JOHOR BAHRU, 15 Nov. – Dr. Wan Syazana Wan Shaberi, 40, from Kota Bharu, Kelantan, has earned her Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Facilities Management from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) and received her scroll at the university’s 70th Convocation. She enrolled at the Faculty of Built Environment and Surveying on 5 March 2023 and completed her studies on 18 September 2026, finishing her thesis in three years and publishing four research papers along the way. She achieved this while helping her family care for her father, who needed peritoneal dialysis four times a day, and she kept going after he passed away on 7 June 2025.

Her path to UTM began with a simple email. While searching for a university to pursue her PhD, she found that UTM was the first public university to reply. She was also fortunate to be assigned Associate Professor Sr. Dr. Mohd. Saidin Misnan as her main supervisor, who guided her throughout the journey. It was her second doctoral attempt. Her first did not go as planned, but she says the second attempt brought better supervisors than she had expected.

Dr. Wan Syazana chose Facilities Management because she wanted to address unresolved problems with student sanitary facilities in Malaysian public schools, specifically ventilation, lighting, privacy, accessibility, and basic amenities.

Her research has already reached print. She published two international papers: Students’ Sanitary Facilities and Regulations: An Overview of Public Schools in Malaysia and Sanitary Facilities: An Overview of Important Users’ Perceptions for Public Buildings. She also published two papers in UTM seminar proceedings for an elective subject, Kepentingan Akhlak Sebagai Panduan dalam Kehidupan dari Perspektif Islam and Perspektif dan Etika Tandas Menurut Islam.

The road was not easy. Throughout her studies, she struggled with self-doubt, constantly questioning whether she could complete her doctorate, partly because of her earlier attempt. She overcame it with the help of her main supervisor, co-supervisor, lecturers, staff and the friends she met at UTM.

Her late father’s health was the second and heavier test. His illnesses worsened far faster than the doctors had predicted, and he needed constant supervision and care from family members. Because of his dialysis, she could concentrate on her studies for only two to three hours a day.

Now that she has graduated, Dr. Wan Syazana plans to use her knowledge and experience to raise awareness among the public and government agencies about the importance of improving student sanitary facilities in public schools. She also believes her findings can be applied to sanitary facilities in public, semi-public, private, and other buildings, to better understand users’ perceptions and identify opportunities for improvement.

For anyone chasing a dream through hardship, she offers four lessons from her journey:

1. Every failure teaches valuable lessons that you can apply to your next step.
2. Keep moving forward even when challenges arise.
3. Always be kind and respectful to lecturers and university staff, because their guidance and help are valuable throughout your academic journey.
4. Have faith. As a Muslim, she believes that prayer and conversations with Allah SWT guided her through her studies and her life, giving her strength, guidance and the ability to make better choices.

Beyond earning the doctorate title, she hopes her success will encourage and inspire her siblings if they decide to pursue higher education, and she wants to support and guide them with what she has learned. 

She extends her deep gratitude to her main supervisor for his advice and support and to everyone who contributed to her journey. She also thanks her mother, Marina binti Abdul Rashid, and her siblings, Wan Mohamed Shahril, Wan Syamilah, Wan Syuraya, and Wan Syufia, for their patience, understanding and unwavering support.