Open letter to the incoming Prime Minister from Malaysia Think Tank

Open Letter to the Incoming Prime Minister

31 March 2009

Dear Sir

We at the Malaysia Think Tank look forward to your upcoming appointment. We apologise for not being able to address you by name yet, as that would transgress the prerogative of His Majesty the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

Your judgment and wisdom will affect the fate of our democracy and the future of 27 million Malaysians. We urge and beseech you to lead Malaysia to greater heights in your new office by pursuing the ideals espoused by our Proclamation of Independence and other founding documents, and by continuing the narrative towards freedom and prosperity that our various histories have woven to get to where we are today.

We implore you to act upon the following:

1. Defend the rule of law. Observe, protect and advance the Rule of Law, by: respecting the independence of the judiciary; restoring dignity to our courts; and upholding the Supremacy of the Constitution so that Malaysians from every background may understand and uphold it too

2. Liberate the people. Free the people from the despair of poverty and the crutches of dependency, by: encouraging entrepreneurship, cutting bureaucracy and ensuring that the tax regime does not stifle growth and innovation; allowing individuals to mature and develop, to make mistakes and learn from them, and to be able to work and play in an environment that suits them best; and by allowing Malaysians to Believe in God and to be Loyal to King and Country in their own manner

3. Limit the role of government. Reinforce our federal structure, by: acknowledging that central government does not have the answers to everything; restoring the rightful powers of the state governments; further decentralising power where it will result in greater competition and efficient delivery of services; and to gain the cooperation of states run by different political parties

4. Free the market. Uphold our inclination towards free markets; let the rakyat access the goods and services they prefer without the protectionism that cripples competition; and recognise that the welfare of the people can be advanced with the help of civil society collaborating with the private sector

We believe passionately and resolutely that effective leadership and urgent action on your part on these four principles will unite the people and ensure continued peace and prosperity, and enable Malaysia to become the envy of the world, so that every Malaysian citizen can confidently say, as YTM Tunku Abdul Rahman so proclaimed upon the ancient fields of Malacca, that we are a nation "founded upon the principles of liberty and justice".

Yours faithfully,
Tunku 'Abidin Muhriz
Wan Mohd Firdaus Wan Mohd Fuaad
Wan Saiful Wan Jan

Malaysia Think Tank

F6, Taman Tunku

Bukit Tunku
50480 Kuala Lumpur

www.WauBebas.org 

Admission for Berkeley, NYU, Williams, Olin

First of all, thanks to all of you for visiting my blog! :) For yesterday, 30th March 2009, it registered 859 visits and 1,417 page views!!! That's awesome. Never expected that.

If I compare with last year's March, the entire month, I only have 4,290 visits and 6,658 page views. Thanks for the support! :)

Thanks for the updates of several new results!

Congratulations to Si Ning for getting the offer from University of California, Berkeley for Class of 2013!

Congratulations to Joyce for getting the admission offer from New York University (NYU) for Class of 2013! She also got waitlisted for University of Chicago for Class of 2013.

Congratulations to Hasan Hilmi for getting admitted to Williams College for Class of 2013.

Congratulations to Philip Loh for getting the offer to Olin College for Class of 2013!

Congrats to all! :)

An updated full list is as follow:-

Berkeley - Hui Juin, Yee Jie, Jayson Poon, Jie Min, Wern Chia, Nellie, Katherine, Si Ning, ZJ (PhD)

Boston - Clarys Chan Lai Wah

Brown - Charis Loke (Early Decision)

Caltech - Zhi Kin, Suk Sien plus 1 more, ZJ (PhD)

Columbia - Kristin Khor (Master's) plus 1 more (Master's)

Cornell - Chang Ha and Boon Jim (Early Decision), Pei Xin (PhD), Pei Yee (Master's), Raymond (Master's)

Georgetown - Raymond (master's)

Johns Hopkins - Katherine, Carmen, Bernard, Jonathan

Middlebury - (Wait List: Gabrielle)

MIT - Yi Hui, Hew Mun (Master's of MIT Sloan and Harvard Med School Dual-Degree), ZJ (PhD)

Northwestern - Wui Yarn, Carmen, Jie Min, Tee Jin, Bernard plus 2 more (Wait List: Sher Minn, Katherine plus 2 more)

NYU - Soraya, Hui Juin, Xiao Shan, Joyce

Olin - Philip Loh

Stanford - Kimberley Ho (Early Action) plus 1 more (Master's), ZJ (PhD)

Tufts - Raymond (Master's)

UChicago - Raymond (Master's), Tzuo Hann (PhD), Yin Wei, Vin Nie, Hasan Hilmi (Wait List: Hui Juin, Yee Jie, Joyce)

UCLA - Jie Min, Wui Yarn, ZJ (phD)

UPenn - Tzuo Hann (PhD)

Washington (St. Louis) - Nellie

Wellesley - Gabrielle

Williams - Hasan Hilmi (Wait List: Gabrielle)

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To all who are waiting for Ivy League decision, countdown now is 27 Hours 30 Minutes :)

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Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho) Scholarships

Thanks Raymond for the info.

Raymond is a former recipient of Japanese Government (Monbukagakusho) Scholarships.

The scholarships information is here .

Do check it out!

If there is any question, feel free to post it. Raymond is happy to respond to the questions.

Good Luck!
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Encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I will be more than happy to post it to share

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INTERNATIONAL FULBRIGHT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING MALAYSIAN STUDENTS

Thanks to ZJ for sharing on this Fulbright Scholarships.

ZJ and Raymond are willing to take questions on this. So, feel free to post it at the comment. They would reply on this.

This is quoted from here .
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FULBRIGHT MALAYSIAN AWARD

2010
INTERNATIONAL FULBRIGHT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING MALAYSIAN STUDENTS
Application deadline: June 17, 2009

The International Fulbright Science and Technology Award For Outstanding Malaysian Student is for Ph.D study at top U.S. institutions in science, technology, or engineering. The award is designed to be among the most prestigious international scholarships in science and technology. The program is funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) in Washington, DC. It aims to convey the message that the U.S. remains the premier destination for serious scientific study and research, and that America not only welcomes top-notch talent, but encourages future leaders to shape their careers through U.S. study.


International Fulbright Science and Technology Award recipients come from all regions of the world and engage in a wide-range of scientific inquiry. Recipients are chosen through a rigorous multi-tiered, merit-based selection process in their home countries followed by a field and discipline review by well-known U.S. academic leaders, final nomination by a blue-ribbon Advisory Panel including U.S. university deans, presidents, and a Nobel Laureate, and approval by the Fulbright Scholarship Board.




ELIGIBILITY






Applicants must meet the following requirements :

1. Be a Malaysian citizen.

2. Applicants must have completed an undergraduate degree (comparable to a U.S. bachelor’s degree) before August 1, 2010. It is highly recommended that bachelor’s degree is in the same or a related field for which you plan to pursue Ph.D. study.

3. Have a strong academic background in the sciences.

4. Demonstrate English proficiency with a recent TOEFL score (or equivalent) of 580 (PBT), 93 (I) test or higher and GRE General Test score.

You are ineligible if you:

are currently studying in the U.S;
have received a previous Fulbright award; or
only plan to pursue non-degree study
Eligible Fields

Aeronautics and Astronomics/Aeronautical Engineering
Astronomy/Planetary Sciences
Biology
Biomedical Engineering
Chemistry
Computer Sciences/Engineering
Energy
Engineering (electrical, chemical, civil, mechanical, ocean, and petroleum)
Environmental Science/Engineering
Geology/Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
Information Sciences/Engineering (engineering focus only; business-focused study is not eligible)
Materials Science/Engineering
Mathematics
Neuroscience/Brain and Cognitive Sciences
Oceanography
Physics
Public Health (theoretical focus only)
·




PROVISIONS OF THE AWARD






All grantees receive tuition, a monthly stipend for up to 36 months, health and accident coverage, a book and equipment allowance, professional conference allowance, travel support and specially tailored enrichment activities, and are eligible to apply for additional research funding. After three years, U.S. universities have agreed to fund the remaining expenses toward completion of a Ph.D, assuming the grantees maintains satisfactory continuing progress toward Ph.D. completion.






U.S. UNIVERSITY PLACEMENT






Institute of International Education (IIE) in New York, will be responsible for placement of all Fulbright Science and Technology Award recipients. IIE will work closely with the recipients and ECA to ensure the best placement available for field of study and research interests.






VISA SPONSORSHIP






Grantees will receive J-1 visa sponsorship under the Fulbright Student Program for up to five years starting approximately August 2010. After five years, if necessary, ECA will transfer sponsorship to the host university assuming satisfactory continuing progress toward Ph.D completion. Grantees not able to secure an entry visa to arrive in time for their program start date may lose their fellowhips. Selected candidates must provide IIE with a valid passport prior to the issuance of Form DS-2019.




APPLICATION PROCEDURE






Each applicant will be required to submit an online application from here.

Please refer to the application instructions and application checklist. (Please click on the repective highlight link)

A correctly prepared application packet facilitates the review process and increases your chance for an award. It is your responsibility to ensure that the application is complete before submitting to MACEE.

A completed application should include the following:

i. 4 completed copies of the required application forms;

ii. 4 recent passport-size photos attached to each of the application forms;

iii. 3 letters of reference using the required forms (if they are not submitted online).
Should be in a sealed envelope.

iv. 4 copies of your curriculum vitae;

v. 4 copies signed signature form

iv. 4 official academic transcripts from all post-secondary schools attended, copies of diplomas for all post-secondary schools attended, TOEFL and GRE scores :

These documents must consist of:
a. Academic transcripts: Nominees must submit official, complete and certified academic documents covering the entire period of study at universities and other post-secondary institutions. Documents must be accompanied by complete official English translations. These documents must consist of:

1. One certified, official record (transcript) from each university or post-secondary institution you attended, even those schools from which you did not receive a degree or diploma. The transcripts should list the subjects you studied and the grades you received during each year of your enrollment. Official transcripts must be submitted directly from the schools in sealed envelopes to MACEE Office.

2. Certified, official evidence of each post-secondary or university degree, diploma or certificate awarded to you should be included as part of the completed application.

b. Standardized tests: You will be required to take one or more of the following standardized tests to gain admission to a U.S. university. For instructions on registration, contact the Fulbright Program Office or the website for the test.

1. Tests of English Language Proficiency

a. TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language): TOEFL is an admissions requirement at U.S. institutions for applicants whose native language is not English. All non-native English-speaking candidates should immediately register for TOEFL. Click on to www.ets.org/toefl for more information on TOEFL.

b. IELTS (International English Language Testing System): A growing number of U.S. institutions will accept the IELTS in lieu of TOEFL scores.

2. GRE (Graduate Records Examination): The GRE is required by most U.S. graduate schools and/or departments for candidates applying in the fields of science, technology, or engineering. You should make every effort to register for the earliest possible administration of the GRE. Generally, the quantitative section of the exam is weighed heavily in the sciences. Click on to www.gre.org for more information on GRE.

3. GRE SUBJECT TESTS are required for the following fields:

Biochemistry, Cell and molecular Biology
Biology
Chemistry
Computer Science
Mathematics
Physics
The GRE Subject Test is only offered on a limited basis in paper-based format—October, November, or April. You should make every effort to register for either the October or the November test.

IMPORTANT
Note carefully, you MUST indicate that you want your score reports sent to the Institute of International Education (IIE). You must indicate the IIE code on the registration forms and/or the forms provided at the time you take the exam.

For all TOEFL and GRE exams, please indicate CODE: 2326.
For the IELTS, select the Institute of International Education from the ‘Professional Bodies’ listin.

Applicants must submit 5 copies of the completed application forms with photographs and all required supplemental forms no later than June 17, 2009 to:

MACEE
International Fulbright Science and Technology Award
18th Floor, Menara Yayasan Tun Razak
200, Jalan Bukit Bintang
55100 Kuala Lumpur



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Accenture opens management consulting innovation center in Singapore

This is a news from Accenture.

Full news is quoted from here .
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Accenture opens management consulting innovation center in Singapore

Accenture has officially opened its Management Consulting Innovation Center in Singapore to serve as a regional hub for developing innovative strategies that focus on maximizing opportunities and minimizing risk in a rapidly changing economy and increasingly global business environment.
The Center will enable clients to work with experienced consulting teams to further develop and align their business strategies in such areas as operational excellence, cost management and sustainability. Accenture will provide tangible solutions through case studies, diagnostic tools, simulation scenarios and hands-on demonstrations of leading-edge practices. The Center will also be a resource to help clients identify and enter new markets, increase revenues in existing markets and deliver their products and services more effectively and efficiently.

On a rotating basis, Accenture experts from around the world will work with clients in collaborative workshops and will develop thought leadership, research and intellectual property. These consultants will also work with professionals in other Accenture innovation centers and teams around the globe to integrate management consulting capabilities with insights from the company’s technology consulting, systems integration and outsourcing experts to better serve clients in the Asia Pacific region.

“We have created a unique environment in Singapore that brings together highly skilled individuals with the experience, knowledge, tools and technology to help our clients lay the foundation for their future growth,” said Mark Foster, Accenture’s group chief executive, Management Consulting & Integrated Markets. “With businesses facing issues more challenging than ever, those who regularly review, refine and adopt their strategies to respond to market trends will come out of the current economic climate better positioned for the future. Our Innovation Center is designed to help clients adopt strategies that will ensure that success.”

According to Teo Lay Lim, Accenture’s country managing director for Singapore, “Singapore serves as the regional headquarters for more than 4,000 multinational corporations, is a regional hub for innovation and also boasts one of the most highly skilled workforces in the world. This was the basis for our decision to open Accenture’s first Management Consulting Innovation Center here. As we help organizations navigate the new business landscape that is unique to Asia Pacific, the Center draws on Accenture’s global intellectual property and insights from the region and around the world, and combines that with innovation and technology to help drive business results.”

Accenture has partnered with the Economic Development Board in Singapore to open this Center. "We are delighted that Accenture has chosen Singapore as the location for its innovation center. Accenture can leverage Singapore’s position as the ‘home base’, away from home for these multi-national companies to address business challenges faced by clients across the different cultural, political and socio-economic climates in Asia," said Dr. Beh Swan Gin, managing director, Singapore Economic Development Board.

Through tailored workshops, Accenture’s management consultants will work with clients initially on six key business imperatives:
· Rapid and sustained cost management
· Operational excellence
· Sustainability
· Effective mergers and acquisitions
· Customer acquisition and retention
· Innovation

Accenture established operations in Singapore in 1975 and today has a strong presence in the market, serving domestic and international clients on transformation programs across a wide range of industries, including energy, telecommunications, high technology, financial services, consumer packaged goods and transportation, as well as with organizations in the publicservice sector.


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Azizul nailed a Silver in UCI Track World Championships

Congratulations to Azizul Hasni Awang from Malaysia for securing the Silver Medal in the Sprint event for UCI Track World Championships in Pruskow, Poland.

Azizul has now become our 1st Malaysian Silver Medalist in this tournament, after Rizil Tisin scored a Bronze Medal earlier for Malaysia in the 1km time trial.

This is our best achievement for our cyclists! Syabas!

The full results at here .


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Encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I will be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

2009 Korean Government Graduate Scholarship Program:

Thanks to Yee Pei for sharing this.

 

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This year, there will be at least 10 vacancies for Malaysian applicants under the 2009 Korean Government Graduate Scholarship Program:

For detailed information, please visit The Korean Embassy in Malaysia website:
http://mys.mofat.go.kr/kor/as/mys/main/index.jsp
Choose the English language, Go to "News",
Click on "Korean Government Scholarship for Graduate Studies Guidelines for the Year 2009"

Important dates:
- Submission of the required documents : May 18, 2009
- Interview at the Embassy : May 25, 2009
- Final selection by NIIED : June 30, 2009
- Result notification : July 3, 2009
- Entry to Korea : from August 25 to August 28, 2009
- Start of the Korean language course : September 1, 2009

Berkeley, MIT, Caltech, Stanford, UCLA, Boston, Chicago, JHU, Northwestern

Congrats to ZJ for getting into 5 PhD programs, with 1 more waiting for decision. So, ZJ might get the full 6 admissions into very prestigious schools. ZJ has gotten admission for PhD to Berkeley, MIT, Caltech, Stanford, UCLA, and still waiting for Georgia Institute of Technology. Congrats!

Congrats to Clarys Chan Lai Wah for getting admitted into Boston University for Class of 2013! I was chatting with her, and she was saying, still waiting for decision, and suddenly a message with all capital letter "OH MY GOD I GOT ACCEPTED INTO BOSTON UNI" came in!

Congrats to Hasan Hilmi for getting admitted into University of Chicago for Class of 2013.

Congrats to Bernard Cheng for getting admitted into Johns Hopkins University and Northwestern for Class of 2013!!!

Congrats to Jonathan Chua for getting admitted into Johns Hopkins University Class of 2013!!!

Congrats to all! Hope you will make full use of the opportunities there!

If anyone knows of any admission decision, do update me!

The listing that I have is as follow:-
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Berkeley - Hui Juin, Yee Jie, Jayson Poon, Jie Min, Wern Chia, Nellie, Katherine plus 1 more, ZJ (PhD)

Boston - Clarys Chan Lai Wah

Brown - Charis Loke (Early Decision)

Caltech - Zhi Kin, Suk Sien plus 1 more, ZJ (PhD)

Columbia - Kristin Khor (Master's) plus 1 more (Master's)

Cornell - Chang Ha and Boon Jim (Early Decision), Pei Xin (PhD), Pei Yee (Master's), Raymond (Master's)

Georgetown - Raymond (master's)

Johns Hopkins - Katherine, Carmen, Bernard, Jonathan Chua

Middlebury - (Wait List: Gabrielle)

MIT - Yi Hui, Hew Mun (Master's of MIT Sloan and Harvard Med School Dual-Degree), ZJ (PhD)

Northwestern - Wui Yarn, Carmen, Jie Min, Tee Jin, Bernard plus 2 more (Wait List: Sher Minn, Katherine plus 2 more)

NYU - Soraya, Hui Juin, Xiao Shan

Stanford - Kimberley Ho (Early Action) plus 1 more (Master's), ZJ (PhD)

Tufts - Raymond (Master's)

UChicago - Raymond (Master's), Tzuo Hann (PhD), Yin Wei, Vin Nie, Hasan Hilmi (Wait List: Hui Juin, Yee Jie)

UCLA - Jie Min, Wui Yarn, ZJ (phD)

UPenn - Tzuo Hann (PhD)

Washington (St. Louis) - Nellie

Wellesley - Gabrielle

Williams - (Wait List: Gabrielle)

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Encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I will be more than happy to post it to share

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HELP US Education Seminar

A bunch of students from HELP University College have decided to joint force and share what they have gone through for their U.S. Universities Application processes.

They will know of their own admission decision over the next few days too! Among which, Kimberley Ho has already gotten her Early Action offer from Stanford University for Class of 2013. Tara was one of the 3 shortlisted for Harvard University interview in Malaysia.

The 2 seminars will be held on:-
3rd April 2009 - Noon to 1:30pm
10th April 2009 - Noon to 1:30pm

Venue:- Kompleks Pejabat Damansara-Blok E SR1.1, HELP University College

The facebook group is here .

Their publicity (copied from Facebook) is as follow:-
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Speakers:
Teo Xian Jin
Tara Thean
Kimberley Ho
Alvin Ung
Michael Chow

Who are we?

We are a group of post-US applicants from HELP University College (Plus a Middlebury Writing Graduate) who wish to share our application experience, valuable tips and un-Google-able advice to potential US applicants.

Why are we organizing this?
Well, to put it simply, to make you don't go through the hell we did! (And also to encourage the free flow of US application information)

The Seminar is split into 2 days, April 3rd and April 10th.

(NOTE: Our Seminar content is not being repeated on two separate days. A different range of topics that complement each other will be covered on both days)

So make sure you come on both dates!

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Chen Chow's Other Posts
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Encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I will be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

Congrats to Katherine, Carmen, Gabrielle

Congratulations to Katherine for getting admission from Berkeley and Johns Hopkins Class of 2013, with waitlisting from Northwestern!

Congratulations for Carmen to get into Johns Hopkins too!

Gabrielle got waitlisted for Williams and Middlebury!

Good Luck to all for 1st April 5am!
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Berkeley - Hui Juin, Yee Jie, Jayson Poon, Jie Min, Wern Chia, Nellie, Katherine plus 1 more

Brown - Charis Loke (Early Decision)

Caltech - Zhi Kin, Suk Sien plus 1 more

Columbia - Kristin Khor (Master's) plus 1 more (Master's)

Cornell - Chang Ha and Boon Jim (Early Decision), Pei Xin (PhD), Pei Yee (Master's), Raymond (Master's)

Georgetown - Raymond (master's)

Johns Hopkins - Katherine, Carmen

Middlebury - (Wait List: Gabrielle)

MIT - Yi Hui, Hew Mun (Master's of MIT Sloan and Harvard Med School Dual-Degree).

Northwestern - Wui Yarn, Carmen, Jie Min, Tee Jin plus 3 more (Wait List: Sher Minn, Katherine plus 2 more)

NYU - Soraya, Hui Juin, Xiao Shan

Stanford - Kimberley Ho (Early Action) plus 1 more (Master's)

Tufts - Raymond (Master's)

UChicago - Raymond (Master's), Tzuo Hann (PhD), Yin Wei, Vin Nie plus 1 more (Wait List: Hui Juin, Yee Jie)

UCLA - Jie Min, Wui Yarn

UPenn - Tzuo Hann (PhD)

Washington (St. Louis) - Nellie

Wellesley - Gabrielle

Williams - (Wait List: Gabrielle)

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Hope that these admission decision will serve as motivation for those who are applying next year or future year. Hopefully, you can strive, so that your name can be in this list! :)

To all those who are planning to apply for US Universities and want to have a little guidance over 3 days, Wun Min (MIT '11) and myself are organizing a preparatory seminar. For more details, go to here .

Others include Lim Su Ann (pinkpau, Columbia '12) and Saw YiHui (MIT '13) have confirmed to be facilitators too.

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Encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I will be more than happy to post it to share

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Listing of Admitted Students as of 28th March 2009

Below is the summary of all the admission decision that I have announced in my blog over the past 2 weeks.

Berkeley - Hui Juin, Yee Jie, Jayson Poon, Jie Min, Wern Chia, Nellie plus 2 more

Brown - Charis Loke (Early Decision)

Caltech - Zhi Kin, Suk Sien plus 1 more

Columbia - Kristin Khor (Master's) plus 1 more (Master's)

Cornell - Chang Ha and Boon Jim (Early Decision), Pei Xin (PhD), Pei Yee (Master's), Raymond (Master's)

Georgetown - Raymond (master's)

MIT - Yi Hui, Hew Mun (Master's of MIT Sloan and Harvard Med School Dual-Degree).

Northwestern - Wui Yarn, Carmen, Jie Min, Tee Jin plus 3 more (Wait List: Sher Minn plus 1 more)

NYU - Soraya, Hui Juin, Xiao Shan

Stanford - Kimberley Ho (Early Action) plus 1 more (Master's)

Tufts - Raymond (Master's)

UChicago - Raymond (Master's), Tzuo Hann (PhD), Yin Wei, Vin Nie plus 1 more (Wait List: Hui Juin, Yee Jie)

UCLA - Jie Min, Wui Yarn

UPenn - Tzuo Hann (PhD)

Washington (St. Louis) - Nellie

Wellesley - Gabrielle

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There are a few "Plus 1 More", which means either the admitted student requests to stay anonymous or I still could not reach the admitted students yet.

If there is any missing/error, please kindly let me know.

There are a lot more who get admitted to various U.S. universities. Some of those universities have quite a number of admits or I simply are not aware of your admisison.

If you like to include your name for any university, do let me know. Will do.

Thanks to all informants for feeding me the info and thanks to all accepted ones for allowing me to post your decision here.

Hopefully that this will be a motivation for future year's students.

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Newly added:-

28th Mar 4:31pm - Congrats to Vin Nie for getting into University of Chicago Class of 2013!
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Chen Chow's Other Posts
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Encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I will be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

The Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations (HPAIR) Business Conference 2009

The Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations (HPAIR), a student-run organization at Harvard University, extends a special invitation for your students to participate in the HPAIR 2009 Business Conference. For almost 20 years, HPAIR has organized the largest Harvard student-run academic and business conferences at Harvard and in Asia annually. We draw approximately 700 undergrad, graduate, and working professional delegates from top institutions around the world, in addition to professors from the Harvard Business School and leaders of various corporations around Asia.

This summer, HPAIR will host the Business Conference “Braving New Frontiers: Tomorrow’s Ventures Today” in Tokyo, Japan from 6th to 9th August 2009. Attracting hundreds of talented students and young professionals, our conference provides a comprehensive analysis of the current and future developments of economic trends in Asia. Our forum for discussion provides opportunities to engage and interact with leaders from around the globe to gain knowledge and insight into a broad spectrum of industrial development and advances. Our goal is to offer a rigorous academic program and continuous forum of exchange to facilitate discussion about the most important issues relevant to the Asia-Pacific region.

The Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations (HPAIR), a student-run organization at Harvard University, extends a special invitation for your students to participate in the HPAIR 2009 Business Conference. For almost 20 years, HPAIR has organized the largest Harvard student-run academic and business conferences at Harvard and in Asia annually. We draw approximately 700 undergrad, graduate, and working professional delegates from top institutions around the world, in addition to professors from the Harvard Business School and leaders of various corporations around Asia.

This summer, HPAIR will host the Business Conference “Braving New Frontiers: Tomorrow’s Ventures Today” in Tokyo, Japan in August 2009. Attracting hundreds of talented students and young professionals, our conference provides a comprehensive analysis of the current and future developments of economic trends in Asia. Our forum for discussion provides opportunities to engage and interact with leaders from around the globe to gain knowledge and insight into a broad spectrum of industrial development and advances. Our goal is to offer a rigorous academic program and continuous forum of exchange to facilitate discussion about the most important issues relevant to the Asia-Pacific region.

For more info, go to here .
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Chen Chow's Other Posts
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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

Congratulations to Gabrielle

Congratulations, Gabrielle!!! Very happy that you finally have your dream come true!!! You are now confirmed to be going to US!!! :)

The past few weeks must be very tough for you, but now you got your confirmed offer, things can only get better from here.

Congratulations to Gabrielle Chong Yong Wei for getting into Wellesley College Class of 2013.

Lets wait for your other admission decision first, but Wellesley is a fantastic school. Yap Sui Lin went to Wellesley and continued to Harvard for PhD!

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Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

Project What's After SPM

Are you a Malaysian?
Are you between age of 18 and 35?

If you answer YES to both the questions above, you are who we are looking for.

This is for Project What's After SPM.

We are looking for any youth to write on any phase of your life - education, career, special interest, traveling, hobby, research, activities, charity etc. It could be on anything, and we want as diverse and unique as possible.

It will be just 600-800 words, which we hope that you can help us to provide your story to be shared with students and parents of Form 4 and Form 5, where they will be in the crossroads soon.

We hope that this book would be a good platform for them to learn about the possibilities and opportunities.

For this book, it is done as a community service, as all involved have agreed not to receive a cent of royalty.

Please kindly help us to spread the words around and please kindly write too! We still need a lot of entries.

Deadline is currently at 31st March 2009. Don't worry if you need to exceed the deadline by some days.

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Progress as of now:-

Number of Entries: 34 (Target: 100)
Number of Websites/Blogs Promoting: 35
Number of Sponsors: 1 (RM1,000)
Number of Donors for alma mater: 3
Number of English-BM translations: 8
Number of English-Mandarin translations: 8

Translation would only be done later part of this year.

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Do check out Project What's After SPM.

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Chen Chow's Other Posts
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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

Allocation of JPA Scholarships

This news from The Star here .

-----

KOTA KINABALU: The federal government is allocating 10 percent or 200 Public Service Department (PSD) scholarships for Sabah and Sarawak bumiputra Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) school leavers beginning this year.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Tan Sri Bernard Dompok said Friday that this was made after taking into account the academic achievements of bumiputra students in both states.
"Presently, there are many more rural schools in Sabah and Sarawak which do not have the necessary facilities and this affects the students' academic performance.

"That is why the federal government gives special attention to Sabah and Sarawak bumiputra students, where each state will be allocated 100 PSD scholarships," he told reporters at the excellent award presentation to bright students at SM Shan Tao here.

Dompok said that under the new PSD scholarship scheme, 20 percent or 400 of the 2,000 scholarships offered this year were for excellent students and 60 per cent or 1,200 scholarships were for bumiputra and non-bumiputra SPM leavers nationwide. He said the remaining 10 percent were for disabled students who excelled in their studies.

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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

Berkeley, Northwestern, NYU

Congratulations to Nellie for getting into University of California, Berkeley Class of 2013! That makes it 6 Malaysians (Hui Juin, Yee Jie, Jayson, Jie Min, Wern Chia, Nellie) who get offer from there! A new record! :)

For Northwestern Class of 2013, at least 4 got in - Wui Yarn, Jie Min, Carmen, Tee Jin!

For NYU Class of 2013, 1 more - Xiao Shan got in! That makes it 3 - Hui Juin, Soraya and Xiao Shan!

For UCLA Class of 2013, Wui Yarn also got in, so that makes it 2, Wui Yarn and Jie Min!

Congrats!

To all who got in, I would say that getting in is just the first step. What is more important is you should make full use of the opportunities. Or else, it is just wasted opportunities.

To all who got rejected, please do not give up hope yet, as long as you have 1 university that hasn't informed you of the decision. There is hope. Miracle does happen. So, lets keep fingers' crossed.

Even if you failed to get into any university, I felt very sorry to you, and I know that it must be tough to go through. But do toughen yourself up. Take the time to rebuiild yourself, learn as much as you can, and move on. Good Luck!

Northwestern

2 more good news - Carmen and Tee Jin got into Northwestern Class of 2013! Congrats!

Heard of a student who got into NYU. Waiting for green light to announce!

Berkeley, Northwestern, UCLA

Congrats to Jie Min for getting into University of California, Berkeley, Northwestern and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)! Congrats!

Congrats to Wern Chia for getting into University of California, Berkeley for Class of 2013!

So, looks like at least 5 Malaysians got into Berkeley this year! A great performance!

Berkeley & Northwestern

One more update, Jayson got into University of California, Berkeley for Class of 2013.

As of now, 4 Berkeley - Hui Juin, Yee Jie, Jayson plus 1 more.
Northwestern - Wui Yarn plus 3 more.

Would announce the names after I get the green light.

Congrats!

Wui Yarn - Northwestern

Congrats to Wui Yarn for getting Northwestern Class of 2013!

Heard 1 person from UNITEN get Berkeley Class of 2013. Would update once I get green light.

Any more updates?

Yee Jin & Hui Juin - Berkeley

Yee Jie got into University of California, Berkeley for Class of 2013 too!

Great that both Hui Juin and Yee Jie, who both got waitlisted by Chicago yesterday, got firm offer from Berkeley!

Congrats!

Congrats to Hui Juin & Yin Wei

Congratulations to Hui Juin for getting offer for University of California, Berkeley Class of 2013!!! Great to be woken up by sms of your good news!

Congratulations to Yin Wei for getting offer for University of Chicago Class of 2013 too!!!

To all of those who have not yet gotten the offer of your dream school, don't be despair. Lets keep our fingers' crossed as more decisions come in the next few days.

To all those of you from Malaysia looking to apply for top US Universities for next year or in the future, do check out http://usapps2009.blogspot.com .

Southeast Asian Service Leadership Network

If you would like to spend a fantastic 2 weeks, learning from those who are very calibre, do consider joining Southeast Asian Service Leadership Network (SEALNet). The deadline is coming very soon. Heard that Malaysia deadline might be postponed till 3rd April, but do apply now!

The organizing committee is also looking for anyone (especially those who are familiar with Kuala Selangor) to help out with logistic etc. Last year, Nicholas Pang, Gianne and Pui Yee did a great job in Kota Kinabalu!

Another area the organizing committee is looking at would be to get sponsorship to sustain the cost of the event. If anyone can donate/sponsor to them, do let me know. Will link you with them.

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Application deadline for Project Malaysia is THIS FRIDAY (March 27th, 11:59 PM PST [March 28th, 2:59 PM M'sia/SG])!!

Apply now!Application deadline for all other projects is next Friday, April 3rd

CONNECT to a worldwide network of service leaders

Join the Southeast Asian Service Leadership Network (SEALNet) for 2 weeks as we tackle issues in 7 nations through 8 summer projects!

Cambodia: Reviving traditional arts (August 10 - August 25)
Cambodia: Advocating volunteerism (August 16 - August 28)
Indonesia: Water sanitation (July 1 - July 14)
Laos: Social entrepreneurship for English education (August 23 - September 3)
Malaysia: Environmental awareness (May 30 - June 13)
Philippines: Health education (August 23 - September 6)
Thailand: Active education (August 23 - September 6)
Vietnam: Waste management (August 23 - September 5)

*Project descriptions can be found at: here .

Team members will spend the two weeks mentoring local high school students, teaching leadership lessons, working to address an issue that affects the community, and contributing to helping our local partner organizations.

Apply today! Go to: here

Application Deadlines
*March 27, 2009 for Project Malaysia
*April 3, 2009 for all other projects

SEALNet is an international non-profit organization that was founded at Stanford University in 2004. Our mission is to promote a spirit for service in Southeast Asia and to create a cross-cultural network between students and professionals interested in Southeast Asian developmental issues. Our goal is to empower students to create positive change both by participating in service leadership projects and by inspiring other students to become leaders in their own communities. To date, we have completed a total of 15 projects in 6 different countries!

Check out our video library: here.
For more information, go to here or email recruit@sealnetonline.org.
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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

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Oxford & Cambridge Boat Race

The Boat Race is back for 2009, and this is the special edition 50th Anniversary Boat Race! Our Oxford & Cambridge rowing teams will again compete head to head. Cambridge will once more try to find the elusive 1st title (come on Cambridge)!

You’re cordially invited to join the Oxford & Cambridge Society, Malaysia in this traditional event. Do come and enjoy the exciting races and enjoy the truly beautiful view at Kelab Tasik Putrajaya!

Here is the Agenda for the Boat Race 2009:
Event: Oxford and Cambridge Society, Malaysia Boat Race 2009
Date: 29th March 2009 (Sunday)
Venue: Kelab Tasik Putrajaya
No. 2, Jalan P8,
62250 Putrajaya

Programme:
9.00am Arrival of VIPs, Guests and Participants
9.30am Welcome Speech
10.00am Race 1 – Best of the Best Double Kayak Race
10.30am Race 2 – Feature Race: Oxford vs Cambridge coxed four sweep
11.00am Race 3 – TM Vs Deloitte Dragon Boat Race
11.30pm Race 4 – Best of the Best Oxford vs Cambridge double scull
12.00pm End of Race and Photo Session
12.15pm Lunch
1.00pm End of Event
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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

JPA News Release on JPA Scholarships for SPM 2008

This news is quoted from NST .

Some of the observations I made from this article:-
1. Those with SPM 9A1s are not automatically getting JPA scholarships
2. Those who get into Top universities would get chance to get JPA scholarships (pending applications)
3. Previously, you need to have 9A1s and above, as well as offer from top unis, but this year, you don't need the 9A1s requirement.
4. For JPA scholarships, academic now counts for 75% (instead of 70%), interview 5% (instead of 10%), family economic background 10% and co-curricular activities 10%.

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PUTRAJAYA: There will be no automatic scholarships for those who score nine 1As and above in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia examination this year.

Public Service Department (PSD) director-general Tan Sri Ismail Adam said the scholarships were only a benefit for last year.

Last year, students who got nine 1As in the 2007 SPM examination were automatically eligible for scholarships from PSD for Form Six until the first degree locally.

"Last year, if they had nine 1As and they got into Form Six, we offered them scholarships. If they did well and entered local universities, the scholarships continued.

"This year, there has been no announcement. There is no decision yet," Ismail told the New Sunday Times.

What remains this year, he said, were the 2,000 overseas and 10,000 local scholarships.
"Within the overseas allocation, we also reserve scholarships for those who get into elite schools. It can be Ivy League schools, the top school in England or the Group of Eight universities in Australia.

"For that kind of scholarship, you have to get a place there. So it doesn't matter even if you study on your own. Once you get a place in Harvard, we offer you a scholarship.

"But it must be in the field that the government wants. If you take classical dancing, then of course there will be no scholarship."

Last year, said Ismail, 87 students received this type of scholarship and this year, it will be offered as part of the 2,000 overseas scholarships.

Aside from these, there are also scholarships for foreign universities that have a local campus -- Nottingham, Monash, Curtin and Swinburne -- as well as the Asian Institute of Medicine, Science and Technology University.

If a student gets nine 1As in the 2007 SPM examination, enters A-Levels and then gets a place in Monash University, would he still be eligible?

"Yes, he can still be considered. He can apply, but it is not automatically given. He becomes like any other applicant."

Ismail said there would be no reduction in the number of scholarships offered by PSD as a result of the current economic conditions.

"So far, the government has said it will maintain the number of overseas scholarships at 2,000 places and local scholarships at 10,000 places.

"This year, we have 1,676 students with straight 1As and 6,277 who obtained all As. There are only 2,000 overseas scholarships.

"The problem now is that all the bright students want to do medicine in England. That is not possible.

"It is not that they don't qualify. It is because medical schools overseas now have an international quota and we have to compete with the rest of the world as they are very selective."

Ismail said the department was also working with the Higher Education Ministry this year to retain some of the top students for local research universities as part of efforts to improve the universities' rankings.

"We will probably give them extras to retain them, and they may possibly be able to spend one semester or so overseas. I will have to work this out with the universities and the ministry."
The selection criteria for overseas scholarships has also been changed.

"Last year, it was 70, 10, 10, 10. This year, it is 75 points for academic excellence, 10 points for curriculum, 10 points for family economic background and five points for the interview.
He said there was the interview process for overseas scholarships, but not for the local ones, which require 80 points for academic excellence and 20 for economic background.

"We still have the interview process for overseas scholarships because we are sending these students away for five or six years. We want to see if they are prepared mentally. We've had cases where students started feeling lonely in their second year.

"This is a big investment. When you go to medical school, we have to spend over a million ringgit. That is why the interview is important and it is the tipping point."

For this year, the government has allocated more than RM832 million for overseas scholarships and more than RM413 million for local scholarships.

"Students wanting scholarships must keep in mind that the competition is getting tougher, because there are a lot more brilliant students than there are scholarships the government can offer."

-----
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Workshop for Preparations for Ivy League, Ivy Standards and Top Liberal Art Colleges

Workshop for Preparations for Ivy League, Ivy Standards and Top Liberal Art Colleges

Date:- 4th July 2009 (Sat), 5th July 2009 (Sun), 15th August 2009 (Sat).
Time:- 10am to around 5pm/6pm for each day.
Venue:- KL/PJ/Subang - To be confirmed.
Cost:- RM25 for all 3 days (Payable on Day 1)

Facilitators:- Current Students/Alumni/New Admits of Ivy League Unis, Ivy Standards and Top Liberal Art Colleges.

4th July (Day 1) - A to Z of Applications
5th July (Day 2) - Interviewers Panel, Essays/CV Workshops, Interview Workshops
15th Aug (Day 3) - 1-on-1 Essays/CV Review, Mock Interview, Q&A with Alumni/Current Students/New Admits

(Between Day 2 and Day 3, students would work on their essays/CV, and prepare for interview).

This seminar/workshop is only open for students. Parents would not be admitted.

To sign up, contact usapps2009 AT gmail DOT com . Limited spots. First come first served.

This seminar/workshop is organized by Wun Min (MIT '11) and Chen Chow (Cornell '05).

* If anyone has real problem of paying the RM25 cost, please kindly let us know. We'll consider reduce/waive it for you.

Raymond got into Cornell for Master's

Congratulations to Raymond Woo for getting into Cornell for Master's in Public Policy! Syabas!!! It would be great if you are going to my alma mater!

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Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

Washington University, St. Louis and Cornell

2 more good news to share!

Nellie got the offer to study in Washington University, St. Louis for Class of 2013! Syabas!

Pei Yee from University of Manchester also obtained her offer to do Master's in Energy Economics and Engineering at Cornell University, my alma mater.

Congrats!!!

Thanks for the updates! Would update as I hear from more people.

Congrats to all who made it to your dream university and to those who are still waiting for decision, all the best! :)

*Thanks for informing that it should be Washington University, instead of University of Washington. My mistake. I should have checked.
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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

Northeast Malaysia Forum 2009

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Dear fellow Malaysians,

The Northeast Malaysia Forum 2009 (NMF 2009) is just about a month away. Below are the details of this year's event.

 

Venue: Yale University, New Haven CT, and various locations worldwide (please see the "how can you participate?" section below).

Date: April 10-12, 2009

Theme: ReVision 2020: Malaysia 2.0

What is NMF 2009? 

NMF 2009 is an opportunity for us to live out the Malaysia we want to see.

Think of it as a game. A game of people living out an ideal discussion, and communicating without barriers or prejudice. We'll provide the space, the technology and the guidelines. We only ask that you bring your experiences and enthusiasm. 


What kind of game?

Let's imagine ourselves as Malaysians 2.0 and seek to act and communicate accordingly. How would Malaysians in an idealized Vision 2020 think and interact with one another? We ask you to bring this mindset to the table during NMF 2009.

What is the purpose of the game?

Most of us have had discussions about Malaysian issues with friends over teh tarik, in the blogosphere, and so on. While these discussions are necessary, they tend to stop at the level of talk - what one might call the Kopitiam syndrome. 

We hope that NMF 2009 will be different. We won't stop talking, as the whole point of NMF 2009 is to talk, but we hope to exemplify certain virtues in our discussion, to make it more than just another Kopitiam conversation.

How will we do this, or, what are the rules of the game?

The goals of NMF 2009 can be summed up in three Es:

1. Engagement: A discussion open to all, welcoming of as many perspectives as possible. The underlying belief: it is better to engage in dialogue and to seek a common ground for all, than to remain in apathy.
   
2. Empathy: A place for understanding on a human level, not just on an intellectual one. Participants will be encouraged to understand not only the thoughts, but also the values and feelings of others. In other words, we aim to learn what makes other Malaysians tick, and to take this into account while deliberating issues.

3. Effect: A discussion that results in solidarity translating into collective action, building off what everyone can agree on. Minimally, however, we seek a discussion that exemplifies democracy in the truest sense - one that helps the many to develop sensitivity to each other, as citizens of Malaysia.

 

At the end of the (three) day(s), what is all this for?

Our theme for 2009 is ReVision 2020: Malaysia 2.0. As the new generation of Malaysians, our goal for NMF 2009 is to agree on a new, common Vision. The VisionWiki, edited and contributed to by NMF participants all over the world, will be our combined creation. It will be a collective individual pledge, which we can hold as a shared foundation upon which to continue building our country. Please read this for more information on the VisionWiki.

How can you participate?

1. Attend the forum held in Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut. Register on the website. Accommodation will be provided in a hotel close to the Yale campus, which will make it easier for participants to socialize and network. We will provide all meals for the weekend, except for Friday dinner and Saturday lunch. Unfortunately, transportation subsidies will not be provided.

2. Attend one of the many Global Forums held around the world. For a brief explanation of the Global Forums, and information on the forum closest to your location, please refer to the website. If there is no forum near you, and you would like to lead one, please email us at northeastmalaysiaforum@gmail.com with the heading "Global Forum".  

We hope that you will participate! Please spread the word to others who might be interested – whether they are in the United States or anywhere else in the world.

 

Be part of the global Northeast Malaysia Forum 2009!

Sincerely,
The NMF 2009 team
http://www.malaysiaforum.org/nmf/
northeastmalaysiaforum (at) gmail (dot) com

Kristin Khor - Columbia Master's

Congratulations to Kristin Khor, who would be enroling in Columbia University for Master this fall 2009. She was originally supposed to go there last year, but she deferred it for 1 year, to work at a law firm in Wall Street.

Congrats!
-----
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NYU admits Soraya and Hui Juin

For the 2 Malaysians that got into New York University (NYU) Class of 2013, they are Soraya Kee and Keek Hui Juin!

Congratulations!!! Soraya even told me that she was looking at the listings in my blog last year, and it was a motivating factor for her to work hard and get her name into the list!!! I really didn't expect this listing could serve as motivating factor too!!!

Congrats to both of them, especially that their hard work is paid off!

Hopefully, more good news would roll in! Do let me know if you know of other names!

There is also another Malaysian who got into Columbia University for Master's. I'll announce the name, once I get the green light! :)


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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

More Admission Decisions

In addition to the updates yesterday, thanks to an anonymous source, I got the news of Tie Suk Sien gotten the offer for Caltech Class of 2013. Congratulations! This make it 2 Malaysians got the prestigious offers to study in Caltech!!! If I am not wrong, only Chen Yee was the only one who got in over the past few years.

Congrats to Tzuo Hann for getting into PhD Economics at UPenn and University of Chicago!

For New York University (NYU) Class of 2013 admission, at least 2 people from Help University College got in!!!

Congrats!!!

Congrats for Admission to MIT, Caltech, NYU, Tufts, Chicago, Cornell, Sloan, Harvard

After highlighting on Saw YiHui's admission for MIT Class of 2013 for undergraduate this morning, I have heard of a few other good news to share!

Loke Zhi Kin got admitted to Caltech Class of 2013!!! Since Chen Yee got in a few years back, I don't think any other Malaysian has gotten in for undergrad.

Then, a little source told me of a Malaysian got into NYU Class of 2013 for undergrad. Unfortunately, I still do not know of the name of the admitted student... :(

Then Raymond told me of his Master's admission to Tufts Fletcher School and University of Chicago, besides Rutgers. Great that he is getting a bunch of offers, especially with him gotten Fulbright Scholarships.

Then, Pei Xin, a senior in Purdue University told me that he got into my alma mater, Cornell University for PhD in Genetics and Development with full financial aid!

Last but definitely not least, Hew Mun, ATU7 who did her undergrad at Brandeis, told me of her good news of being admitted for a dual-degree master at MIT Sloan MBA and Harvard Medical School for Master's in Health Science & Technology, under Biomedical Enterprise Program. She was one of the 10 students around the entire world that got offered this program.

Syabas and Congrats to all of you! There are many more other admission good news that they have shared with me! Congrats too! I would update as I know of more good news. If anyone knows of any good news, do share with me!

To all who got in, hopefully you would make full use of the opportunities there. Getting in is the first step, and it must be especially sweet, after a lot of hard work! Don't waste the opportunity! All the best!

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Congrats to YiHui for MIT Admission!

Congratulations to Saw YiHui for getting admission to MIT Class of 2013.

Thanks to Jian Wei for this information.

Based on what I know, she took her SPM in 2008, and she was from SMK USJ 12. She represented Malaysia in International Mathematics Olympiad and won Honorable Mention there!

Jian Wei has also blogged on her here .

Congrats!

Any more admits?

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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

Mensa Penang Annual General Meeting

Mensa Penang Annual General Meeting (AGM) is happening this Sunday, 15th March 2009, Noon to 4pm at Berjaya Georgetown Hotel Penang.

Noon - Lunch at Hotel Cafe
After Lunch - Short Games, Puzzles - Ice Breaker
3pm - AGM

It would be:-
RM10 for members
RM15 for non-members

This is inclusive of lunch, which is heavily subsidized by Mensa Penang.


-----
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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

165 Students got 10As and above in SPM for Jit Sin

Quoting from Jit Sin High School's website .

165 students got 10As and above!

Congrats!
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大山脚日新国民型中学于今日放榜的大马教育文凭中 成 绩 辉 煌，保持100% 及格率.日新国民型中学考生共有551名,其中有1名考生考获13科特优, 他是 罗 凯 文 同 学。

日新国民型中学考获12A 的有16名,11A的77名,10A的71名,9A的63名,8A的36名,7A的39名,6A的33名,5A的37名.日新国民型中学考获5A 以 上的 考 生共有373名,占总考生之67.70 %.

值 得 一 提 的 是 日新国民型中学 的 华 文 科 成 绩 特 出，打 破 历 年 的 记 录，共 有131 名 考 获A1。 这 是 历 年 来 最 优 异 的 成 绩。

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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

JPA Scholarships Statistic - Repost

With SPM 2008 exams coming out today, and now a lot of people are starting to prepare for Overseas JPA Scholarships applications, I would like to share some analysis of the chances for each field of studies.

Thanks to chen622 from ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network for the statistic and Sin Chew Jit Poh for the data .

Feel free to reproduce this analysis at your blog/forum etc, but do include a link to quote here.

As a start, we can first look at total applicants, total shortlisted for interview and total scholarships for SPM 2005, 2006 and 2007 batches.

SPM 2005 - 15,357 applicants, 5,946 interviews, 1,500 JPA Overseas Scholarships
SPM 2006 - 12,411 applicants, 6,298 interviews, 1,800 JPA Overseas Scholarships
SPM 2007 - 15,220 applicants, 7,282 interviews, 2,000 JPA Overseas Scholarships

If we look at % wise, then it would be:-
SPM 2005 - 38.72% of JPA Scholarships applicants get JPA interview
SPM 2006 - 50.75% of JPA Scholarships applicants get JPA interview
SPM 2007 - 47.84% of JPA Scholarships applicants get JPA interview

SPM 2005 - 25.23% of those who attend JPA Interview get JPA Overseas Scholarships
SPM 2006 - 28.58% of those who attend JPA Interview get JPA Overseas Scholarships
SPM 2007 - 27.46% of those who attend JPA Interview get JPA Overseas Scholarships

SPM 2005 - 9.77% of JPA Scholarships applicants get JPA Overseas Scholarships
SPM 2006 - 14.50% of JPA Scholarships applicants get JPA Overseas Scholarships
SPM 2007 - 13.14% of JPA Scholarships applicants get JPA Overseas Scholarships

For those 10A1s and above and with family income below RM1,500, they are guaranteed JPA Scholarships for SPM 2007 batch. For SPM 2007 batch, 151 students successfully get this scholarships, including 117 Non bumiputera.

For SPM 2007 batch, to look deeper at the academic results of those 7,282 students who are offered JPA Scholarships interview:-
16A1s - 1 Student
15A1s - 5 Students
14A1s - 4 Students
13A1s - 36 Students
12A1s - 186 Students
11A1s - 593 Students
10A1s - 1,210 Students
9A1s - 1,464 Students
8A1s - 1,166 Students
7A1s - 971 Students
6A1s - 724 Students
5A1s - 510 Students
4A1s - 262 Students
3A1s - 120 Students
2A1s - 26 Students
1A1 - 4 Students

And a more useful information would be breakdown analysis for SPM 2007 batch, based on field of studies that the students apply for. It would show total students who apply for JPA Overseas Scholarships for that field of studies, and then total shortlisted for interview and total students who get the scholarships.

The format would be:-
Field of Study - Total Applicants - Total Interviews - Total Scholarships

Medical - 3,187 - 1,838 - 530
Pharmacy - 1,463 - 738 - 120
Dentist - 719 - 351 - 110
Engineering - 4,083 - 2,069 - 620
Accountancy - 1,075 - 380 - 70
Law - 826 - 246 - 70
Biotech - 731 - 387 - 80
Actuarial Science - 577 - 383 - 75
Humanities - 522 - 121 - 50
Science - 411 - 192 - 70
Architecture - 400 - 154 - 60
Business Adminstration - 287 - 57 - 14
Economics - 271 - 145 - 60
IT - 256 - 67 - 20
Veterinary - 139 - 65 - 14
Agricultural - 106 - 25 - 14
Quantity Surveyor - 102 - 47 - 18
City Planning - 65 - 16 - 5

Looking at it, below are the % of JPA Scholarships applicants who manage to get JPA Interview.

Actuarial Science - 66.4%
Medical - 57.7%
Economics - 53.5%
Biotech - 52.9%
Engineering - 50.7%
Pharmacy - 50.4%
Dentistry - 48.8%
Veterinary - 46.8%
Science - 46.7%
Quantity Surveyor - 46.1%
Architecture - 38.5%
Accountancy - 35.3%
Law - 29.8%
IT - 26.2%
City Planning - 24.6%
Agriculture - 23.6%
Humanities - 23.2%
Business Administration - 19.9%

How about the % of those who get the JPA Overseas Scholarships among those who attended the interview?

Agriculture - 56.0%
Economics - 41.4%
Humanities - 41.3%
Architecture - 39.0%
Quantity Surveyor - 38.3%
Science - 36.5%
Dentistry - 31.3%
City Planning - 31.3%
Engineering - 30.0%
IT - 29.9%
Medical - 28.8%
Law - 28.5%
Business Administrations - 21.6%
Veterinary - 21.5%
Biotech - 20.7%
Actuarial Science - 19.6%
Accountancy - 18.4%
Pharmacy - 16.3%

In overall, what is the chance of someone who apply for a field of study and end up getting JPA Overseas Scholarships?

Economics - 22.1%
Quantity Surveyor - 17.6%
Science - 17.0%
Medical - 16.6%
Dentist - 15.3%
Engineering - 15.2%
Architecture - 15.0%
Agriculture - 13.2%
Actuarial Science - 13.0%
Biotech - 10.9%
Veterinary - 10.1%
Humanities - 9.6%
Law - 8.5%
Pharmacy - 8.2%
IT - 7.8%
City Planning - 7.7%
Accountancy - 6.5%
Business Administration - 4.9%

Hope that this info would be useful to students from SPM 2008 and beyond who are aiming for JPA Overseas Scholarships.

For more scholarships information, go to JobStreet.com Scholarships Listing and ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network .

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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

Spread the Word for Charity Project

Got an email from Chloe Swanson to encourage me to check out their HotelsCombined.com website, and also to help to promote their "Spread The Word for Charity Project".

You can visit their site for the details - here .

If you blog about it, they would donate $20 to the charity of your choice - World Vision, Make A Wish or WWF.

If you sign up for their Facebook Fan page, they would donate $5 to the charity of your choice - here .

For me, would like HotelsCombined.com to donate on my behalf to World Vision.

Do spread this cause, if you believe in it!



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Chen Chow's Other Posts
Subscribe to Chen Chow's blog

Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

Need MBA Interns from Cornell Johnson School?

Notes from Cornell Johnson School
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As you know, this is a difficult time to obtain a job. The Cornell Johnson School community is pulling together to help each other connect with opportunities. We anticipate that a number of 2nd year students will not have a job lined up by graduation and 1st year students will not have an internship. To help these students we are launching the MBA Project Initiative to connect them with project work over the summer.

HOW YOU CAN HELP
Think about whether there are projects in your organization that have been put on the shelf due to lack of someone to do them. Contact us if you think there might be a project for an MBA or MBA team during the summer months so we can explore it with you.

PURPOSE
The purposes of the project are to (1) help companies complete work that they do not have the internal resources to carry out, (2) provide a legitimate work experience for students that can add to their credentials while they continue to search for a permanent job, and (3) provide a limited financial return to the students, if possible.

MATCHING STUDENTS WITH PROJECTS
When possible, the sponsoring company will receive several candidates to choose from. We will first match students with your project prior to you receiving resumes.

PAY
The standard rate of pay for students is $25.00 per hour for hours worked on the project.

NEXT STEPS
Contact Candace Maxian, Johnson School Manager, Projects Office (cmm359@cornell.edu or 607-255-0161) who will discuss your project scope.


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Chen Chow's Other Posts
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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

JobStreet.com Resume & Career Clinic by Lifelong Learning (21st March, 9am, Wisma MCA)

Lifelong Learning would be having its Break Through Learning Series on 21st March (Saturday) 9am to 1pm at Wisma MCA, Jalan Ampang, KL. This event is organized with the support from JobStreet.com .

It would feature JobStreet.com Resume & Career Clinic, where there would be 1-to-1 Resume Clinic, with talk on "So, how do you get the interview and job you want in 2009".

The talk in Mandarin would be given at 10am, English at 11am and Malay at Noon.

You can discuss about it at here .

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Chen Chow's Other Posts
Subscribe to Chen Chow's blog

Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

3rd BRAND'S Thailand International Sudoku Open 2009 & Online Sudoku Puzzles

A note from Mr Bala, Managing Director of Sudoku.com.my

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Dear Sudoku Enthusiasts,

Good news for Sudoku. There is yet another Sudoku Competition coming up, this time in Thailand. It is open to all and would probably attract more participants than the Brand's Inaugural Asia Pacific Open, held in Singapore, last year. 12 Malaysians participated in Singapore amongst 53 from Asia. As you can see on our website, they did pretty well.

Whereas all puzzles used at the Asian Open were Classic Sudoku Puzzles, the Thai Open will feature a number of Sudoku Variations. Some of our players are already familiar with many of the variations used in the World Sudoku Championship. There will be others like the recent addition to our Malaysian Champion's list, Mohd Farhan Hassin from Kelantan, studying in Sungei Petani, Kedah, who mastered Samurai Sudoku within a year to win the recently concluded MSIG Samurai Sudoku Challenge.

Please forward this information to all Sudoku enthusiasts you know and on Facebook etc. so that more Malaysians will get to know and try out the variations and prepare to face the Global Challengers. Malaysia Boleh!

There are thousands, or even tens of thousands of Malaysians playing Sudoku, but most of them do not participate in competitions, as they do not know how good they are or how they would fare in a competition.

We have a solution for this situation. My webmaster has compeleted the design and uploaded the Online Sudoku Puzzles (Classic) on www.sudoku.com.my . Currently, we have three levels of difficulty. Please register and play and let your friends know. We will build up a Leader Board of the top 100 players and  each registered player will also have his/her Personal Record, so that everyone can keep track of their progress and also compete on the Leader Board. You will have a choice to opt not to be placed on the LB.  We will create different categories of Leader Boards to cater for various levels, later,

Initially, the puzzles will be generated randomly. When we have a sizeable group of players, we will put up pre-selected puzzles daily or weekly for a new ("Sponsor") Leader Board which would also entitle players to win prizes monthly. We will also have an Annual Onsite Showdown for the top 100 on both Leader Boards. These are plans yet to be finalised. We would appreciate your feedback and comments by email, or post your comments on the website.

Meanwhile, play online on our homegrown website and have fun. You are the people who made it happen. Please tell us what improvements you would like.

The champions amongst you, look out for addititonal information, which we will  post on the website, when we get more information from the organiser, Nuttakrit of Thailand. Those who wish to be notified please communicate by email.


Regards.

Balasingam.
Managing Director.
Sudoku.com.my Sdn. Bhd.

GIC Professionals Programme

Thanks Ee Mae for sharing this job posting by GIC.

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GIC Professionals Programme

ABOUT US
The Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) is a global fund management
company whose sole task is to invest the foreign reserves of Singapore, amounting to well over US$100 billion. We are inviting bright and energetic people to join our Professionals Programme commencing August 2009.

Our target is soon-to-be graduates, or graduates who have been out of university for no more than 4 years. We are looking for those who want to build a career with GIC, whether as an investment professional or in any of the supporting roles which enable excellent investment results.

GIC invests in multiple asset classes in both the public and private markets, across 40 countries. We have over a thousand staff, comprising over thirty nationalities working in eight offices in the world’s major financial centres. What we offer is an exciting and rewarding career, where teamwork is strong, assignments are satisfying and demands are challenging.

Started in 1981, GIC takes pride in our tradition of professionalism and meritocracy. We have a reputation of being among the best large public and corporate pension, endowment and sovereign wealth funds in the world.

JOIN THE GIC PROFESSIONALS PROGRAMME
The GIC Professionals Programme underlines our commitment to continually seek talent for the long term, no matter whether the economy is up or down. We are looking for candidates from varied academic and work backgrounds who have:-

– Good IQ (intellectual capacity);
– Good EQ (emotional quotient – ability to work with and through others) and
– Good AQ (adversity quotient – capacity to take ups and downs with equanimity,
tenacity and resourcefulness).

Excellent grades are not good enough. You must be a person of character and integrity.

This is a one-year program conducted at our headquarters in Singapore, a vibrant city in Asia and a global financial hub in its own right. It starts with 5 weeks of intensive classroom training in finance, economics, investment analysis and GIC’s businesses. This is followed by 3 job rotations of 2 months each (generally one to public markets, one to private markets and one to investment support or corporate services), capped by a trainee stint in one of the departments.

You will benefit from our rich internal and external network of expertise. Senior management will host regular interactive sessions. You will be assigned a Managing Director as your mentor. Rotations will involve hands-on projects which could include overseas trips.

Those who complete the program successfully will be appointed Associates, and move on to careers in GIC which will be watched with much interest and expectation.

If you are ready to invest your time and energies in a future with us, email an application letter with your resume to apply@gic.com.sg. Please indicate in the subject field of your application the reference code “YPP2009”.

-----
Chen Chow's Other Posts
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Would encourage any of my blog readers to share with me any event that you come across. As long as the event/activity/initiative is education/charity/youth oriented and is not-for-profit, I would be more than happy to post it to share

Feel free to quote any post within my blog, as long as you link it back here. Sharing is always a good virtue. :)

Malaysia Think Tank Issue 4 Mac 2009

Issue 4, Mac 2009

Tokoh-Tokoh Politik Sertai Malaysia Think Tank

 Malaysia Think Tank mengumumkan pembentukan Kumpulan Penasihat Rentas Parti (Cross Party Advisory Group - CPAG) yang dianggotai oleh tokoh-tokoh politik daripada pelbagai parti. Baca Lagi

Akademi Merdeka Mei 2009

 Malaysia Think Tank kini membuka permohonan untuk menghadiri Akademi Merdeka kali ketiga. Akademi Merdeka kali ini akan mengkaji idea-idea berkaitan sifat keusahawanan dan kapitalisme yang diutarakan oleh buku Atlas Shrugged, dan meneliti aplikasinya pada masa sekarang. Baca Lagi

Kajian Antarabangsa Pemilikan Harta: Malaysia di tempat ke-36

 Wan Saiful Wan Jan, Ketua Pengarah Malaysia Think Tank, berkata: "Malaysia mendapat tempat ke 36 dalam senarai dunia. Antara negara-negara ASEAN yang disenaraikan dalam IPRI 2009, kita mendapat tempat kedua selepas Singapura. Pencapaian kita agak baik dalam bidang perlindungan pemilikan harta fisikal. Tetapi masih ada ruang yang perlu diperbaiki dalam bidang perundangan dan politik serta perlindungan harta intelektual." Baca Lagi

Sleaze and incompetence hurt everyone

by Tunku 'Abidin Muhriz

 And it is because of incompetence that instead of deliberating in their own chamber to determine the true balance of power, they sought audiences in the royal court in an attempt to absolve themselves of responsibility over their own mistakes and to enable blame or gratitude to be placed upon the monarch. It is grotesque that the sultan has been blamed for "flawed intervention" (as if the palace initiated this mess) and it is desperate that the judgment of the nation's most esteemed former Lord President is being condemned. Read more

What can Malaysian liberals learn from their friends in Australia?

by Keith Leong

 The Liberals had the added indignity of having their leader, former Prime Minister John Howard defeated in his own seat. Debates are now rife over the viability of the Liberal brand. It can be said that part of the problems for the Liberal Party was that it was never able to reconcile its economic rationalist, socially conservative wing with the more moderate elements of their party. Read more

Face the economic crisis with ASEAN spirit

by Wan Fadzrul Wan Bahrum and Wan Saiful Wan Jan

 The 14th ASEAN summit in Thailand concluded on 1 March. In facing the global economic crisis, ASEAN leaders issued a statement reaffirming their determination to ensure the free flow of goods, services and investment, and facilitate movement of business persons, professionals, talents and labour, and freer flow of capital. They also agreed to stand firm against protectionism and to refrain from introducing and raising new barriers. Read more

More items this issue The problems with Obama by Cheah Kah Seng Save us from protection by Fredrik Erixon & Razeen Sally Crossing over to a new politics by Tunku 'Abidin Muhriz

The Waubebas Newsletter is a free monthly newsletter produced by the Malaysia Think Tank (www.WauBebas.org). For more information about the newsletter and our organization, please visit our website. If you wish to subscribe to this free weekly newsletter or update your address, please send an e-mail to info@malaysiathinktank.org.