Brac University team becomes First Runner-up in Indo-Pacific Quiz 2022

Redwan Uz Zaman Reham (Freshman, ESS) and Shah Minhaz Noor Chowdhury (MDS) from Brac University became the first Runner-Up of the International Category in the Indo Pacific Quiz Competition, 2022. The competition was organised by the Rajagiri College of Social Sciences and the US Mission in India. It was aimed at students between the ages of 18 and 28 years old from the Indo-Pacific countries. 

Reham and Chowdhury have competed in numerous competitions in Bangladesh. However, competing on an international platform and achieving global recognition was a long-held dream for both. During his second semester at BracU, Reham came across an advertisement for the quiz competition on his Facebook and LinkedIn pages. Spotting the ad on two different social platforms made Reham believe that he must seize this opportunity. Hence, he sought out a senior member of the quizzing circuit, Chowdhury, and they entered the preliminary round as a team. 

After five virtual preliminary rounds, only 24 of the initial 534 teams qualified for the Quarter Finals that took place on the campus of the Rajagiri College in Kochi, Kerala. Their previous experiences helped them pass the online rounds effortlessly. Besides, the prospect of facing an international audience for the first time did not discourage them at all. In fact, they couldn’t help but marvel at the “top-notch” administration of the event. Ultimately, out of the 6 finalists, their team won the position of First Runner-Up.

Nonetheless, their journey was not without obstacles. The back-and-forth process of acquiring a Visa was incredibly gruelling and constantly put them on edge. Even so, the end result made it all worth it. 

The duo urges everyone to participate in extracurricular activities and actively look for opportunities instead of waiting for them to come their way.