female have anything to do with it?’ He could not answer that, and I survived in that job.” For Prof. Liem, the biggest reward of being an educator is seeing the transformation of those she teaches. One example she cites is a student who initially struggled academically but persisted in his research and self-study to eventually achieve success, receiving an internship and even going on to consider a career in research. “I have witnessed his change from questioning himself to finding his own identity,” she said. “I always say to students: ‘Focus on what’s important, not what’s urgent.’ ” This desire to transform lives through education is based on her own experience when growing up. When she was , her father suddenly became seriously ill, with her family losing its business and income in Jakarta. Reminded in those bleak and uncertain times by her mother that “education is the best investment you could make to yourself”, she studied hard at school, earning a scholarship to Nanyang Technological University in Singapore to study mechanical and production engineering. “My students should be able to see the purpose of their learning beyond academic excellence” A er working as an engineer in Singapore for three years, she went to the United States to do a master’s degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and discovered her passion for aerospace engineering. She le with two master’s degrees, in computation for design and optimization, and aeronautics/astronautics, heading on to the University of Toronto to earn a PhD in aerospace engineering. Her next move was to HKUST, which was just establishing the aerospace program and looking for new faculty members. She found the move from doctoral researcher into the world of teaching “a baptism of fire”. “I was really nervous at the beginning as I never thought teaching could be my career. I still remember I felt jetlagged and sick for the first few days of teaching. But as soon as I started talking in class, I was instantly energized,” she said, adding it was at that moment that she realized that being an educator was her vocation. To increase her educator skills, she spent months taking additional workshops at HKUST’s Center for Education Innovation and took great care preparing her teaching notes. Such e orts did not go unnoticed. Her teaching philosophy and care for students brought her the School of Engineering’s Teaching Excellence Appreciation Award in and , in addition to the UGC award. The UGC honor will enable Prof. Liem to extend her educational sights by developing a new experiential learning course called Student Innovations for Engineering and Science Teaching Aids (SIESTA). Through SIESTA, students will be able to design and develop science demonstration kits or hands-on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) learning toys for primary and secondary school students, including underprivileged children in Hong Kong and developing countries. This will also see her furthering her goal to help students gain a positive and wider view of education and the key role it can play in a person’s life. “My personal experience has taught me that education means hope and a better future, and it can truly change one’s life. Furthermore, education is also about paying it forward,” she said on receiving the UGC award. “My deep appreciation toward learning and education motivates me to instill a positive and purpose-driven attitude toward learning into my students. My students should be able to see the purpose of their learning beyond academic excellence.” Prof. Liem in action in the classroom. “I have treated my students as partners since the very beginning.” 21 IN FOCUS
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