Get your facts at the US varsity fair
MORE than 40 US universities will be in Malaysia to meet with parents, students, teachers and counsellors in Kuala Lumpur and Penang. This is your opportunity to interact with US university representatives and take a step towards making your dream to study in the US come true.
The US university representatives will provide information on university application requirements, programmes available, the environment of the university, scholarships offered and others.
There will be 40 US university representatives at the Royale Chulan Hotel in Kuala Lumpur and 34 at the E & O Hotel in Penang. These fairs are organised by the MalaysianAmerican Commission on Educational Exchange’s (Macee) EducationUSA Advising Centre in cooperation with the US Embassy in Malaysia. In addition to meeting US university representatives and Education USA Advisers, a US Embassy officer will give a talk to explain the student visa application process and answer questions related to student visas.
These US university fairs are appropriately timed for students who are in the process of making their plans for their next level of education in the United States.
Since students can apply with trial results, those who have completed secondary school (SPM, IGCSE, O-Levels) or foundation/pre-university completion (STPM, A-Levels) as well as those in high school or IB programmes may find universities they can still enter in August 2014. Don’t miss the chance.
The United States attracts many international students due to the excellent quality of the educational experience there. In fact, the US has more international students than any other country in the world. There are currently more than 764,495 international students studying in the US which includes 6,743 Malaysians.
Students from all around the globe are attracted to study in the US because of its reputation for quality education, the flexible system of education, state-of-the-art facilities and highly-qualified experienced faculty that also mentor and engage with the students.
The American educational system is unique, offering many options for fields of study, diverse institution-types and a wellrounded educational system.
The US system of education is known to be very flexible in allowing students to pursue their academic passions and interests. At the undergraduate level, some US universities allow students to design their own major, start with an undeclared (undecided) major, do double majors or change their major.
Students are not locked into a field they are not passionate about. They are encour- aged to participate in class, think creatively and critically. Graduate (post-graduate) students in Masters and PhD programmes can also do cross-departmental programmes to integrate more than one discipline into their programme.
The US undergraduate degree programme offers a broad-based liberal education as well as a specialisation in one’s chosen field of study, allowing students to choose a set of subjects that they wish to benefit from personally as well as for their future career. This system of education develops students holistically. Besides this excellent educational system and dedicated faculty members, a plethora of extracurricular options, com- munity service, professional opportunities and all kinds of student services on campus are available to help every student succeed. Opportunities such as summer courses, jobs on campus, institution and credit transfers, study abroad, internships and work off-campus upon completion of the degree enrich the academic and professional development of the students.
Another feature of US colleges and universities is that many of them offer partial scholarships to international students. While getting a full scholarship is rare, many of the scholarships are substantial.
Checking out the availability of scholarships from a university’s website is important for students who are looking for some financial assistance. Find out more about scholarships at the fair.
The diverse US educational system includes various institutions to choose from, including community colleges, private Liberal Arts colleges, specialised art/design/fashion colleges as well as public and private universities that offer both undergraduate and graduate (post-graduate) degree programmes and provide excellent research opportunities. At the upcoming fairs in both Kuala Lumpur and Penang, all these institutions will be represented.
Pre-fair talks will be given in both KL and Penang. The first talk on “Admission Tips” will be given by US university representatives and the second talk will be given by a US Embassy consular officer on “Applying for a Student Visa”.
Come to the Royale Chulan Hotel in KL at 2pm, register and make it in time for the talks before the fair begins. The KL Fair & Talks at the Royale Chulan Hotel (near the Pavilion mall) will be from 2.30pm-6.30pm on Feb 9 (Sunday).
The pre-fair talks in Penang will be at the E & O Hotel on Feb 11 (Tuesday) from 5-6pm followed by the fair from 6pm-8.30pm. In Penang, be there by 4.30pm to register and attend the talks before the fair begins.
Get more details and the full list of universities which will be at the KL and Penang fairs from announcements on Macee’s website.
The fair is open to all and is free. Registration is required, but better yet, you can pre-register and bring your printed ticket to save time. The links to pre-register for the fair are on the website as well as on Facebook and twitter. Contact 03-2166 8878 for enquiries.
EducationUSA offers free advice weekly at its offices in KL and Penang. Appointments can be made online: www.macee.org.my/advising.