 He studied in a Europeese Lagere School in Samarinda before going to Genrum MULO in Batavia (modern day Jakarta).Formal education was rare at the time for natives who were not of noble descent, especially in Borneo.By 1927 Hamidhan had begun working in journalism, joining the editorial board of the newspaper "Perasaan Kita" in Samarinda; he also joined the board of "Bintang Timoer" in Batavia.