For 28-year-old Indonesian professional Evelyn Clarissa Siregar, asking strangers to help fund her MBA in Singapore was a gamble: she knew the request was unconventional but hoped putting her dream out in public might open a door.
Instead, her appeal for more than S$100,000 (US$78,000) to fund her business programme at Singapore Management University (SMU) drew fierce online criticism, with some labelling her entitled and questioning her plans.
“I never expected the backlash to become this big,” Siregar told This Week in Asia, saying she felt “overwhelmed” by the response.
“Once I finally had the capacity to face everything again, I went back and read all [their] comments and responses. One by one. I cringed, feeling uncomfortable.”