RIT Days (1965 – 70)

by Zaw Min and Ohn Khine

Updated : June 2025

Edited by Hla Min

Introduction

Zaw Min (EP70)

• Matriculated from St. Albert’s High School, Maymyo in 1964.
• Had a high ILA (Intelligence Level Aggregate) and was admitted to the first ever 1st BE as Roll Number One.
• Selected RIT Luyechun for the 1965 Summer Camp at Inlay. His outspoken remarks about the Camp drew the ire of higher authorities.
• Graduated with Electrical Power (EP) in 1970.
• After working in the industry, he moved to the USA.
• Studied Electronics in the USA
• Added “Nawaday” to his name.
• Several years ago, he shared his memories of RIT to the Google group of “the Combined Intake of 1st BE for 1964 and 1965”.

Ohn Khine (M70)

• He matriculated from St. Peter’s High School, Mandalay in 1964.
• Took a combination of Science and Arts subjects and had good ILA score to be admitted to RIT.
• Graduated with Mechanical Engineering in 1970
• Worked for Heavy Industries Corporation (HIC),
• Created and maintained the the Google group of “the Combined Intake of 1st BE for 1964 and 1965”.
• Volunteered for SPZP-2012 and SPZP-2016, HMEE-2012 and HMEE-2018, Swel Daw Yeik Foundation and several RIT-related activities.
• Gave me rides during my visits to Yangon.
• Filled the missing pieces in Ko Zaw Min’s accounts.

Hla Min (EC69)

• He matriculated from St. Paul’s High School in 1963. Stood 7th in Burma and received Collegiate Scholarship.
• Finished Top in the Science Option of I.Sc.(A) examination
• Admitted to the first ever 2nd BE in November 1964 as Roll Number One.
• Selected Luyechun for the Inlay Khaung Daing Camp in the Summer of 1965
• Graduated with Electrical Communications in 1969.
• Started the “RIT Alumni International Newsletter” in 1989 and have maintained it for 26 years.
• Administrator or Moderator of selected Facebook pages.
• Maintain web sites :
  hlamin.com &
  myanmar2021.wordpress.com
• Had the honor to edit the draft versions “Memories by Ko Zaw Min Nawaday (EP70) and Ko Ohn Khine (M70)”, which was first posted as Google Docs for the Combined 1st BE Intake of 64 and 65.
• Published the edited document as a series of articles in “RIT Alumni Newsletter and Updates”.

Three Intakes in 1964

The new education system started in 1964. Eligible students were admitted to the 1st BE, 2nd BE and 3rd BE classes. They are also known as

• Class of ’70 (1st BE Intake in 1964) : Matriculates were admitted using the ILA
• Class of ’69 (2nd BE Intake in 1964) : Those who had passed I.Sc.(A) with Science Option were admitted in order of merit
• Class of ’68 (3rd BE Intake in 1964) : Those who had passed I.Sc.(B) with Science Option were admitted in order of merit

The RIT Rector was U Yone Mo and the Registrar was U Soe Thein.

Class of ’70

It comprised of the first year intake students in 1964. There were 494 registered students, of which 67 were female. Most graduated in 1970. Some took sabbatical and graduated later. A few left RIT before graduation. The GBNF (Gone But Not Forgotten) list is maintained by Ko Ohn Khine & team.

The matriculates entered the first ever 1st BE classes. The ILA (Intelligence Level Aggregate) was used for the vetting of applicants. In the system, a score of 1 to 20 was assigned to map the marks for each subject. The ILA score (rather than the raw marks) was used to determine the eligibility of the students admitted to an institute.

Under the old education system, the matriculates had to attend I.Sc. (A) classes. There were restrictions on the subjects taken at Inter classes to be eligible for Faculty of Engineering, Faculty of Medicine, etc. For example, one must pass the I.Sc. with at least 50 marks in Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry to attend the 1st Year Engineering Classes (3rd BE in the new system).

Under the new education system, there were no restrictions on the subjects taken in Matriculation exam. As such, many students who passed Matriculation with combined Science and Arts subjects and even those with pure Arts subjects were able to attend RIT. For example, Ko Ohn Khine passed the Matriculation exam with the combination of Maths, Chemistry and Geography.

Class of ‘69

Most members matriculated in 1963. They attended I.Sc(A) with the Science Option : Maths, Physics and Chemistry.

Eligible students were admitted to 2nd BE in November 1964.

Most graduated in 1969. Some took Sabbatical and graduated later. A few left RIT before graduation. The GBNF list is maintained by Ko Aung Min (M69) & team.

Class of ‘68

Most matriculated in 1962. They attended I.Sc(A) and I.Sc(B) with the Science Option : Maths, Physics and Chemistry.

Eligible students were admitted to 3rd BE in November 1964.

Most graduated in 1968. Some took Sabbatical and graduated later. A few left RIT before graduation. There is no official maintainer for the GBNF (Gone But Not Forgotten) list.