Sunday, June 28, 2009

End of Fund Raising Activities

Got an email from Bobby this morning and then saw this at his page here .

Bobby has decided to cease all fund raising activities in SendBobToBerkeley.com .

Great that Bobby will get full scholarship to further his studies abroad. While he does not get to fulfill his dream to study at UC Berkeley, I'm sure one day, he will be able to go to Bay Area and reach his potential there!

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End of Fundraising Activities
Sunday, 28 June 2009

After I launched this website, I was informed by another scholarship body that I was given a scholarship to go UCL, UK. The scholarship body was insistent that I can only study in UCL and not UC Berkeley. I was pretty much undecided on what to do. However after much deliberation, I have finally decided that the best course of action is to simply accept the scholarship to go to UCL, UK and cease all fundraising activities on SendBobToBerkeley.com

It is the right thing to do after securing a scholarship to go to the UK. Although it is not my main choice to go to the UK, it is still a wonderful opportunity to study there. I am grateful to be offered the chance to study in the UK.

I am thankful to all who have supported me in this quest. My main intention was to neither obtain charity money nor sympathy from the public to fund my education. My objective was to sell advertising space that will create a win-win situation for both. I believe that this site would have become popular given time to promote and market. It is a waste that I would have to cease operations on this website just after I launched it.

I have received numerous enquiries on people interested to buy the properties and wanting to contribute money to the fund. Some are turned off by the relatively high price. I am sorry; the price was the way it is because I am actually targeting US and large Malaysian business entities and not Malaysian small business owners or individuals. Nonetheless, thank you for your interest and support especially from those who have written to me and blogged about this website. Thank you again.

At the moment the fund counter stands at $333. I have contacted my sponsors about the funds. They would want me to use the funds for some education-related initiative. I have not given much thought on how exactly I am going to use the funds for the education-related initiative. I have till late August to do something about this before flying off to the UK. Anyone with any ideas to start-up some education-initiative may contact me at Bobby@SendBobToBerkeley.com

I hope my initiative in setting up this website will inspire other youths and students to always think positive. Things always happen for a reason. It's what you do in your circumstances that really matters.

I allowed a scholarship to slip out of my hands. I do not have any angry feelings for Khazanah for rejecting me all the way in the 4th round. I just did not perform on the last interview. I lost fair and square.

I know many of you are in the same circumstance as me. The question you should ask yourself is, do you sit back and resign to fate that you have lost? Or do you jump back up and take the necessary next steps to make your dream come true?

Think positive. You will always find something that will change your luck. No use sitting around cursing your bad luck. You create your own good luck. Dream Big, Dream Differently, Chase the Dream. Do something about your life and good things will come your way.

Posted by Bobby at 1.26pm



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Ureka Weekend

Ureka Weekend will be held this Friday, 3rd July 7pm to Sunday 9pm.

Do check out the FAQ here .

It will be great exposure for those would-be entrepreneurs!
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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. :)

Education Highlights from The Star

Thanks to my loyal blog reader for sharing this - Visit Here

__________________________________________________________________________


Study award

THE British Schools Group has announced the establishment of The British High Commissioner's Scholarship.

The RM600,000 annual scholarship provides an opportunity to Malaysian children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, who show a high potential for academic excellence.

The scholarship includes all fees, materials, uniforms and lunches, and covers education from primary Year 5 through to the end of secondary school.

For details call: 03 -7727 7775, fax: 03-7722 1296 or visit BSKL .


Communication skills

KOLEJ Tunku Abdul Rahman (KTAR) will be organising a workshop titled 'Effective Communication and The Educator' designed for lecturers, teachers or anyone looking to enhance delivery of teaching, training and communication skills.

The workshop will be held from at the KTAR Learning Centre, Ground Floor, Wisma MCA, Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur. on July 1 and 2.

For details, please call Ms Ng at 03-41499164 or e-mail: cpe AT mail DOT tarc DOT edu DOT my.


Health screening

UCSI University's Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, jointly with the Faculty of Medical Sciences will be organising the 8th Public Health Campaign 2009 themed 'Healthy Living, Live Without Diabetes' .It will be held at the Sunway Pyramid, LG2 Pyramid Concourse, Subang Jaya from 11am to 10 pm on July 3 to 5. The campaign aims to promote the importance of health, educate the public on diabetes and prevention, and provide health screening services such as tests for blood pressure, blood glucose, blood cholesterol and body fat.

Those who plan to take the blood glucose and cholesterol tests are advised to fast at least two hours prior to the test. For details, contact Lucinda Lau at Lucindalau AT gmail DOT com


Breathing science

THERE will be a free evening talk titled 'The Science of Breath Healing' by Kolej Tunku Abdul Rahman (KTAR) on how to use breathing techniques to improve one's health.

The talk covers nostril cleaning techniques, the art of inhalation, retention and exhalation.

Prof Dr Phillip Kumar will be speaking at this talk at the KTAR Learning Centre, Ground Floor, Wisma MCA, Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur at 6.30pm on July 9. For details, please call Ms Wong at 03-41499164 or e-mail cpe AT mail DOT tarc DOT edu DOT my


Workshop for students

A workshop to prepare students to the top universities in the United States (US) will be held at Taylor's University College. The Workshop will be facilitated by interviewers, alumni and students of Ivy League varsities. The workshop will be held on Aug 1, 2 and 15 at its premises. For details go to here .


International meet

UNIVERSITI Malaya is organising the International Conference on Cross-Cultural Communication to gather researchers, academics and practitioners to analyse issues pertaining to cross-cultural communication in the region and the world.

Authors from various disciplines are encouraged to submit abstracts within the given themes. The conference will be held in Kuala Lumpur on Aug 19 to 20.

For details, contact Prof Maya David at 03-79673047 or visit here


Literary conference

UNIVERSITI Sains Malaysia's (USM) School of Languages, Literacies and Translation is organising the Sixth International Literacy Conference 2009 (LITCON 2009).

LITCON 2009 is organised in collaboration with the university's International Literacy Research Unit, National Higher Education Research Institute (under the Higher Education Ministry) and the Penang education department.

The conference, with the theme 'Literacy: Forging Pathways to Unity' will be held from Oct 7 to 9 in Penang.

For details calls 04-653 3888 ext. 3145 / 3751 / 3977, or e-mail litcon2009 AT gmail DOT com or log onto here .


Leaderonomics Entrepreneur Academy & Youth Entrepreneur Malaysia 5-Day Accelerated Workshop

Got this from Aidan Chew.

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Leaderonomics Entrepreneur Academy (LEA) & Youth Entrepreneur Malaysia (YEM)
would like to invite you to our 5 day-Accelerated Workshop we will be conducting on August 5th - 9th.

Learn Winning Strategies
- How to start your business with little or no money.

- How to leverage on other-people's money (OPM).

- Spend days with leaders from top multinationals(MNC's), successful entrepreneurs & Fortune 500 companies.

For extra info about this exciting event, visit 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. :)

Economic Cost of the US Education Gap

Yang Jerng shared with me this article on the economic cost of the US Education gap.

Do check it out!

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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. :)

PSD Scholarships

Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak announced that there will be a new category of Public Service Department (PSD or JPA Scholarship) that will be merit-based, starting next year.


For more info, read at here .

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Maths Site

Last Sunday and Thursday, met with Dr. Ho Weng Kin (my former civic tutor (class teacher) as well as my Further Maths lecturer at Raffles Junior College). And on Thursday, Dr. Ho's colleague/student, Wee Wen Shih was together with us as well.


Wen Shih has developed a comprehensive learning site for those who are preparing for A Level Mathematics (would be useful for those in STPM too!). There is links to Maths for O Level/IB (Would be useful for those in SPM too!). He has a fantastic passion in Math, similar to Dr. Ho Weng Kin. 



MIRC Delegation to Singtel Innovation Exchange

Highlighting this, if anyone who is interested to participate in it.

Do join the Facebook event at here.
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ATTN ISVs & MOBILE SOLUTIONS PROVIDER: BE A PART OF MIRC DELEGATION TO SINGTEL INNOVATION EXCHANGE (SIX)!

Details:
Date: 14 July 2009 (Tues)
Time: 9am - 6pm
Venue: Suntec Convention and Exhibition Centre, Singapore

*** PLEASE RSVP BY 30 JUNE 2009 TO CONFIRM YOUR ATTENDANCE.***

And book your slot to share your solutions with Asia Pacific's leading telcos as places are limited! Let us help you turn your ideas to reality today.

For More Information:
Miss Sarimah Samad
O: 03 – 2161 1618
F: 03 – 2161 3618
E: sarimah AT mirc DOT org DOT my

***

At SingTel, we believe the future is all about innovations and collaborations. Which is why we are inviting you to join the launch of SingTel Innovation Exchange (SiX) - a first-of-its-kind programme designed for application developer communities to provide you with a gateway to Asia Pacific, one of the fastest growing mobile and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) markets.

Join us for the exciting launch of SiX to:

1. Leverage SiX's rich resources to lower your business operation cost and seek technical consultancy support to jump onto the SaaS bandwagon.

2. Find out how SiX can assist you in reaching out to the Asia Pacific market to realise your revenue potential within a short period of time.

3. Learn how SingTel Service Delivery Platform can help you extend your services to multiple Asian markets.

4. Understand the needs of the industry to capture the next wave of growth for mobile and SaaS solutions.

5. Meet top executives from 6 key leading Telcos in Asia Pacific in ONE single event!

-----
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SendBobToBerkeley.com !

Thanks to Jehan from NST, Bobby's website is highlighted in NST today! Hope to see more Malaysians supporting him!

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BEING rejected for a scholarship by Khazanah Nasional did not deter a Malaysian student from trying to achieve his dreams through other means.

Thus the website sendbobtoberkeley.com — a site providing space for companies and businesses to “own” a piece of property and a link to their websites — was born.

The idea of using the Internet to raise funds for furthering studies is not new, admits the 20-year-old creator who wants to be known as Bobby.

In 2005, then student Alex Tew, from the United Kingdom set up the Million Dollar Website to fund his university studies. The overwhelming success of the site spawned copycat sites using the same concept to earn money.

With the economic recession, many students are now also seeking micro loans and sponsorships from corporations and from alumni of their institutions online.
Kuala Lumpur-based Bobby says his site is still a relatively novel idea in Malaysia.

It provides online advertising in the form of virtual real estate.

Advertisers can “own” an office block, customise it to their liking and have the images of these structures linked back to their own websites.

“People I’ve spoken to and who have sent me emails say trying to raise the money I need in the short time I have is a crazy but interesting idea,” he says.

His parents are willing to support his first year at University of California, Berkeley, United States where he has been accepted to do Economics but the remaining cost of pursuing his four-year degree — which is nearly US$150,000 (RM525,000) — would have to come from him.

The university, being a public institution, will not provide financial aid to a foreign student like Bobby.

He hopes to raise the money by July 23, a month after setting up the site, which would give him some time to settle things before leaving for the US.

In the first 24 hours of it being online, the site had attracted about 1,000 visitors from Malaysia, Singapore, the US and other countries.

Though there may be those thinking that his website is a way of seeking charity to pursue his studies overseas, Bobby says this is not so.

“My objective is for the site to be a business transaction for all, where advertisers can buy ‘property’ to link to their own websites,” he says.

If his endeavour to earn the necessary amount fails or if he ends up not going to Berkeley, he intends to use the money as a micro-fund for start-ups, social entrepreneurship and charity.

Right after rejection by Khazanah Nasional and the setting of his site, Bobby received a call from another corporation offering him a scholarship to study at University College London, where he has also been accepted to pursue his studies.

“I am still keen on going to Berkeley though because I am really interested in technology and the university is relatively close to Silicon Valley,” he says.

He is keen on starting a technology company upon graduation.

Whatever the outcome, he holds a quote by Air Asia chief executive officer Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes dearly to his heart: “Never take ‘no’ for an answer”.

“My dream is to be able to pursue my studies in the US.

“And I believe that you should never give up on your dreams. You should be creative and take action to make them happen.”

Check out Bobby’s website at http://sendbobtoberkeley.com
-----
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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. :)

@chenchow in twitter

For all of you who are already on Twitter world, I am joining you guys. I know I am way behind time in stepping into Twitter world. 


Follow me at @chenchow .

Donation for Kai Xin's Liver Transplant

Thanks to Rachel for highlighting the cause of baby Loke Kai Xin's Liver Transplant.

Do hope that some of you would be more than willing to part with a few Ringgit, to help Kai Xin with his medical treatment cost.

The details of how to donate can be assessed here.


-----
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. :)

Thursday, June 25, 2009

The CEO Series 13 : Vincent Chin, Managing Director, BCG Tuesday 30th June 2009

The CEO Series 13 : Vincent Chin, Managing Director, BCG Tuesday 30th June 2009: 

The CEO Series 13 : Vincent Chin, Managing Director, BCG
An informal session with the MD of Boston Consulting Group

Host:
Young Corporate Malaysians (YCM)
Date:
Tuesday 30th June 2009
Time:
19:30 - 21:30
Location:
Rumah UKEC
Street:
67 Jalan U Thant
Town/City:
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Vincent juggled a switch in careers, relocation across continents, and a new child to earn his MBA from Edinburgh Business School with a special dean's commendation for being in the top percentile amongst the student body internationally. He holds a bachelor's degree in Computer Science and Information Systems from the National University of Singapore where he was a scholar of the Singapore Government.


His passion for consulting was ignited by his wife who was also a management consultant and demonstrated to him that there exist a career where one could really help a wide range of people become more successful, in running their businesses and succeeding in their careers. Vincent found the perfect fit in The Boston Consulting Group. He joined BCG in 1999 and has since worked in various industries, including financial services, energy and utilities. Prior to joining BCG, Vincent was a key member of the consulting team who developed Andersen Consulting's e-Government and Technology Ventures initiatives in Malaysia. Vincent also worked for Singapore Airlines and managed several of the airlines' global network of stations.


Besides being on the leadership team of BCG Kuala Lumpur, Vincent is also an active member of the business community, contributing his time to educational and religious missions. Outside of work, Vincent is an ardent musician and has composed and staged a full length musical and continues to be a keen music afficionado - a passion he shares with a number of his BCG colleagues and clients.


He is married with two children and devotes his weekends to them.

-----------------------------------------

Feel free to bring your friends to this event, it's FREE and it's up to YOU to make the most out of it especially during the infamous Q&A session. Map to venue as per attached to this event page.

Date: 30th June 2009
Time: 7.30pm - 9.30pm

Please get your friends to join our mailing list via this link:

To join the Facebook group, go http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=13036461979 



Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Joanne's Sharing on College & Grad School

Below is a sharing by Joanne Lee, an alumna of University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and Cornell University, when she was sharing with incoming freshman, who has strong desire to study in an Ivy for graduate school.
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Congrats on starting a new chapter in your life. It's good that you are thinking the right things.

However, it seems that you are adamant in getting to an Ivy. I'm here to impart my experiences and advise you as best as I can. And by no means I'm an expert!

Before you start thinking about higher education after college, I want you to realize that you have 3 to 4 years of undergraduate studies. That's a really long time. Assuming you got into a reputable program, I hope you are able to fully appreciate and utilize every single opportunity as you can while learning as much as you can. College is a great learning ground so take the time to plan your curriculum and seek after great lecturers, courses, programs and even social groups to expand yourself as a person.

Sometimes, you may realize that what you want when you first started may change when you are in your 2nd,3rd or 4th year. So make sure you identify your ambitions and realize them before its too late. I've friends who were very bold because they switched from engineering program to business,mathematics,economics and finance and from music to medicine because they discovered later on that were what really draw and excite them.

Remember that college is a stepping stone to your future careers too.

Another option you want to think about is whether you want to intern or coop in the summer with other companies when you are in summer breaks. Interning is a great way to understand how working, business and/or corporate life is.

Once again, 3-4 years is a really long time to be in school. Unless you really want to start a Masters as soon as you finish college, consider working a few years. If you can't afford the costs of Masters/Phd, you may want to work with a company who can finance you at college part-time as you work full time. Or find financial support elsewhere if you so choose.

By the time you are in your 3rd or 4th year in college, you probably know whether you want to pursue a masters/phd AND know that you are not "burn-out" by school. I know some friends who felt they learned so much and were prepared for the workforce after undergrad that getting a masters didn't add value to them.
After considering everything (I didn't cover alot but you will discover as you start college) and still want to pursue a masters/phd at ivy leagues, here are some key things you want to start even in your 3rd year:

1) Choose the program that you think has the best facilities, faculty and resources that you can utilize to expand yourself
2) Study for GRE/GMAT or whatever prep exams you have to do and ACE IT. Like score 90% above
3) Graduate with GPA>=3.5/4.0. Even better if you graduated top 3% of your class.
4) Excel in all the courses relevant to the program
5) Do extra curricular stuff: research relevant to the program, join groups (IEEE, etc for example), network with people to learn and discuss and discover. I didn't do alot of the latter and wish I did....
6) Contact the respective university's graduate admissions office
7) Visit the campus(es) and make sure you like it and its surroundings. Speak to professors of the prog you want to enroll. Even though Ivy sounds awesome, some of the better prog are not in ivy schools. I've a friend who graduated from Cornell after his Bachelors and decided to do his Masters in UIUC because it has one of the best engineering programs in the nation. I've another friend who stayed on at UIUC after his undergraduate to do his masters and phd because he thought it was a better prog. And he rejected several ivy and non-ivy league schools ie stanford, cornell, etc.
8) Consider other non-ivy programs but equally great programs such as mit, uc berkeley, stanford, caltech, etc
9) Apply a year before you admit to the prog and hope for the best. If you fail to admit, you can try again next year or work or go to another school. I've a friend who failed to get into UPenn right after undergrad even though he graduated 2nd top in his class, went to work for a year, reapplied and got into UPenn the following year.

Hope these tips help.

BTW, you could transfer to ivy school during your undergrad school...

Last but not least, enjoy college while you can! I'd a great time!

Joanne

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

SendBobToBerkeley.com !

This is a very innovative idea by a fellow Malaysian, who wish to further studies at University of California, Berkeley. He has come very close, to secure the prestigious Khazanah Nasional Scholarships. However, he was unable to successfully obtain the scholarships.

Hence, he has started this initiative, to sell virtual real estate online to fund his education at Berkeley!

Would hope that you guys could support his initiative, to make his dream come true! Please kindly help to spread the words around too!

To check out more, visit SendBobToBerkeley.com !
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SendBobToBerkeley.com Launched!

Bobby is a 20-year-old dude from Malaysia who just completed his
A-Levels. He has gained admission into the University of California,
Berkeley for Fall 2009. He thought he was going to win a scholarship
from Khazanah Nasional, a Malaysian sovereign wealth fund – having
qualified himself to the final 4th round with 4 other applicants from
the thousands who applied. But he was proven wrong. He somehow
blundered his most important last interview and was left stranded.

Being an international student, Bobby would have to pay close to
$50,000 per year to study in UC Berkeley. Thus a 4 years university
education would cost close to $200,000. Bobby's parents are
willing to loan him $50,000 but the rest will have to come from his
self initiative.

Bobby decided to embark on an Internet project to fundraise the
remaining $150,000 in 30 days on a novelty advertising idea – selling
virtual real estate as advertising space. Bobby has designed
rows of properties such as premium skyscrapers, landmarks, office
tower, bungalow houses and cheap tents to suit different prospective
business owners. Owners of these properties are free to 'renovate'
(customize) the properties and to link to any webpage on the Internet.

The price of real estate starts from $100 per property for Cheap
Tents. There are currently 369 premium properties on sale on
SendBobToBerkeley.com. Log on and join the sale of the virtual properties
now before they run out!

SEALnet Project Thailand 09

This is an initiative done by a friend of mine, Mei Yueh from Stanford University. it is great to see so many of our young Malaysians are involved in such kind of initiatives. Hope that you can make a difference by supporting their causes.

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Dear friends,

Please take a few minutes to read this e-mail.

This summer, I'll be working with a team of college students planning for a service project on active learning in Tesabaan 5 Jr. High School in Lampang, Thailand. We hope to increase learning motivation and solve the rote-memorization learning problem through 3 main components: active classes, leadership, and library renovation. We will equip students not only with active learning and critical-thinking skills, but empower them to be future community leaders in solving community issues. Tesabaan 5 is a municipal school that serves as a pilot school illustrating the success of active learning with our project. 

I'm sure you can relate to this similar problem as our education system in Malaysia is mainly based on rote learning which creates a dull learning atmosphere and restricts our critical thinking. That is why I need your support for this project. Any donation from as little as $10 will make a great difference in these students' future.

To make this life-changing impact on these students, you can donate through here (e.g. check or credit card). For more information about our project, SEALnet Project Thailand 09, click here. Of course, you're more than welcome to e-mail me if you have any questions about the project or how to donate.

When donating:
1) Please put Project Thailand as the Donation Target. 
After donating:
2) Please e-mail me about the amount you donated so that I can keep track of the amount raised for the project.

Thank you very much for making a difference in the kids' lives! =)

I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR HELP!

Sincerely,
Mei Yueh



Internships at P&G!

If anyone is interested, do check it out!

-----

Greetings from P&G Malaysia!

 There are internship vacancies in Procter & Gamble Malaysia targeted at penultimate year, Malaysian students who are pursuing a degree program. Our current internships are for Product Supply (Click here) and Customer Business Development (Click here) which you can read more about by clicking on the links. You can look forward to pre-assigned intern projects under trained intern coaches, practicing leadership from Day 1!

To give you a brief background on P&G- We're the world's largest consumer products company providing over 400 products in over 160 countries. With humble beginnings starting 1837, P&G is now more than 170 years old. They're the people behind everyday brands you will be familiar with such as Pringles, Downy, Whisper, Pantene, Gillette and SK-II to name a few. To read more about P&G, (click here.)

 Don't miss out on this rare opportunity and apply online now!

Please read carefully the next steps required from you below.  Please take note that your application is not complete until you have your profile updated and also complete the online test.

  1. You need to complete your profile and submit your resume online
  2. Next, complete the online test "Success Drivers Assessment" which is compulsory in order to continue with your application.  You must complete and pass the online test.
  3. Those who pass the online test will be invited to sit for the Reasoning Test at our office. You will be contacted via email or phone.
  4. Those who pass the Reasoning Test will be called for interviews.
  5. Those who pass the interviews will have the chance of being offered an internship!

Please note that online applications should be submitted ASAP!

Warmest regards and good luck!

Jolyn


ICRC & Malaysian Red Crescent Essay Competition

Thanks to my loyal blog reader for this. This is adapted from NST.

----

THE International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Malaysian Red Crescent, with the support of the Education Ministry, are organising an essay writing competition on International Humanitarian Law.

The contest, which is open to Forms Four and Five students, marks the 60th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions, the foundation of International Humanitarian Law.

It reflects the fact that Malaysia is the first country in Asia in which the principles of International Humanitarian Law have been integrated into the national education curriculum (Civics and Citizenship Education) for secondary schools.

Students are invited to write on one of the following topics: Humanity in War, The Importance of International Humanitarian Law in Protecting Life and Human Dignity or The Importance of Learning International Humanitarian Law. The essay must be written in either Bahasa Malaysia or English and between 800 and 1,200 words (with the exact word count stated at the end of the essay).

All entries must reach the ICRC Kuala Lumpur by July 15 on or before noon either via post (ICRC, Unit 50-11-1, Level 11, Wisma UOA Damansara, No. 50, Jalan Dungun, Damansara Heights, 50490 Kuala Lumpur) or email kuala_lumpur.kua@icrc.org
Individual prizes will be given as follows for both the Bahasa Malaysia and English categories:

First Prize: RM1.000

Second Prize: RM700

Third Prize: RM500

For details, contact Chin Li Li at 03-2084-1807 or email com.kua@icrc.org

Be 30-Hour Famine 2009 Volunteer!


Be 30-Hour Famine 2009 Volunteer!

Hi! Friend of World Vision,

Good news! 30-Hour Famine is coming back!! Join our movement against hunger and poverty. You can make a difference!

This year, camp leaders will run 24-hour DIY Camp at their respective area at West Malaysia. All campers will come together for 6-hour Countdown at Stadium Putra, Bukit Jalil on 23/08/09.  As Camp Leader and campers are fasting, volunteer are required to fast starting from 22/8 12pm to 23/8 6pm. After the training, volunteer can choose to stay overnight at the stadium or go home, and come back the next day for Famine Countdown.  

Be a volunteer for the Countdown! We really appreciate all the helpful and capable volunteers to help making this event a success. Some of the key recruitment criteria that we are looking at for 30-Hour Famine volunteer are:
i)        Have joined 30-Hour Famine before, no problem to fast for 30 hours
ii)        punctual, responsible, alert and friendly

Below are the types of volunteer we are looking for:
a)        Registration- registration of participants.
b)        Booths-  dealing with exhibition, helpdesk and merchandise matters.
c)        Logistics- dealing with traffic, security, venue set-up, clean-up, distribution and program logistics matters.
d)        Program- coordinating stage setting, audio visual, hospitality, planning and execution of program.

Attendance is compulsory for:

Volunteer Training: 22 Aug 2009 (Saturday 12pm – 7pm)

30-Hour Famine Countdown: 23 Aug 2009 (Sunday 12pm to 6pm, report to duty at 9am)

Venue: Putra Indoor Stadium, Bukit Jalil

Volunteers will get:
1)        30-Hour Famine 2009 T-Shirt
2)        Certificate of Appreciation

Please take note of the registration closing date is on 30 June 2009. Any enquiry, please call 03-78806414 or e-mail Jennifer Ting (jennifer_ting AT wvi DOT org). Successful applicants will receive an email notification. Thank you for your support!

“ YOU’VE GOT THE POWER!! ”

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please fill up items below when you reply this mail:


a)        Name:


b)        Handphone:


c)        Volunteered position:

Choice 1-

Choice 2-


d)        Staying overnight at Stadium Putra on 22/08/09?

Yes or No

Warm Regards,

Jennifer Ting
Volunteers Co-ordinator
World Vision Malaysia
 
Office Address: 106 & 108 Ground Floor, Block A, Kelana Centre Point, Jalan SS 7/19, Kelana Jaya,  47301 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia
Tel : +603-78806414     Fax : +603-78806424
Website: www.worldvision.com.my
 
Our vision for every child, life in all its fullness;
Our prayer for every heart, the will to make it so.
愿每一个孩子,活出丰盛;
求每一颗心灵,矢志达成。
 
World Vision is an International Christian relief, development and advocacy organisation dedicated to working with children, families and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty. We serve all people regardless of religion, race, ethnicity or gender.
 


Tinkosong is looking for a webmaster!

Calling everyone who would like to have a platform to serve the community!
 
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Tinkosong is back, and we are looking for a webmaster! This is a great internship experience for a young Malaysian whose interests include education and dialogue. Experience with a CSS-HTML program (Dreamweaver etc) necessary. Previous experience with Wordpress and Moveable Type preferred, but not necessary. Must be willing to work part-time for 6 weeks during July-August 2009, or until the site is up again. Tinkosong is an educational website aimed at Malaysian youth who are passionate about new opportunities. If you are interested, please email joyce AT tinkosong DOT com with

a)      a short paragraph (150 words) stating your reasons for wanting to be part of Tinkosong

b)      a short paragraph (150 words) stating your previous experience with HTML, CSS and other webdesign programs



Complimentary Talk at UTAR: Working Memory: The New IQ?

 

Working Memory is our brain's post-it note. We use those little yellow slips of paper to make mental scribbles of information we need to remember and think about.

 

We cordially invite you to attend a talk as follows:

 

Title                  : Working Memory: The New IQ

Speaker           : Dr. Tracy Packiam Alloway

Date                 : 4 July 2009 (Saturday)

Time                : 9.45 am - 12.00 noon

Venue              : Centre for Extension Education

                          Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman

                          No.11, Jalan 13/6, 46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor

 

The admission for the talk is FREE

 

The talk is open to all. Feel free to bring your family members and friends to the talk. Please drop us a note (mmlm@utar.edu.my) if you are coming so that we can ensure comfort for all.

 

Regards

Secretariat

Malaysia Mental Literacy Movement


Saturday, June 20, 2009

People's Forum by MCA

活动预告:全民大讲堂- “月亮代表我的心 vs 都是月亮惹的祸”。2009年6月23日,晚上7时,马华大厦13楼。主讲嘉宾:蓝志锋,郑丁贤,杨凯斌。欢迎大家出席!

People's Forum organized by MCA. 23rd June 2009, 7pm at MCA 13th Floor.

Facebook event here .

-----
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 3rd Malaysian Student Leaders Summit

The 3rd Malaysian Student Leaders Summit will be held on 8th and 9th August 2009.

The details of the events and list of speakers (according to the Official MSLS Facebook Group) are:-

Third Malaysian Student Leaders Summit (MSLS 2009)
Embrace the Power of Reason
This summit will be a platform for intellectual and scholastic discourse between the prominent figures and also the Malaysian student leaders from around the world. One of the key missions of this summit is to expose the participants to Malaysians who are world class leaders, speakers and thinkers in diverse fields, encouraging an understanding of Malaysia's unique challenges.

PROPOSED Sessions and Speakers:

DAY ONE
*Officiating Address

*ECONOMIC ADDRESS:

“Sustainable Growth or Distributive Justice- Role of Monetary Policy in Building the New Economic Model for Malaysia”

Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Governor of BNM

*NATION BUILDING SESSION:

ARTS AND LITERATURE: The best way forward in building national identity?

Patrick Teoh, theatre activist; Yasmin Ahmad, film director; Kam Raslan, writer, Dato Seri Annuar Zaini, Chairman BERNAMA

*CORPORATE MALAYSIA SESSION:

The Recession Is Here: Staying on top During the Downturn

Dato’ Seri Che Khalib, CEO TNB; Dato’ Justin Leong, Head of Investment, Genting Group; Tan Sri Azman Hashim, Chairman of AmBank Group

*EDUCATION/LANGUAGE:

The Survival of Bahasa Melayu as our National Language in the Context of Education Policy Development

Dato Johan Jaafar, columnist and author, Dato’ Wee Ka Siong, Deputy Education Minister, Emeritus Professor Nik Safiah Karim, linguist

*YOUTH DEVELOPMENT FORUM:

Youth- A greater role in the electorate, a bigger responsibility towards Malaysia
Dato’ Sheikh Muszaphar, ANGKASAWAN and youth icon, Hannah Yeoh, ADUN Subang, Dato’ Razali Ibrahim, Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports, Tai Zee Kin Deputy Chairman of UKEC

*SPECIAL ADDRESS

Malaysia Beyond 2020: Direction, Issues and Challenges

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohammad, former Prime Minister of Malaysia


*POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT SESSION

Transforming Malaysian Politics: Enlarging the Middle Ground in the Age of Partisanship
YB Dr Lo’Lo’ Ghazali (PR), MP, YB Datuk Nur Jazlan Rahmat, MP (BN), YB Tian Chua (PR), MP,YB SK Devamany (BN), MP

*SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

From Technology User to Leader: Strategies to Avoid Playing Catch-Up Game with the Asian Giants

Dato’ Badlisham Ghazali, CEO of MDeC; Prof Dato Ir. Dr Zaini Ujang, Vice Chancellor, UTM; Dr Daud Mohammad, Director-General of Malaysian Nuclear Agency

*LEGAL/ UNITY

Malaysian Federal Constitution: Interpreting and Understanding Article 153 in the formation of Bangsa Malaysia

Prof Aziz Bari, Constitutional Law Expert, SenatorTan Sri Dato Dr. Koh Tsu Koon, Minister in the PM Department (Unity and Performance Management), Dato’ Ambiga Sreevanesan, former BAR Council President, Ibrahim Ali, MP

*SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Civil Society’s Progress in Malaysia- Giving Voice to the Voiceless or Voice for the Middle-Class conscience?

Ong Kian Ming, education activist, Malik Imtiaaz Sawar, human rights activist, Tan Sri Dato’ Dr Jemilah Mahmood, President of MERCY Malaysia

*GOVERNANCE/CLOSING ADDRESS

‘1Malaysia: People First, Performance Now’- Towards a Strong and Responsible Government for Today and Tomorrow’

Y.A.B Dato Sri Najib Tun Razak, Prime Minister of Malaysia

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN! To register, please visit http://msls09.com/ and complete the form. You will receive a notification upon receipt of your registration form. PLEASE DO NOT REGISTER MORE THAN ONCE as this would cause delay in confirming your place closer to the event.

For more information, please visit http://msls09.com/ or contact one of the organizing committee members below:
Project Director, Chairman of UKEC: Amir Fareed Rahim amirfareedrahim AT ukeconline DOT com
Deputy Chairman: Tai Zee Kin, zeekin AT ukeconline DOT com
General Secretary: Lim Boon Seong, boonseong AT ukeconline DOT com

-----
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. :)

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Air Asia X purchased 10 A350

Tony Fernandes just posted on his Facebook a few minutes ago on the deal that Air Asia X bought 10 A350! Great to see Air Asia keeps on expanding, despite the tough economy. These 10 planes would be delivered between 2016 and 2018. Wow! 7 years to get the plane!

Quoting from Malaysian Insider http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/business/29722-airasia-x-buys-10-a350-option-for-5-more-

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PARIS, June 16 — Low-cost carrier AirAsia has agreed to buy 10 wide-body Airbus A350 for affiliate AirAsia X in a US$2.2 billion (RM7.8 billion) deal signed today at the Paris Air Show, with an option for five more of the A350-900 variant.

The 10 aircraft will be delivered between 2016 and 2018 to complement its present A330 fleet. The A350 is configured to seat 425 passengers in a two-class layout.

"By buying the Airbus A350, AirAsia and AirAsia X have now got its strategy fixed all the way to 2020. The vision of creating the world's first long-haul and short-haul low cost airline is complete and we are all very excited," AirAsia Group CEO Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes said in a statement.

The statement said the purchase indicates AirAsia X's ambition to fly further afield and to serve more destinations than it currently serves, which include London (UK), Melbourne, Perth and Gold Coast (Australia) and Tianjin and Hangzhou (China).

The long-haul airline has ordered 25 A330's that are due to be delivered through 2015, two of which have been delivered so far since October 2008.

AirAsia is also the largest customer of Airbus A320 aircraft, with a firm order of 175 aircraft and the option for another 50 signed in 2005. Sixty A320s have been delivered so far and the remaining will be delivered through to 2014.

"Under the current great uncertainties in global economy where legacy airlines are cutting routes and grounding staff and aircraft, AirAsia and AirAsia X is determined to fulfil and realise our potential.

"The economic downturn presents AirAsia as Asia's largest low cost carrier, an unprecedented opportunity to gain market share with our low-fare, high-quality business model," said Fernandes, who is also a director of AirAsia X.


AirAsia X CEO Azran Osman-Rani said the carrier chose the A350 XWB for its operating economics and exceptional passenger appeal.

"We believe the A350 aircraft will be an industry game-changer that will allow us to dramatically operate with unprecedented unit costs for long-haul flights to Europe and North America, opening up new tourism markets and exciting destinations," he said.  AirAsia was recently named the World's Best Low Cost Airline by Skytrax in a recent survey of 16.2 million travellers.

AirAsia's passenger volume grew by 21 per cent year-on-year to 3.1 million in the first quarter of 2009.  It has so far carried over 70 million guests.

"We are extremely pleased to add AirAsia X to the customer base of the A350 XWB," said Airbus President and CEO Tom Enders, adding the aircraft offers a 25 per cent reduction in fuel burn that will ensure AirAsia X benefits from the lowest possible operating costs per seat of any aircraft in its class.

The A350 XWB Family is Airbus' response to widespread market demand for a series of highly efficient medium-capacity long-range wide-body aircraft. With a range of up to 15,400km, it is available in three basic passenger versions.

The A350 has the widest fuselage in its category, offering unprecedented levels of comfort, the lowest operating costs and lowest seat/mile cost of any aircraft in this market segment.

Powered by two new generation Rolls Royce Trent XWB engines, the A350 XWB Family is designed to confront the challenges of high fuel prices, rising passenger expectations, and environmental concerns.

Firm orders for the A350 XWB now stand at 493 from 31 customers worldwide.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

JPA Scholarships Allocation

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KUALA LUMPUR: Nearly 68% or 280 of the Public Service Department (PSD) scholarships under the 20% merit-category were awarded to non-bumiputras, said Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz.

He said only about 32% or 135 scholarships were awarded to bumiputra in the latest round of applications for the PSD's overseas degree programme.

"This proves that the award was not based on skin color, that the Government is fair in the selection of the 20% without looking at race, culture or religion but based on academic excellence," he told Lim Kit Siang (DAP - Ipoh Timur) in Parliament Tuesday.

He also said that PSD scholarships looked at academic excellence based on nine subjects chosen by the student relevant to the degree of their choice.

"This limit was set to ensure all students were on an equal playing field because not all schools had the same facilities and teaching manpower," he said in reply to Tan Ah Eng (BN - Gelang Patah).

At the Parliament lobby, Nazri said: "We do not do things without referring to the Federal Constitution, which means that we cannot give all for merit," he said.

Out of 2,100 PSD scholarships for students to study abroad this year, 20%, which is 417, was reserved for those with merit, regardless of race and religion, he said.

Of the 417, almost 68% were given to non-bumiputras based on merit and only 32% for bumiputras, he said.

On complaints by those with 13As and 14As and did not get scholarships, he said he could not give them because it was not fair since some schools did not allow students to take more than 10 subjects.

That was why the Government wanted to base it on 10 subjects only, he said.

Inside the dewan, Nazri said for year 2009, PSD offered 1,176 scholarships to Bumiputras and 924 to non-Bumiputras.

He also said that more than RM2.8bil in Public Service Department (PSD) sponsorships for overseas degree courses were given out between 2000 and 2008.

The sum was given to 12,485 recipients where 9,160 were bumiputera and 3,325 were non-bumiputera.

The breakdown of table showed that allocation for scholarships increased from RM109mil in year 2000 to RM659mil last year.

Similarly, the number of students also increased from 748 in year 2000 to 2,000 last year, while 598 Bumiputra students getting scholarships in 2000 and increased to 1,100 last year.

For non-Bumiputra, number of students in year 2000 was 150 and had increased to 900 last year.

From Jan 14, 2009, the awarding criteria of the Overseas Degree Programme was divided into four categories, he said.

The first was based on academic excellence without counting race and socio-economic backgrounds where selection was based on academic results (85%), co-curriculum (10%) and interviews (5%).

The category was based on current racial population ratios where one race's allocation would be divided to others if it was not used.

"Selection is also made based on academic excellence with at least A2 in all core and elective subjects.

"At the same time, the candidates were also selected based on their secondary school co-curriculum participation, families' socio-economic backgrounds and interviews," he said.

The third category, he said, were for Sabah (5%) and Sarawakian (5%) bumiputra.

The last category was given to socially disadvantaged students from rural areas with limited facilities and from low-income families.

Nazri added that applicants in categories three and four also had to have at least A2s in all subjects relevant to their degree of choice, which made up 65% of the selection criteria.

He said students under the programme were sent for first degrees in the US, UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Russie, Germany, France, Czech Republic, Poland, Egypt, Jordan, India and Indonesia.

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Towards US Universities Admission - Fall 2010

Below is a sharing that I wrote in ReCom.org - The Worldwide Malaysian Students Network .
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It's Mid June now, and it is another 203 days to application deadline of 2nd January 2010.

If you have set your dream to further studies to top US Universities in fall 2010 (Aug/Sep 2010), then you should definitely start your action already! Start preparing seriously, since time is not really on your side. 203 days will fly by very fast. By coming Tuesday, it would be countdown 200 days already!

For those of you who have just recently gotten prestigious scholarships to further studies to US, Congratulations! However, would say that getting the scholarship is just the first step. What you should do now, would be to really work very hard to get into the best university possible. And what's best university, would be the university that suits you the most. So, it might not be the most famous university.

Before I go further, will put the link of a few other ReCom threads earlier on US Applications. Do read through here , here and here .

The reason I set this new thread is so that all of you can concentrate on using a common thread to prepare, and for future batches, they can see in full, how's the questions, preparation for a batch.

The timeline that you should know:-
Now - Dec 2009 - TOEFL Test
10th Oct 2009 - SAT Reasoning/Subject Test
1st Nov 2009 - Early Decision/Action Deadline for Most Universities
7th Nov 2009 - SAT Reasoning/Subject Test (Last Date for SAT test for Early Decision/Action applicants)
5th Dec 2009 - SAT Reasoning/Subject Test (Ideal Last Date for SAT Test)
Mid Dec 2009 - Admission Decision for Early Decision/Action
2nd Jan 2010 - Regular Decision Deadline for Most Universities (Do check deadline for particular universities, as some deadlines do defer)
23rd Jan 2010 - SAT Reasoning/Subject Test (Last Date for SAT Test)
Feb - Apr 2010 - Admission Decision for Regular Decision
1st Apr 2010 (5am Malaysia Time) - Admission Decision for Regular Decision of Ivy League Universities
1st May 2010 - Decided on your university by now.
June/July 2010 - Obtained your I-20 and applied for US Visa.
Aug/Sep 2010 - Start your studies in US Universities

I am sure above would create more questions than answers to you. You might be wondering on a number of those terms. My suggestion for you would be to google/wikipedia those. Try to take initiatives, rather than waiting for spoonfeeding.

Some clarification of the terms:-
1. Regular Decision - This is the normal application pool
2. Early Decision - You can use this option for your top dream university. You are allowed to apply for 1 university only under Early Decision. If you get into this university, you are legally binded to attend that university. Your chance of admission is significantly higher.
3. Early Action - You can use this option for your top dream university. You have higher chance of admission, but you are not binded for the decision.
4. SAT - check it here .
5. TOEFL - check it here .
6. On application forms for most universities, refer to Common Applications .

Then, the next question some of you would ask would be what is required to apply for US Universities. I would say that the following would each play a part in it, and is not limited to the following:-
1. Application Essays
2. Standardized Tests (SAT Reasoning Test, SAT Subject Tests, TOEFL)
3. Pre-U and High School Results
4. Resume/CV
5. Co-curricular activities (including external activities, charity, community service, business, conferences, research, competitions, performances etc)
6. Recommendation Letters
7. Interviews
8. Special talents

And to all of you who are still thinking of your long strings of A1s in SPM, do remember that this is a global competition to get admission. Your 15A1s or more A1s may not help much. It might be a tough reality to accept, but your long string of A1s is not too important. So, you need to prove yourself to the universities that you are really good.

So, you might be saying, so what I can prepare now?

My thought would be that you can start preparing on some of these stuff:-
1. SAT Reasoning Test - Grab a book(s) and start prepare. If your English is not very solid, you do need to put in a lot of efforts in this. Strengthen your vocabulary through programs like Free Rice . Try the comprehension. Are you ready to answer Maths questions in English? Is your grammar solid?

2. SAT Subject Tests - Do start choosing the 3 subjects or more that you would like to take for SAT Subject Tests.

--> Do note that you have to sit for SAT Reasoning Test and SAT Subject Tests in different months. And there are tests only in Oct, Nov, Dec, and maybe you can take the Jan 2010 one too. And most students do need to resit again, so be prepared for one of your SAT test in October and another one in November.

3. Resumes/CVs - Start to prepare this early and get it ready.

4. Recommendation Letters - Start to get your teachers and others who can recommend you to start drafting it. It shouldn't be a repetition of what you have written in your CV/Resume. So, just pass your CV/Resume to your teacher to write would not make it. It would be useless. It should be about personal observation of the recommendor on you.

5. Application Essays - This is very important. Do start carrying a notepad and jotting down any part of your life that you think is unique. Essentially, this will really be helpful, when you start writing your essays.

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This write up is quite long already. Hope that all of you can start preparing now, and really make full use of the resources. We have put up about 30+ resources at here , so those would be good place for you to start prepare.

And don't forget to sign up for the workshop on 1st, 2nd, 15th August 2009. About 25 incoming students/current students/alumni of various top US universities will be facilitating. You can get the info here too.

Lets all of you work very hard, and hopefully, some of you will be able to get into your dream university! The hard work these 7 months would be worth it. You will learn a lot in the process, and this will be the busiest moment of your life (much more stress than your SPM time), but you will learn from it. Good Luck!

Do post your questions at ReCom.org and do share the resources with others who are applying too! You are fighting the global challenge to see how many Malaysians can make it to these universities!
-----
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. :)

Projek Kalsom 15

Calling all of you who can spare your energy, time, money, contacts for Projek Kalsom 15!

"Projek Kalsom is a motivational camp held yearly for Form 4 students who come from less fortunate backgrounds. It is run by Malaysian students enrolled in higher education institutions in the UK and Ireland under the auspices of the United Kingdom and Eire Council for Malaysian Students (UKEC).

The name “Kalsom” originated from Puan Kelthom Abdullah, a single mother struggling to make ends meet in Kelantan. Her children were forced to drop out of school, and her plight was given some media attention in 1993. Upon reading about her in the papers, a group of young Malaysian students in the UK decided to run a collection to help bear the cost of her children’s education.

For the initial group of students, it was not enough to merely collect money. They decided to take it a step further, spurred on by the conviction that they had a greater role to play. They decided that given their youth, and being students themselves, they were in an excellent position to help encourage and assist students from lesser-developed parts of Malaysia to excel in their studies. And so, during their summer holidays in the following year, they ran a motivational camp for the students of Jerantut, Pahang. It proved successful, and they decided to run it again the following year in Gerik, Perak.

Projek Kalsom has since been held annually, growing from strength to strength, and we are now running the project with the full support of the Malaysian Ministry of Education."

For more info on Projek Kalsom, go to here .

For this year, Projek Kalsom 15 will be held at Sekolah Menengah Tengku Mahmud, Alor Lintang, Besut from 21st August to 25th August 2009. You can read more of it here .

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12th June update:

Salam and hi to all,

May this letter reaches you in the best of health.

as some of you might be aware, projek kalsom 15 is less than 10 weeks away. thus, we will be needing as much help as possible from the kalsom family to make this project as success.

i have detailed below the list of tasks that we will be needing help with (apart from volunteering in the project itself in august)

if you feel that you want to contribute your energy and time to this cause, please feel free to join us and email me at

( azri.malek AT projek-kalsom DOT com) or
( alia.sidek AT projek-kalsom DOT com)

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1.SPONSORSHIPS
---------------------

* anyone who has contacts with corporate groups or individuals that are willing to sponsor this kind of project

* we will be printing t shirts, banners, booklets for the project, so anyone who knows the cheapest and most cost effective company

* we will be buying bi-lingual dictionaries and stationaries for the project, so anyone with any ideas of the cheapest and most cost effective company

* logistics, we are looking for reliable bus provider ( cost effective and safe)

--------------------------
2. MODULE BOOKLETS
--------------------------

* anyone who wants to share studying techniques ( e.g tony buzan mind mapping, mnemonic etc... or for certain subjects so that we can incorporate it to the module booklets)

* anyone that knows the various loans, scholarships, that are available and methods to secure them

* those who have an in depth knowledge on the different career paths available for the students and ways to pursue it

* personal stories on your life as a uni student in UK, Malaysia,Japan, Germany etc so that it can inspire the students to work harder... and get a rough idea of what can be achieved..


thats it for now, i will update you with more as time pass by.. if you have anything that you want to share with us, please do. we appreciate every single feedback.

hope to hear from you soon.

warm regards,
Azri Malek
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Hope to see more of you supporting such nobel initiatives to help the younger generation! I will be spending my few days in Projek Kalsom 15 this year, and hope to see more of you joining too!

For the promotional youtube, do check it out!


-----
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. :)

Friday, June 12, 2009

Time Out Kuala Lumpur

It was really a pleasant surprise when Lim Fong and Su Ann (pinkpau) contacted me over the past few days, to tell me that my blog was highlighted in Time Out KL Issue 15 June 2009.

After getting a copy of it (it's worth the RM5.90 per copy), I checked out the section of "The 103 Ways to Beat the Recession".

And I found the 83rd way:-

Securing Scholarship
Sky rocketing costs of education are giving students financial headaches. If you're familiar with these woes, Malaysia's one-stop scholarship site Malaysia-Scholarship.com should be helpful. Even better is ReCom , a forum with plenty of scholarship information. And if you're really stuck, turn to walking scholarship encyclopaedia Yeoh Chen Chow who's always glad to help.

It is really a pleasant surprise. Soraya, really touched by what you had written. It will be tough for me to live up to what you write, but I'll try.

To all, do get the copy and check out the tips.

Will highlight a few of those here.
1. iTunesU .
2. CouchSurfing.org .
3. 1stHomeExchange.com .

Do check out the other 99 ways in Time Out KL magazine.


-----
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. :)

Thursday, June 11, 2009

eLawyer - Exabytes Penang Bloggers & Law Forum 2009

Do check it out.
 
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The details of the conference are as follows:

Forum Name: eLawyer - Exabytes Penang Bloggers & Law Forum 2009
Date: 27 June 2009
Time: 9.00am – 12.30pm
Fees: F.O.C.
Venue: Dewan Kuliah G31, Pusat Pengajian Sains Komputer,
Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Penang Campus (Landmark Masjid USM). 
Language: English
Organiser: www.eLawyer.com.my
This event is exclusively sponsored by www.exabytes.com.my - the No.1 web hosting company in Malaysia

Topic 1: Bloggers & Copyrights Laws
Speaker: Mr. Foong Cheng Leong (Cheng Leong)
Brief profile: Cheng Leong is a practising lawyer in KL. He specialises in intellectual property laws practice. He is an active blogger and owner of www.xes.cx. Cheng Leong started blogging since 2001. He speaks frequently on intellectual property and internet laws.

Topic 2: Bloggers & Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission Act 1998 (MCMC Act) and rules and guidelines of MCMC
Speaker: Mr.Shamsul Jafni Shafie (Sam)
Brief profile: Sam is the former director of Security, Trust and Governance Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission. He was also the Work Area 5 Leader on "International Cooperation" to draft the Global Cybersecurity Agenda for the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) - http://www.itu.int.

Topic 3: Bloggers & Defamation Law
Speaker: Mr. Stephen Tan Ban Cheng (Stephen)
Brief profile: Stephen is a journalist-turned-lawyer. Currently, he is a practising lawyer in Penang. Stephen was a senior journalist in the famous local newspaper including New Strait Times and the Star for more than 20 years.

Moderator: Mr. Khairul Anuar bin Shaharudin (Kruel)
Brief profile: Kruel is the cybername for Khairul, who is a practising lawyer in KL and an avid bloggers. Kruel participated in numerous bloggers events and his blog Legal Cat-asthrophereceived well comments from the bloggersphere in Malaysia.

Registration: The admission to this Forum is FREE. However, due to limited seat, please R.S.V.P by sending your details (Name, Tel, Email, Occupation and Company/School) to forum@elawyer.com.my before 24 June 2009 or call 03-2782 5399 for more information.

A (H1N1) declared Pandemic

A (H1N1) declared pandemic.
 
Link http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/6/11/ah1n1flu/20090611163547&sec=ah1n1flu

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GENEVA: The World Health Organisation has told its member nations it is declaring a swine flu pandemic - the first global flu epidemic in 41 years.

In a statement sent to member countries, WHO said it decided to raise the pandemic alert level from phase 5 to 6, meaning that a global outbreak of swine flu has begun. The decision was made after the U.N. health agency held an emergency meeting on swine flu with its experts.

Earlier, as WHO held its emergency meeting, health officials from Scotland, Indonesia and Thailand said the agency would declare a swine flu pandemic on Thursday after a teleconference with leading flu experts. Officials at U.N. missions in Geneva also said they expected the imminent announcement of a pandemic.

However, WHO spokesman Thomas Abraham said only that the emergency meeting began at noon (1000 GMT, 6 a.m. EDT) in Geneva and WHO member nations would then be informed of the result.

"It is likely in light of sustained community transmission in countries outside of North America - most notably in Australia - that level 6 will be declared," Scotland's Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon told Scottish lawmakers, adding it would be Thursday.

Indonesian health minister Siti Fadilah Supari said she had been notified by WHO that "today will be declared to be phase 6." Phase 6 is WHO's highest alert level and means that a swine flu pandemic is under way. The last pandemic - the Hong Kong flu of 1968 - killed about 1 million people.

Ordinary flu kills about 250,000 to 500,000 people each year.

Since swine flu first emerged in Mexico and the United States in April, it has spread to 74 countries around the globe. On Wednesday, WHO reported 27,737 cases including 141 deaths. Most cases are mild and require no treatment, but the fear is that a rash of new infections could overwhelm hospitals and health authorities - especially in poorer countries.

The long-awaited pandemic announcement is scientific confirmation that a new flu virus has emerged and is quickly circling the globe. It will trigger drugmakers to speed up production of a swine flu vaccine and prompt governments to devote more money to containing the virus.

In May, several countries urged WHO not to declare a pandemic, fearing it would spark mass panic.

Panic has already gripped Argentina, where so many people worried about swine flu flooded into hospitals this week that emergency health services have collapsed.

Last month, a bus arriving in Argentina from Chile was stoned by people who thought a passenger on it had swine flu. Chile has the most swine flu cases in South America.

In Hong Kong, the government on Thursday ordered all kindergartens and primary schools closed for two weeks after a dozen students tested positive for swine flu.

In Australia, swine flu cases jumped to more than 1,000 on Monday and reached 1,260 by late Wednesday.

WHO says its pandemic announcement would not mean the situation was worsening, since no mutations have been detected in the virus to show it is getting more deadly.

In Edinburgh, Sturgeon told lawmakers that a WHO announcement means countries should immediately activate their pandemic plans.

"A move to level 6 is not a verdict on the severity of the virus," she said. "It simply means that the extent of global spread now fulfills the definition of a pandemic."

 

Waubebas Newsletter

WauBebas Newsletter
Isu 7, Jun 2009

Satu Malaysia, Banyak Sejarah

Oleh: Tunku 'Abidin Muhriz

 Di Malaysia sangat sukar untuk mencabar sejarah rasmi. Buku teks dan ensiklopedia menunjukkan keturunan saya tiba di Negeri Sembilan pada 1773 tetapi penman termini menunjukkan ia tidak tepat. Ia amat menyakitkan apabila saya tidak dapat meletakkan maklumat tepat di dalam teks dan saya membayangkan betapa kecewa ramai rakyat Malaysia yang mendapat maklumat dari sumber utama keturunan mereka bahawa sejarah di Malaysia telah rosak akibat kemalasan penyelidik akademik dan memenuhi kehendak politik. Jika kita benar seorang patriotik, kita harus tahu apa sebenarnya yang berlaku dan sebab itu saya selalu mengulang kalimat bahawa sejarah tidak bermula pada 31 Ogos 1957 tetapi lama sebelumnya! Baca lagi

Chin Peng Mesti Memohon Maaf

Oleh: Tunku 'Abidin Muhriz

 Generasi saya sentiasa dituduh – dengan alasan yang baik – tidak memahami implikasi sejarah. Ia bukan saja dalam persoalan menafikan fakta, tetapi juga emosi membuak yang terus dirasa. Dengan peringatan berterusan kerajaan tentang Peristiwa 13 Mei, kesan besar kempen menakutkan oleh Parti Komunis Malaya (PKM) menyusut. Cadangan membenarkan Chin Peng pulang telah membangkitkan kemarahan keturunan mangsa dan juga tentera. Salah satu daripada surat penentangan ini bertanyakan: "Chin Peng, di mana kubur ayah saya?". Generasi saya tidak berhak mengabaikan penderitaan mereka ini. Baca lagi

Wakil Rakyat dan Wang Rakyat

Oleh: Wan Saiful Wan Jan

 Saya rasa di keluarga di raja Britain lebih telus daripada wakil rakyat di sini. Akaun pendapatan dan perbelanjaan tahunan keluarga di raja Britain boleh diperolehi secara terbuka sejak beberapa tahun lepas. Mungkin institusi raja di Malaysia boleh mengorak langkah yang sama dan menunjukkan kepimpinan, seperti yang telah dibuat oleh keluarga di raja Britain. Baca lagi

Eratkan hubungan dengan parti Konservatif Britain

Oleh: Wan Saiful Wan Jan

 Parti Konservatif Britain merupakan sebuah parti yang mendokong prinsip-prinsip kebebasan. Parti tersebut membekalkan Britain dengan pemimpin-pemimpin yang menghapuskan jual beli hamba abdi, menghapuskan "Akta Jagung" yang menghalang perdagangan bebas, dan juga membantu menghapuskan pengaruh komunis. Beberapa orang pemimpin parti Konservatif juga membantu tanah air kita selepas Perang Dunia Kedua. Contohnya, David Gammans dan Lord Marchwood berjasa menolong para pejuang kemerdekaan menentang Malayan Union. Baca lagi

Revamp the Medical Scholarship System

By: Dr Helmy Haja Mydin

 The bickering amongst various stakeholders regarding the disbursement of JPA scholarships occurs as regularly as the eruptions of Old Faithful at the Yellowstone National Park. Arguments are often raised about who should receive the scholarships. The loudest are usually parents who decry the system for failing to provide their child with a scholarship that the child 'obviously' deserves. Read more

A Liberal's Thoughts on PAS

By: Keith Leong

 I have always had mixed feelings about PAS. The party has been painted as the ultimate bogeyman by the establishment media and pundits to my demographic group, often with general success. Incidents like their periodic campaigns against alcohol consumption and teenybopper music only served to heighten my discontent towards the brand of politics that they practiced. Read more

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