Passion a must, says doctorate holder

GEORGE TOWN: Family encouragement, self-motivation and burning the midnight oil were the 'recipe' for Evan Quah, 31, who graduated with a Doctorate in Philosophy in Biology, specialising in Herpetology which deals with reptiles and amphibians.
Quah, who did his doctorate at University Sains Malaysia (USM) , Penang, was grateful to his family for being very supportive when he decided to pursue his course.
He did the doctorate course full-time since 2009 and received his degree at USM's convocation last Saturday.
"We must have a passion for what we do," he told theSun, adding it was not an easy task.
He said his university supervisors and coursemates helped ensure he was able to successfully complete his doctorate.
On obstacles he faced, he said there were lots of challenges such as hiking up mountains or jungles to do some experimental study as part of syllabus.
On his future, he said he will not hesitate to grab any opportunities including going overseas, and expressed his interest on doing research.