Earlier on, KPPN was clear that there would be no second intake. So when our son was not in the initial line listing, we accepted the decision wholeheartedly. As parents, we geared him up ahead for the other allocated boarding school. After all, we were thinking, that surely everyone who gets a place at KPPN would accept the offer. It turns out, a few students (?parents) had a change of heart and decided to turn down the placement. And so our son and other kids whom he knew, were invited to fill in those empty seats.

In a way, KPPN was still right. This is not a second intake as they are registering on the same day.

What happened?

The call to us parents was made on Friday evening – I was reviewing fundus images and the phone line at the clinic was not stable, so I missed the call. Another call came through while I was driving and I couldn’t pick that up either. My husband also received 2 missed calls and managed to pick up the 3rd call. That was when he got to know about the news. Mr Husband conveyed the news to our son and his face immediately glowed with happiness. We asked him about his decision and without hesitance, he chose KPPN.

To be honest, I was equally pleased with his decision because it was a place that he was already familiar with because of PPCS a few weeks before. He already knew the system and the layout of the place. He knew some of the teachers which is good as well. Plus, he already has a few ‘start-up’ friends. He can find more. At least, I have no worries about the hostel part.

There were several forms to fill out and fees to pay according to income groups. Kumpulan 1 is for students with a total household income of more than RM5K. Kumpulan 2 is for those less than RM4999K and Kumpulan 3 is for students from Sabah and Sarawak. We are in Kumpulan 1. Without subsidy, the total payment is RM 4850.00 per year but after applying subsidy across all groups, Kumpulan 1 students pay RM 2155.00.

Kumpulan 2 RM 5350.00 >>>>> RM 1655.00

Kumpulan 3 RM 5600.00 >>>>> RM 1405.00

The fees can be paid in instalments.

Since I have already taken leave to send my daughter on her first day of school the week before, this time Mr Husband took leave to send our son Ee to his. Interestingly the charming daughter of our Malaysian astronaut, Bella, is also enrolled at the same centre.

Ee is in a room with two other students. I have yet to know their names. I hope they get along well together. There are a few plus points that I like about KPPN so far.

• Students are allowed to bring their handphones. It is a must after all in today’s world. However, they could only have access to it over the weekends. I thought that was lenient enough and shouldn’t invite any complaints.
• I saw the meal menu KPPN sent to their WA group. To me, the food they served for their students was so much better than what I tend to serve at home. Ha ha. I imagine Ee would enjoy his meals very much.
• I liked that KPPN has provided their ‘takwim’ so that parents and students can plan their holidays/leaves.
• KPPN is very family-friendly as there is at least a monthly schedule where students can choose to go back home for a sleepover. While this is not feasible for students who live far away, I like that the option is there. Family plays a part in ensuring that the student’s emotional tank is filled and geared up for the next study session.

InsyaAllah we will be seeing Ee this weekend. Parents are given permission to bring their children out for Iftar and return them to college at the agreed time. I am using hashtag Ee at Permata to document our experience, especially his, during his studies at Permata.