Asian Youth Ambassador (AYA) Dream Malaysia Awards 2009

Asian Youth Ambassador (AYA) Dream Malaysia Awards 2009. This is the 5th Annual AYA Awards.

I would first like to recognize my sincere thanks to an anonymous Malaysian who nominated me for this award. Really appreciate what you have done, although until now, I do not know who is the person who does this.

Would like to dedicate this awards to all of you who have supported many of the initiatives that I have involved over these years, and to many of you who have offered me guidance, support, listening ears, advice etc, through the ups and downs of my life.

I would like to congratulation AYA for doing this award, and I would like to congratulate all the other finalists as well. They are all very deserving winners, and the world is a much better place, thanks to many sacrifice and efforts that they have put in. To all the nominees, Congratulations for making a difference in the lives of others too!

There are 2 categories of AYA Awards.
a) Most Outstanding Youth
b) Youth Friendly Companies

For Most Outstanding Youth 2009, there are 4 finalists.

1. Edana Lim Parina, 35

"Her dream Malaysia is to see a united Malaysia that respects every race as they are and one that fully acknowledges different strengths in each culture. Edana seeks to play her role in that by hiring all races into her company and do the most with what she has and be the best she can be as a woman. Edana believes in second chances even as she received hers and thus, exercises that motto with her current staff."

2. Ellynita Hazlina Lamin, 33

"Her dream Malaysia is for people to not just be tolerant towards one another but to understand and accept each other beyond race and gender. She aspires to see the lives that she touches in some way — no matter big or small — begin to impact the lives of others. Ultimately, she seeks to create an awareness of the need in Acheh and be able to share that with anyone who is interested to listen or contribute in some way."

3. Jecyrina Nagarajah, 27

"Her dream Malaysia is to see homeless people or beggars have a purposeful meaning to life. She believes that they CAN come out from the circle of poverty and be an active contributor of society. She hopes to see that our society won’t just give them a ‘fish’ but will teach them ‘how to fish’. She is motivated by seeing lives changed for the better and knowing that she made the right choice in doing what she’s doing now."

4. Yeoh Chen Chow, 28

"His dream Malaysia is to see more youth empowerment. He believes that the youth of today has the ability and passion to make a different and improved Malaysia. Chen Chow is currently involved in a few non-profit projects to inspire more young people to dream bigger. He believes in the culture of sharing information and believes in giving back to others to pursue their education."

There are 2 ways of voting.
a) Online - Click Here
b) SMS - "AYA Y 1" (For Edana)/ "AYA Y 2" (For Ellynita)/ "AYA Y 3" (For Jecyrina)/ "AYA Y 4" (For Chen Chow), and send to 36828. There is a charge of RM0.80 per SMS. This SMS is powered and sponsored by Trio Mobile Sdn. Bhd.

In addition to Most Outstanding Youth 2009 Awards, there is also Youth Friendly Company 2009 Awards, and there are 3 deserving finalists.

1. AFS
"AFS is an international, voluntary, non-governmental, non-profit organisation that provides intercultural learning opportunities to help people develop the knowledge, skills and understanding needed to create a more just and peaceful world. Working with secondary school students, AFS activities are based on our core values of dignity, respect for differences, harmony, sensitivity and tolerance. It is not designed as a tourist program, rather it allows students to immerse themselves in a culture and country unlike their own."

2. Leaderonomics
"A social enterprise niched in the field of leadership, Leaderonomics offers a full range of solutions and services for organisations, and individuals of all ages. Its vision is to seek to grow people into leaders, build affectionate communities, and transform human societies. In training corporations and youths, Leaderonomics seeks to play an active role in helping the world’s leaders — of all ages, classes and ethnicities — to adapt and meet dramatic changes in our natural and synthetic environments and to help them grow and develop as leaders. The income generated from these activities is channeled into projects and services that enhances leadership development in underprivileged communities."

3. Theatre for Young People
"Under the auspices of The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (klpac), the T4YP young people’s theatre programme provides a platform for young people between the ages of 16 to 25 the opportunity to express themselves by creating meaningful theatre. Essential to T4YP is the idea of building a close-knit community of young theatre practitioners who feel safe to explore and experiment within the boundaries of an established ensemble."

There are 2 ways of voting too.
a) Online - Click Here
b) SMS - "AYA CO 1" (For AFS)/ "AYA CO 2" (For Leaderonomics)/ "AYA CO 3" (For Theatre for Young People) and send to 36828. There is a charge of RM0.80 per SMS. This SMS is powered and sponsored by Trio Mobile Sdn. Bhd.

Hope that all of you would exercise your votes to vote for the deserving finalists.

The voting would end at 1pm on 2nd November 2009.
The awards ceremony would be on 8th November 2009 at KLPAC.
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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

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ReCom.org Wiki - Malaysian Education Encyclopedia

Do you care about Malaysians?
Do you care about education for Malaysians?
Have you been complaining about the education system?

If you answer yes to those questions above, I would like to invite you to come together and lets build a very comprehensive encyclopedia for Malaysian Education. This will be in the form of a wiki, which would be similar to the concept of wikipedia.

Whatever you share is public information and it is for the benefit of everyone.

Do check out ReCom Wiki - Malaysian Education Encyclopedia here .

To get started:-
1. Step 1: If you are not yet a ReCom members, do sign up for a quick account.
2. Step 2: Go to Wiki and start updating!

This is the Facebook group here . Please kindly help to spread the words around.

This is a fully community project. So, lets make a difference for the future of Malaysians!

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

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. :)

ReCom Wiki Launched

ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network has just launched ReCom Wiki today! Do check it out at here at ReCom Wiki .

Hopefully, this will be a great resources for Malaysians who would like to learn about education/scholarship in Malaysia and hopefully, this will be great learning resources for Malaysians too!

For the Facebook group of this wiki, do go to http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=105584987320

JobStreet.com Forum for Career & Education

Since I joined JobStreet.com, I have had the opportunity to work on many stuff, but the launch this week (in fact, a soft launch, since it hasn't been largely promoted yet) is on something that I am really passionate on.

As many of you who know me, know that I am very passionate on ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network, so this launch by JobStreet.com is on the same direction.

It is the JobStreet.com Forum for Career & Education , a way for JobStreet.com to create a platform for job seekers and students to discuss about their career and also education that would help them in their future career. In addition, with the global financial crisis looming, a dedicated section on retrenchment was created as well!

Besides that, it provides a platform for any JobStreet.com members to feedback to us, with your responses answered within minutes or hours, be it on your complaints, suggestions, questions or even to share with us the success story of your employment.

Do check it out here !

Do help me to spread the words too!
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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. :)

Youth '09 - 9th to 11th January 2009

This weekend, Friday to Sunday, 9th to 11th January 2009, Youth '09 would be happening at PWTC!!! Kudos to Joel and Khailee's team for bringing it to live!!!

I would be there twice this weekend.

a) Saturday 9am - Thanks Khailee for inviting me to the opening ceremony, which would be done by Youth & Sports Minister, Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri

b) Saturday 3pm to 5pm - ReComers Gathering - There would be open microphone there, where ReComers and others would network and discuss on education issues.

My colleagues from JobStreet.com would be there too:-
Sunday 4pm to 6pm - JobStreet CAMPUS Resume Workshop, where you can get tips on preparing your resume, in preparation for JobStreet.com Malaysia Career & Training Fair from 16th to 18th January 2009. You would learn about 2009 Job Outlook too!

Do be there!
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Hi there,

This weekend, thousands of youths are meeting up!

Where?

Malaysia's Largest Youth Lifestyle Festival, Youth '09 !
From 9th - 11th January, 2009 at PWTC
Youth '09
Free Entry.

What's going on at Youth '09 ?

Malaysian youths are organising over 100 exciting activities, including an Indie Shopping Bazaar, Extreme Street Dance Challenge, The 2nd National Youth Entrepreneur Convention, Battle of the Bands "Beat the Buzzer", Youth Community Meetups, Automobile Showcase, Foosball tournament, Photography 1 on 1 Shootout, Caged Futsal, Cosplay Competition, Open Mics, Paintball, Gaming, Graffitti, Private sessions with over 50 local Celebrities, Workshops and performances like breakdancing, Capoeira, Popping, Locking, Nu Jazz, Hiphop, Pole Dancing, Jazzercise, Yo-yos... Over 100 activites!

See the full schedule:
Click on this link: Youth '09
Youth '09 Entrance is free.

Don't miss out.

Share the experience with thousands of young Malaysians. Kickstart 2009 with something unforgettable!

After all, this weekend of Youth '09 only happens once a year.

See you there!
Youth '09

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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

Subscribe to my 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!

Analysis of JPA Scholarships Based on Data From SPM 2007 Batch

With SPM exams over, and now a lot of people are starting to prepare for JPA Scholarships applications, I would like to share some analysis of the chances for each subject.

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. Would encourage you guys to use the resources available at ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network and Tin Kosong .

This analysis is posted at ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network .

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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

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!

ReComers Gathering at Youth '08 (10th January 2009) 3pm to 5pm at PWTC

Youth Malaysia will be organizing Youth '09 from 9th to 11th January 2009 at PWTC.

Quoting the write-up of the event
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YOUTH'09, Malaysia's largest youth lifestyle event is a 3 day festival to be held on 9th-11th January at the Putra World Trade Centre, bringing together youth communities from all over Malaysia for a range of exciting activities. Themed "Malaysia's Largest Youth Lifestyle Revolution", 50,000 young Malaysians aged 16 to 28 from different backgrounds and youth communities will be coming together to organize and participate in over 100 activities involving fashion, dance, music, entrepreneurship, personal growth, career and other youth interests.

You can view the trailer, event details, and meet youths who are going at Youth '09
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What is much more exciting is that Youth Malaysia is offering to give a slot for ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network to organize a grand ReComers Gathering there at Youth '09.

I have tentatively submitted a booking with Youth Malaysia for our ReComers gathering to be held on Saturday (10th January 2009) 3pm to 5pm at Putra World Trade Center.

Now, a mission for ReComers would be:-
1. Gather all ReComers who are interested to attend!
2. Come out with an event plan on what we want to do during that 2 hour slot.

Please throw any idea you have here ! Lets make this our largest gathering of ReComers!!!

Ideally the activities could help us spread the words of ReCom.org to others, as well as create funness for the members to have a gathering!


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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

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!

ReCom.org Nominated for the Asian Youth Ambassador (AYA) Dream Malaysia Awards 2008

Thanks to my loyal blog reader for promptly informing on this information.

Thanks to t (a fellow ReComer) for spreading the words on AYA Awards to fellow ReComers.

ReCom.org has now officially been nominated and shortlisted for the Asian Youth Ambassador (AYA) Dream Malaysia Awards 2008 for the "Youth Friendly Company of the Year".

The blurb written in AYA Website is here

Definitely hoping that you guys can help to spread the words around and also to vote to support ReCom.org ! If you have felt that ReCom.org has provided you with useful information, definitely hope that you would chip in to vote for ReCom.org!!!

Thanks for your support!!!

Quoting from the site above:-
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Founded by Syamsul Hasran together with another friend in year 2003, Recom.org emerged out of a dream to contribute to Malaysian students.

Creating a platform for a community of students to exchange ideas and experiences in students-related issues, many have benefited with regards to their scholarship applications, through useful ‘tips & tricks’ and the various connections built with campuses overseas.

To vote for ReCom.org,

Quote:
Step 1:
Type: AYA CO 3

Step 2:
Send to: 36828

Note: Each SMS will be charged RM 0.80.
Powered and sponsored by Trio Moble Sdn Bhd

The final decision for the Most Outstanding Youth of the Year would be based on Judges’ Decision (70%) & Public Votes (30%). Judges will be fairly represented from the partnership of organiser-official sponsor(s).

Voting period starts on 5 October, and all votes must be submitted on or before 3 November (1pm). The Award is considered based on the facts given or obtained of an outstanding spirit (attitude) and not just on the abilities for sports, skills or schooling (unless these are the by-products). The judges’ decision is final and no objections will be entertained.

The winners will be announced at AYA Dream Malaysia Awards Night to be held on 9th of November 2008 at KLPac. Invitation passes will be available for sale soon. Stay tuned!




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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

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!

Congrats to ReComers who get JPA Scholarships!

Congrats to all the fellow ReComers who have successfully gotten JPA Scholarships! Happy for you all, but I would like to really request that all of you, do come back to share at ReCom.org! I am not sure whether any of you benefit from what you learn through ReCom.org, but I really hope that you could help to contribute towards the sharing within ReCom.org! This would help other students in learning, especially for future years! Do definitely hope to see more ReComers to key in their particulars at ReCom Scholarship InfoBase , so that other students can benefit from it.

The list of ReComers who get JPA Scholarships (I only manage to go through the threads from Page 52 to 88).


abyssesour
ah_seng (dentistry)
ainin (architechture)
aitheng (quantity surveying)
anderson (pharmacy)
annarina (medicine)
artistic1412 (biotech)
blursylvia (dentistry)
castle (engineering)
cawei (medicine)
Chang Ai Theng
Charlotte.JL (pure science)
chen622 (Actuarial Science)
chunkeng (medicine)
clep (biotech)
CX3 (dentistry)
cuteranger (accountancy)
dya_me
tie.... (Science)
ernc (pergigian)
ev3rspriNg
eve3
GunbladerQ (engineering)
herm (dentistry)
jace (dentistry)
Jasa (medicine)
jessylicious
jun (Germany engineering)
jun_mei (medicine)
kaera (IT/CS)
kongchiahan (germany engineering)
matchgirl
minic00per
nana90 (dentistry)
ntyf (economics)
passOUT
phoenix1892
powerleakin
qwerkie
shakira (accountancy)
shawn_paul (dentistry)
sherenesheep
shuxian (medicine/applied science)
skyrainbow
smile! (actuarial science)
sopie
starleton (humanities)
vaanbalthier
Vidthiya (Actuarial Science)
vimal06
yenkee (medicine)
yummyummylicious (dentistry)
yvonne90 (medicine)
zhannaC (law)

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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

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!

Should Income be considered for JPA Scholarships

There has been a lot of talks on whether income should be taken into account for JPA Scholarships to study abroad. Today, family income below Rm5k would give the students 10 points, between RM5k and RM10k, would be 5 points and more than RM10k would be 0 point.

Some of the richer ones are arguing that this might be unfairly penalizing on them, whereas some others are saying that this is fair.

Some of my opinion as alternative to current method is:-

1. Take income outside of consideration of scholarship giving, but parents would be required to contribute a portion of income towards the scholarship amount. This method might mean that parents have to contribute 10% (this % would need further analysis) of their annual income towards their child's studies abroad. The remaining portion would be funded through scholarships. In this case, it would be fair to all students, and it can help government to save some cost and send more students too. The downside is that in earlier years of implementation, government might find it harder to predict the total cost. And some parents might start to cheat on income tax (but come on, do enforce on income tax surveillance and bring them to book for cheating on income tax).

2. This method also would suggest take out income component from the scholarships determination. But parents can choose to contribute a certain amount to reduce the number of years of bonds for the students. So, for instance, for every RM50k or RM100k (again arbitrary figure), it would reduce 1 year of bond. So, effectively, the student would get the title of being a government scholar, and yet having shorter bond (This would help government to reduce wastage too, if they are not using the scholars in civil service). Maybe a minimum of 2 years of bond or 3 years be set and a cap of maximum parents' paying of RM300k or RM400k etc. (More analysis needed for the figure).

3. Set up separate scholarships quota for poorer family. Today, those who earn at least 10A1s and below RM1,500 would automatically get the scholarships. Perhaps this could be enhanced on this aspect. Perhaps this figure of income could be increased to say RM3,000 (again arbitrary number here), and set aside say 300 or 500 (again arbitrary number) scholarships for them. This would ensure the needs of the poor and rich are taken care of.

What do you think of the opinion above? Do point out what is right or what is not right on the opinion above. Maybe if we can come out with a bunch of good suggestions for JPA.

You can discuss it further here, or more interestingly at ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network

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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

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!

John Lee's Article on American Education

John Lee has written an interesting article to highlight on American Education in Malaysiakini .

It would be able to help you to know a little more about American Education.

For those of you who would like to know more about American Education, do go to USA For Students - an American Universities Education Fair . It would be held on 14th June 2008 (Saturday) 10am to 4pm. Do sign up here .

Below are John's full article quoted from Malaysiakini .

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Sponsored higher education - think America
John Lee | Apr 30, 08 4:08pm
I note with disappointment the recent controversy here regarding the disbursement of government scholarships and placement in university courses. I believe the policy solutions to these problems are clear enough - any discrimination in university admissions or scholarships ought to be on the basis of income and access to educational opportunities, not race.

The bumiputra may be severely disadvantaged - Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak claimed in 1997 that only 5% of public university students would be Malays if the quota system were to be completely repealed - but this only strengthens the case for discriminating on the basis of actual disadvantages, rather than race, when clearly many bumiputera are not wanting for any opportunities economically or educationally.

However, barring a sudden turnaround in government policy or a wholesale change in the composition of the federal government, it is crucial that individual students be aware of other opportunities available to them should the public purse be unable or unwilling to assist them in their education. Private scholarships are a common form of assistance which many rely on to study, either at local private colleges or in foreign universities.

In spite of this, not many know about private scholarships offered by universities in the United States. Eight American universities, including half of the Ivy League (Harvard, Yale, Princeton and Dartmouth) will fund the education of any applicant who is admitted, inclusive of tuition, living expenses, etc. Although they require a separate financial aid application, they will not consider ability to pay when making admissions decisions, meaning applicants will be evaluated purely on scholastic merit. All admitted students who choose to attend receive financial aid, mostly scholarships, in proportion to their ability to pay the fees.

Furthermore, many other American universities also offer financial aid to students. However, because they generally do not have the large endowments of other institutions, financial need is a factor in admission, meaning poorer applicants must make up for their inability to pay in academic accomplishments. In spite of this, once the student is admitted, many of these institutions commit to funding their education as much as possible.

I write about this because I have noticed that most students do not even consider the US when deciding where to attend university. Although there are disadvantages with the US system - most universities only offer four-year programmess, and American law degrees are not recognised locally - there is no reason to automatically exclude it from contention. If anything, American universities offer much more affordable educations because of their extensive financial aid programmes for the needy.

There are two main barriers to a good education. The first is intellectual and academic - if you cannot make the cut, you will never get into Harvard or Cambridge. The second is financial - how on earth can you pay for Harvard or Cambridge? Many Malaysians are not wanting for brains, but desperately need financial assistance for their higher education. As someone currently benefiting from financial aid at an American university, I believe this is an opportunity which too many bright Malaysians are passing up. Even if you do not think you can get into Harvard, there is no point in not trying - most universities will even waive the application fees if you can demonstrate financial need - and there are so many other lesser-known but equally great institutions eager to help qualified and talented students obtain a higher education.

I strongly urge all parents, students and educational counselors to re-examine the US university system and the opportunities it offers for bright but economically disadvantaged students. Malaysia has no deficit of intellect, but it is squandering its most promising minds through unequal disbursement of scholarships and placement in university courses. Until we rectify this policy problem, individual Malaysians must find our own way, and one route which is often overlooked is that which lies across the Pacific in the US.

For the past three years, concerned students and alumni have helped organise an annual education fair meant to highlight the educational opportunities available in the US. This year, the fair - USA For Students - is being sponsored by the American Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, and will be held this June.

Even if you are unable to attend the fair, the Internet offers many more ways to gather information. Recom , an online forum set up by students, is devoted entirely to educational problems many Malaysians face, from scholarship interviews to applying for placement in local or foreign programmes. Individual university websites also provide a wealth of information on how to apply for financial assistance.

It is not enough for us to rely on the government to spoonfeed us, either in money or education - we must be proactive and learn to help ourselves, if the government is unable to. Malaysia needs all the talent it can get, and we owe it not just to ourselves as individuals, but to ourselves as a nation, to get the best education we can, and to make the most out of ourselves so we can serve our country.



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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

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!

Y! Points by Youth Malaysia

Youth Malaysia , a local start-up, which organized Youth '08 in January at PWTC, is embarking on its Y! Points initiative. You could visit its website at here , where there are a bunch of local websites that it is trying to highlight.

ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network , the largest Malaysian-based students discussion forum is one of its affliates.

Do go and check it out!

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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

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!

2008 JPA Scholarships Topics

Thanks to fellow ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network members' sharing on 2008 JPA Scholarships Interview Experience and also the topics of discussion and interview. The discussion thread is at here

Please share this topic for those SPM 2008 students who might have to go through 2009 JPA Scholarships Interview.

Good Luck to all ReComers who attended various scholarships interview! Hope that again the lion share of JPA Scholarships and other scholarships would be obtained by fellow ReComers!

Hope that you guys would have the ambition to come back to serve the nation too! The country needs you!

The topics are:-
1.What is Vision 2020 to you? What are the challenges in reaching Vision 2020?
2.Which movie do you like the most and why?
3.why education is important
4.Steven Hawking's "The Brief History of Time"
5.How Malaysians students can do better abroad
6.Malaysia's younger generation prefer to watch entertainment program than to watch serious programs such as news and current affairs
7.Belajar di luar negara memberi kelebihan berbanding belajar di dalam negara.
8.Healthy Lifestyle. Way of promoting healthy lifestyle while studying abroad
9.Rising oil prices is a threat to our country's economy
10.Major achievements and developments of Malaysia from the past 50 over years since
independence
11.What is the best sports achievement in Malaysia
12.PhD Scholars: do they serve purpose for the development of community and country or it is for namesake?
13.Ko-kurikulum sedikit-sebanyak menjejaskan pelajaran. Setuju atau tidak?
14.China and India are rising stars of economy in Asia. Do u agree with that? will this growth help Malaysian economy or pose a threat to the economy? In your opinion, what should be done to improve malaysia's economy to compete with them?
15.Reality TV programme
16.why local graduates can't find job?
17.One thing you wish to change about your school life; what would it be and why
18.Patriotism / How and what should you do to show patriotism
19.Telefon mudah alih-keperluan atau kemewahan / Is mobile phones a necessity or luxury
20.Do you agree that there's been a decline in reading among the young?
21.banyak palajar yang telah dihantar overseas tidak mahu balik ke malaysia untuk kerja selepas graduate. apa langkah yang boleh JPA ambil untuk tarik mereka balik ke msia.
22.How can Malaysian students studying abroad promote Malaysia
23.Do u agree that our education system is too exam-orientated
24.Housewife as the first line in the development of human capital resources.
25.The recent cases of child abduction have increased public awareness on the lack of security in the country.
26.visit malaysia year 2007
27.sekolah kluster / cluster school
28.NAM/ PBB /OIC / ASEAN
29.how to be a good leader
30.Who aspires &inspires you
31.Why government still send students abroad when we Malaysia intend to be an education hub in our region?
32.The secret of success
33.What are your proudest achievements in life to this date
34.Do you think those who got 10 a1 and above should automatically granted a scholarship
35.RMK9 - 9th Malaysia Plan
36.Dewan Rakyat
37.Constitution/Perlembagaan
34. Is money everything?
35. Disadvantage of internet
37. should we have limitation on freedom of expression
38. Suruhanjaya REID
39. How do you describe a developed country? What should be used as an indicator to a developed nation?
40. Proton is our locally produced cars. However, efforts by the government to promote Proton have been deemed a burden to the people. In your opinion, should or should not Proton be manufactured?
41. Children nowadays are spoiled, unruly and indiscipline. Is it true.
42. Palestine-Israel Issue
43. GE 2008
44. Pelan Integriti Nasional
45. Pirated cds affect entertainment industry
46. Benifits of participation of cocuriculum-based activities?
47. Technology is a Double-edged Sword
48. AFTA
49. IMF
50. What type of person do you think JPA is looking for?
51. pada pendapat anda, apakah bidang yang memberi impak terbesar kepada negara?
52. Rules are mend to be broken, Give your opinion
53. Unemployment among graduates

Other question:
1.Yang Dipertuan Agong's name
2.What is JPA
3.prime minister name
4.Prime minister’s father’s name
5.Minister's/Menteri Besar/Chief Minister's/JPA DG Name
6.What do you see yourself doing in 10 years time. What would you contribute to the country
7.Which country would you choose to study oversea? Why?
8.Why do you think you deserve the scholarship?
9.What strength do you have to go study overseas
10.What income do you expect when you graduated
11.what would you do if JPA does not offer you a scholarship
12.name two lines from Rukun Negara
13.Talk about a mistake you made and what you learnt from it
14.Singing of patriotic song (Keranamu Malaysia, Khidmat Negara)




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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

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!

ReCom.org Scholarship Holders Infobase

For all of you who has a scholarship in Malaysia, be it through JPA, Bank Negara, Petronas, MARA, Khazanah, Sime Darby, Security Commissioner etc, please share it at ReCom.org Scholarship Holders Infobase .

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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

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!

ReCom 2.0 Launched!

Thanks to several anchors who work hard to design and several anchors who sponsor some money towards buying vBulletin, ReCom.org 2.0 has been launched on 8th March 2008, in conjunction with the 12th General Election of Malaysia!

Do check out the site and spread the words to fellow ReComers who haven't been back to ReCom - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network for long.

With SPM results going to be out on 12th March, ReCom is again going to be a hotspot again!



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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

Youth Article in The Star Education

After almost 5 years, ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network featured in an article in The Star Education today, on 3rd February 2008. Thanks a lot to Sarah Chew from The Star Education for making this happens.

Several Malaysian youths including some ReCom members were interviewed by The Star, include Joyce Tagal, Ng Eng Han, Chong Wei Jie, Joel Neoh Eu-Jin, Shahril Sufian Hamdan, Ng Khai Lee, Ngai Jin Tik, Vincent Liew, Ong Jiin Joo, Florentyna Leow Chai Yeen and myself.

Several youth websites, like ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network , Tin Kosong , theCICAK , UKEC , Youth Malaysia , Malaysia Students , CEKU were interviewed.

Several other youth-related projects were mentioned too. Among them, Discover US Education , Northeast Malaysia Forum, Malaysia Student Leaders Summit, Cathay Pacific International Wilderness Experience, Young Global Citizens Project etc.

The two full articles appeared in The Star Education on 3rd February 2008 are:-
The Star Education - Online With A Mission
The Star Education - Why Contribute?

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Online with a mission

Stories by SARAH CHEW

educate@thestar.com.my

Meet some young people who step beyond their personal blogs.

IF you think those who create websites and monitor them for many hours are geeks with thick spectacles, think again.

The Internet has become the stage, boardroom, library, playground and even mamak stall for a host of people, from Ivy League students to young entrepreneurs and secondary school students.

Young people feel empowered by expressing themselves via a medium they have mastered, which allows anyone and everyone, regardless of gender, race, physical attributes and social status, the opportunity to contribute.

While blogs have been the rage for many years, there has been a quiet but steady growth of websites set up by youths, mostly tertiary students, to network and spread knowledge and awareness.


YouthMalaysia.com brings young people together and makes events like Youth ’08: We Are the Trendsetterspossible.


Helping others

Tinkosong was born when one of its founders, Yale University student Joyce Tagal, 22, noticed, from her personal blog post on Malaysian education, that many people voice complaints but offer no real solutions.

So Tagal, 22, and two other Malaysians in the United States, Harvard student Nicholas Khaw, 21, and Dartmouth College student Ng Eng Han, 22, decided to create a blog geared towards information on educational opportunities.

“In the beginning, we focused on providing information about overseas scholarships and the application process to US universities, based on first-hand experience and those of our friends’,” says Ng. “But now, we’re trying to expand it to other opportunities like camps, talks and volunteer programmes in Malaysia.”

Among some of the programmes advertised on Tinkosong are the Cathay Pacific International Wilderness Experience and the Young Global Citizens Project by the British Council.

The website founders actively network with Malaysians on events, such as the Discover US Education fair last year, and the upcoming Northeast Malaysia Forum (NMF) in Boston.

“We found many talented young Malaysians who have done interesting things but just do not have opportunities to interact with others. The NMF, as well as Tinkosong, provide venues where young Malaysians can seek advice,” says Tagal.

Another website that serves a similar purpose is Malaysia Students, where contributors share Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) exam tips. Chong Wei Jie, 20, started this site in 2005 while waiting for his SPM results.

“I was very frustrated with tutoring websites, where students had to pay to get help academically,” says Chong. “So I said to myself, why not create a blog where they can interact by asking questions, sharing opinions, and learning from each other?”

Now, Chong has bigger plans for a forum on Malaysia Students, which has an average of 650 daily visitors and 2,000 subscribers.

“I hope these websites get more publicity. When they are strong enough (in terms of readership) to gain attention from sponsors, activities like gatherings and competitions can be held, fully or partly sponsored.”


Neoh (centre) believes youths today have lots of potential but someone needs to guide them


Going places

Unlike most youth-oriented websites, which do not command enough readership to be noticed, YouthMalaysia.com, has an average of 70,000 hits a day. Just over a year old, it organised an exhibition and an entrepreneur convention for youths in Kuala Lumpur last month.

Its founder and project director, Joel Neoh Eu-Jin, used to run a business that connected companies with graduates and students seeking part-time work. In October 2006, he decided to go beyond that and set up Youth Malaysia as a non-government organisation.

“Initially the idea was to get the young to express themselves, but now it’s a ‘dotcom’ venture as more elements and programmes were added.

“Our slant is more towards entrepreneurship as there is a lot of potential among youths. We are very capable and creative in our own ways, but no one takes the initiative to develop those ideas.”

The website, Neoh explains, is a communication tool and platform for the organisation’s non-online programmes, such as the 1st National Youth Entrepreneur Convention 2008, and Youth ’08: We Are The Trendsetters, a lifestyle showcase held in KL last month.

“With ground work, you can build databases but these don’t allow you to communicate and get feedback from the youth community,” Neoh explains. “The website complements our programmes.”

In the future, he hopes to encourage young people to read more about social and political issues by forming a pool of writers, networking with other youth websites, and introducing Y-points which members can collect whenever they read articles on YouthMalaysia.com and its partner websites.

Neoh admits that it is not easy to create a website as marketing and promotion are involved. To make the site commercially viable, he gets sponsors to fund programmes and be involved in them.

YouthMalaysia.com now has articles, updates, audio files, blogs and other materials posted by its eight permanent staff members and its 6,000 odd members.



Young voices


Khaw (left) and Tagal started Tinkosong for students to get advice on education matters.
ReCom.org (ReCom), a networking forum and platform for Malaysian students around the world, started when Yeoh Chen Chow, Syamsul Hasran and Mohd Yusuf Abdul Hamid met at the Malaysian embassy in Washington DC during a meeting of student leaders held in conjunction with the 45th Merdeka Day celebrations.

“We were thinking of what to do to contribute back to Malaysia and we came up with this idea,” moderator Yeoh says.

The driving element of the website is its forums, which feature topics ranging from social issues and current affairs to scholarships and advice on education.

“Our popular topics are scholarships and university applications, as students who have gone through the process share with others, Besides exchanging trial papers and information, students connect with each other and we try to inculcate sharing – if you have gained from ReCom, give back to others.”

Yeoh explains that not only do students network, many also view ReCom as a source of information. One example concerns the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) shooting in 2007.

“A student who was studying at Virginia Tech reported on what was happening through ReCom. The media contacted him via the site to interview him,” he says.

“Some ReCom members have been inspired by the forums and have started their own initiatives, like conferences and other websites.”

Initially, most visitors to the site were students in the United States. But the numbers have gradually grown to include those in Australia, Japan, Korea and other countries.

ReCom’s members have helped in education fairs like Discover US Education-KL ‘07. Last year, they partnered with the United Kingdom and Eire Council for Malaysian Students (UKEC) to organise the Malaysian Student Leaders Summit, which attracted about 400 participants from over 150 universities in 18 countries.

Since ReCom’s inception in 2003, it has accumulated 14.6 million hits and 7,600 members.

The UKEC members have also started CEKU, a website that publishes student commentaries on issues in Malaysia and reviews of Malaysian-themed events in Britain.

Chief editor and Manchester University student Shahril Sufian Hamdan says CEKU’s main purpose is to encourage proper debate.

“The world is not going to change overnight because a bunch of middle class, educated boys and girls decide to write and discuss things online,” he muses. “The true purpose is to share our views and get feedback on them, to ensure that our idealism is contested and defended.”

As seems to be the trend, websites like CEKU have relations with similar youth websites, like theCICAK.com, and their writers contribute to others as well.

“It’s all about being a platform for people to voice their thoughts. We’re not in the business to compete. We may do things a bit differently but our goals are the same,” Shahril, 23, adds.

Like CEKU, theCICAK.com publishes commentaries by youths and students on sociopolitical issues and popular culture in Malaysia.

But it has a more specific aim – to engage them in intelligent discussion and the democratic process.

By 2010, Malaysians under 35 will constitute 65% of the country’s population, says co-founder Ng Khai Lee, quoting estimates by the US census bureau. “The question is, will enough of the voting youth be politically informed and educated?”

Ng’s wish, however, is for more of the young to get involved in writing their ideas and opinions.

“Most people are readers, some are commentators, and only a few are writers. If you have the potential to positively influence someone with your ideas, writing is a good tool to help you do so.

“I hope more people will write online, and write well.”

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Why contribute?

STUDENT and youth websites help us grow and be “holistic”, says Taylor’s University College student Ngai Jin Tik, 18.

“I feel that these websites meet the various needs of Malaysian youths,” he adds, giving examples of websites like Tinkosong, which shares information on Malaysian education, and ReCom and theCicak, which provide a platform for the young to express themselves on “issues that affect us fundamentally, like corruption and human rights.”


MOHD MUSTAFFA FAZIL: One should act responsibly on websites.
College student Vincent Liew, 20, contributes to theCicak because it gives him the opportunity to air his views.

“I have opinions that I want to share with people. At the same time, it sharpens my writing and critical thinking skills,” he says. “It also teaches me how to argue intelligently.”

More than that, however, Vincent’s involvement with theCicak has made him politically aware and active.

“It opens my mind to know that people should not be influenced by the promises others make, and should be able to weigh the pros and cons before voting,” he says. “I’m joining MCA next month as I want to be more involved in political matters.”

Ong Jiin Joo, 27, adds that online forums like ReCom allow Malaysians living overseas to change their mindsets and participate in local issues in some way.

“For example, a national identity-based discussion tends to shift the perspective of Malaysians abroad and force them to take a stand on issues, even though they are not physically involved.

“This brings them one step closer to commit in voting, and to participate in the democratic process.”

Secondary school student Florentyna Leow Chai Yeen, 16, says: “What these websites represent is freedom – freedom of speech, freedom to broadcast information, freedom to assemble online, to read what you want and know what you want to know.”

However, Communications and Multimedia Content Forum (CMCF) of Malaysia executive director Mohd Mustaffa Fazil Mohd Abdan cautions that one should be responsible for the content uploaded and the comments made on websites.

“From the industry point of view, we do want more people to write on websites as it’s a good tool to learn.

“But everything can be misused, so there is the question of who should be the guardian. That’s why I believe in self-regulation, which begins at home,” he says.

The CMCF, which derives its powers from the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (CMA), has a self-regulatory content code that some of the major media providers and industry players adhere to.

Besides the content code and CMA, other laws can be applied to websites because of media convergence.

“I think most people don’t know that other Acts have bearing because they only use a certain medium or are involved in a certain industry,” Mohd Mustaffa Fazil adds.

“We don’t want to regulate websites,” says Youth and Sports Deputy Minister Datuk Liow Tiong Lai.

“But we want youths with a mission for the nation, who are responsible in whatever they do.”

In Memory of Lee Nian Ning (1987-2008)

A fellow Penangite, A fellow JPA Scholar, a fellow ReComer (nick: nianz), Lee Nian Ning (1987-2008), was really unfortunate, as the bus that carried her from Penang-KL, got into a bad accident and she lost her life in it. It is a definitely a sad day - 25th January 2008.

She was from Penang state - Penang Methodist Girls School. And then, she went to University of New South Wales doing medical.

Quoting from one of her 47 posts in ReCom.org in 2005, when she finally got JPA Scholarships to study medical in Australia.

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just wanna say THANK YOU to all the recommers out there for making my JPA dreams come true!!thank you all for all the wonderful advice,encouragement and support.without RECOM i think i'll never noe tht there is such a thing as appealing..lol..and will never find out all the useful tips regarding the interview!!!thanks a bunch!!
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She is so generous in saying thanks to fellow ReComers who have helped her in the process. Saddened by her sudden death, due to human errors that could be avoided.

Condolence to Nian Ning's family. May you rest in peace.

To reach a facebook group, visit In Memory of Lee Nian Ning (1987-2008)

To sign the petition on this road accident for Lee Nian Ning, Mohd. Zailani and Pang Boon Eng and get more updates, go to BusCrashNoMore.Blogspot.com

To visit Nian Ning's previous blogs, go to her xanga and blogspot

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Click here to read more of Chen Chow's posts

ReCom.org

ReCom.org , The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network has been founded in April 2003, which means that in 3 months' time, it would hit its 5 years' anniversary. Many things have happened in ReCom, and many things are magical. ReCom has a total hits of 14.3 Million hits now! Of which about 40% of the hits happened in 2007. That's good! That means the website is growing!

There has been thoughts of having serious discussions vs informative website. What would be good? Can we do both? Currently, ReCom is attracting a large crowd, but as a result of it, the quality of debates and discussions have in a way dropped.

What should be the best way ReCom.org be? Should it stay at its status as the best source of Scholarships information? Should it enhanced itself?

Feedback needed - The Star Article on ReCom

The Star is doing an article on ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network

And we need feedback from ReCom members, on what ReCom has affected you over the years. Why you go to ReCom? What effects it has?

Check it out at :-
here

Please share your thoughts, and your thoughts might end up be picked up and published in The Star!

ReCom is nearing its next milestone of 5-year anniversary in April 2008, as well as hitting a milestone of 15 Million webhits!