Sio’s advice for students – three best tips
Being a Malaysian Ministry of Education member, Dr Sio is clear on one thing – it’s a different world now. What may have worked for his generation in the past may not work today, and that’s a reality he encourages both students and their families to accept.
Be open-minded
A 2023 report showed that many students were interested in becoming social media influencers, drawn by the potential to earn big money without having to earn a degree or work a regular nine-to-five.
While this news was met with concern, disbelief, or scorn by many others who read it, Dr Sio sees no issue with it.
“It’s time to consider both traditional jobs and non-traditional jobs,” he says. “I see no harm in it as long as you know what you’re getting yourself into. There is a market for it, and there are people out there who do make money off non-traditional routes like this.”
Although Dr Sio admits that this advice for students has commonly been met with skepticism, he jokingly chalks it up to people being afraid of the unknown.
“Being an influencer is a business proposition these days,” he adds. “It’s the same with going into consulting or freelancing, or wanting to go to Hollywood to learn to sing and dance – they’re not a very traditional path, but there’s nothing wrong with them as long as you have passion for it.”
Career switching is common
Ever heard of the Japanese concept of “salaryman”?
The term commonly refers to a white-collar office worker who stays within a company, often for their entire career, with a focus on long hours and unwavering loyalty.
For many within the boomer and Gen X generations, this was their reality. However, Dr Sio insists this concept no longer applies to current times.
His advice to students? Be prepared to switch jobs multiple times throughout their professional lives.
“My generation would encourage us to go for the money – to go where the money is,” says Dr Sio. “I’ve had friends who worked in Ernst & Young or Deloitte, and they would boast about working until 11 p.m. What’s the point of putting your nose to the grinder if you do not have a life?”
Dr Sio is adamant that those entering the job market today are motivated by other factors, such as work-life balance or finding purpose. He calls it “quitting the rat race.”
“As someone who used to be a teacher, I can say that you won’t be the most wealthy,” he adds. “But you will most certainly have a meaningful, purposeful life. I know that’s what it was like for me.”
Having been a struggling student previously, Dr Sio knows all about the right advice for students nowadays. Source: Dr Jarrod Sio
Your degree isn’t the endgame
Perhaps a more commonly heard opinion, but one that Dr Sio still strongly believes.
“The degree you get is not necessarily the career you’ll be in,” he insists. “People talk about transferable skills all the time – yes, it’s cliche, but it’s true.”
He brings up one example – the American style of pursuing liberal arts.
“I’ve met Americans who are very good conversationalists because they can do everything, rather than specialising in one thing,” he says. “They can study medieval period English, pursue history or women’s studies, or even read about the psychology behind Taylor Swift lyrics. There is value in that.”
You may ask how this would work in a university setting, especially if you’re already pursuing your degree. He advises students to explore, take up electives, and read beyond their discipline.
“For example, language electives are great options,” he says. “Korean, Japanese, and Spanish are some oversubscribed options, but you can take up things like Portuguese or African languages, if available. If you’re into social sciences or humanities, pick up literature, poetry, or something completely different like Intro to Investment Finance.”
Aside from potential pathways to a new interest or career, Dr Sio highlights the most critical aspect – the colourful experience makes one more empathetic.
“One of my favourite authors, Richard Dawkins, is a biologist from Oxford, but he writes beautifully because he reads literature and loves poetry,” he muses. “It’s great to have preoccupations that have nothing to do with your discipline, and students should do more.”
