When passion meets profession
LEGENDARY Apple chief executive officer the late Steve Jobs once said: “The only way to do great work is to love what you do.”
This rings true for students of UCSI University’s Faculty of Social Sciences and Liberal Arts, a place where passion and enthusiasm go hand-in-hand.
Heart of gold
At 15, Suzanne Ling Sook Shian bonded with a three-year-old autistic girl who had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), an illness of the nervous system.
That led Ling to realise that her true calling was to be a psychotherapist specialising in therapy for children with special needs.
Today, Ling is a second-year student pursuing her BA (Hons) Psychology at the Faculty and is grateful for her experiences that have shaped the person she is today.
Apart from equipping students with a broad understanding of the different specialisations in Psychology – from cognitive psychology to cross-cultural psychology – the programme also exposes them to personalised assignments to facilitate critical thinking.
The courses, which include Human Sexuality, challenge students to think and explain their reasoning. Other courses such as Life Span Development and Sociology of the Family allow students to gain deeper insight into different applications and theories.
The development of professional knowledge and expertise is an integral faculty cul- ture. But more important is the passion cultivated by the students, as evidenced by Ling.
As the president of UCSI Scholars’ Club (U-SchoS) that co-founded a community project known as “Hands of Hope” at the univer- sity, Ling spends time with people, especially children, of various ages and backgrounds.
Shooting for the stars
Prodigious students such as Ling who are keen on honing their craft abound in the faculty. This is reflected in the faculty’s recent win in the MyKRIS Inaugural National Short Video Contest.
Bagging second place and RM4,000 for their effort, a team of six Mass Communication students – majoring in film and TV – edged out over 230 competitors from various private universities and colleges across Malaysia.
Themed “Youth Creativity Prevails”, the contest tasked participants with producing a short video or digital animation clip related to MyKRIS’ business of high-speed broadband and managed service technologies.
The faculty continues to inspire students to work at the highest level as a place where individual talents are honed, personal growth is stimulated and creative expression is encouraged.
For more information, call 03-9101 8882 or e-mail
Also, visit UCSI’s Open Day on March 7 and 8, 9am to 5pm.