Children's Education

I read a friend's posting this morning about her children's schooling. Currently, all her children go to a private school in Ukay Heights. Now she's thinking of taking out the eldest one and put her in a normal govt school so she could mix around and possibly earn a scholarship after Form 5.

Sigh... children and education... why is it such a headache these days?

I used to take it for granted that if you did well in school, you'll automatically get a scholarship from JPA and will be sent overseas to pursue a degree of your choice. This was the situation when I was schooling last time... some 20 years ago. Unfortunately, times have changed. One can no longer get a scholarship easily coz students have gotten smarter and study places have become limited. So, one has to compete and the competition is really tough, I tell you.

I have 3 children at home who are currently at various stages of education. One is in her first year of univ, one in Form 5 and another one in Form 2. These three children started schooling in a private school at first because their parents believed in giving them the "best" in education. Fair enough... if you can afford it, why not, right? So, the eldest was there until she was in Form 1 while the other two were there up to Std 5 and 2, respectively.

But when their mother passed away, MrNordin decided to take them out and put them in a govt school because: 1) the fees were getting too expensive, 2) the teaching quality in the private school was deteriorating, and 3) the students' exam performance was declining. Their friends were also showing some disciplinary problems; hence the best way was to take them out.

I was there when the children started their first few days in the new school (we were still not married at that time). The second one protested and refused to go to school, while the first one stayed on for another year in her old school because she couldn't get into the same school as her younger sister and brother. They didn't like it at first but after a while, things picked up and they began to like their new school.

The thing with govt school is that the student herself has to take her own initiatives to learn and grab every opportunity there is to excel. There are a lot more things offered by a govt school compared to a private school (depending on which school that is), but one must know how to get involved. Bottomline is this: if your child is good, you can put them anywhere and they'd still do well. It's not the school, it's their own effort that counts.

One thing good about govt schools is the children get to mix with a wide range of students from different racial background. And the atmosphere is different. I noticed when these children were at the old school, their characters were different.. their friends were different. They didn't know how to mix around and their only friends were the ones who were at par with them (if you know what I mean). They can also be snobbish and rude sometimes, and tend to mix with the same group of people only, which in my opinion, is not healthy.

Thankfully, the few years spent at the govt schools have changed them a lot. They learned to make new friends and have tried their hands at a lot of activities offered by the school. My second one is very active in co-curricular activities; the boy is also showing much enthusiasm in his photography and silat club, albeit seasonal.

When we asked them if they'd go back to their old school, they'd say, "NO!!!" They told me they don't think they'd achieve what they have achieved today had they stayed on at the old school. Their friends pun dah jadi entah apa2 back there, with some having serious behaviour problems. At least MrNordin can take comfort in the fact he has made the right decision by taking them out earlier on.

Having said that, I've nothing against parents sending their children to private schools. Like I said earlier, you want the best for your children. If you can afford to send them to private schools, which have a smaller no of students in each class (20 vs 50?) and the teachers can give more attention to the students, why not. At the end of the day, it's your children. So you decide what's best for them. As for Nizzar, I think I'll send him to St John's for Std 1. Ok tak?

Meanwhile, my eldest daughter is adjusting to her new college life. If we could afford it, I would very much like to send her overseas. Unfortunately, we can't. With her results (5As), it was quite hard for us to push for a scholarship at that time. Further, our combined salaries wouldn't qualify her for a scholarship either. So, she had to settle for a local U. Quite sayang actually... but what to do. Itulah, I told her last time, if you want to go overseas, you have to study hard and make the grades (10 As, at least), then we can try and push for it. But no... dia releks saja. Now, susahlah sikit. Anyway, a local U is equally good, if only she knew how to make the best of her time there.

Now, we're banking on the second one to make it overseas. That girl has got potential. She has been a consistent straight A student from Day 1 and is quite active in co-curricular activities as well. If she's sitting for the JPA scholarship interview today, I know she'll get it, only if they don't check her parents' salary slips. Tak de lah banyak sangat, but more than JPA's requirement of RM1,500 and below (for direct award). How to qualify?

So now, I'm having sleepless nights trying to figure out how best to send her overseas. Her SPM trial results are out this week and when I asked her last night, she just gave me that big smile, indicating that it's better than her expectations. I know she'll get through her SPM with flying colours and that is why I so much want her to go overseas (although she has applied for local matrics quietly). She wants to do Medicine or Bio-Technology. Can anyone help me?

Comments

Why don't you try and apply for corporate education scholarship, e.g Petronas or Shell, etc? Perhaps she has better luck there.

It's true that it's getting more competitive to receive govt scholarships now. We were very lucky during our time. I wish Nadira all the best and pray that she gets the scholarship she so deserves.
Anonymous said…
Dear, try migrating. I'm serious. Contoh, Australia is looking for professionals. Kalau qualify, senang nak dapat PR. Kalau ada PR, sekolah untuk anak-anak free sampai habis high school. Then masuk univ pun fees tak mahal. A friend of mine is doing that. She anak-beranak akan pindah by the end of this year. They all dah beli rumah. Gomen Australia bagi banyak incentives. Beli rumah pun dapat cash incentives. Wife yang apply, then sponsor hubby and children. Hubby masih retain his job in Malaysia sebab gaji dia pun ok. Kalau dia tak duduk Australia for more than certain number of days, dia tak payah bayar tax in Australia sebab income dari overseas i.e. Malaysia. Income tax Australia mahal. So kena plan. Googlelah kalau interested.

We all pulak dah migrate negara Arab. Gaji best. Sekolah anak company bayar semua i.e. tuition, transport, books, lunch, uniforms, kasut, koko. Pendek kata apa-apa saja yang berkaitan dengan sekolah, semua company bayar. Sambil tu we all kumpul duit untuk anak masuk U. Ada juga plan nak apply PR mana-mana negara bila anak nak masuk U nanti. Dapat PR, fees untuk anak pun kuranglah. Sekolah dekat negara Arab ni memang international curriculum. Pilih aja. Sebab tuition mahal dan ada banyak sekolah, sekolah pun kena jaga standard. Anak-anak I baru primary dah kena buat term papers. Cara belajar pun macam buat project aja. Canggih beb…Macam dah masuk U pulak.

Migration memang drastic. Tapi sekarang ni ‘dunia tanpa sempadan’. Kalau anak nak compete internationally, Mak Bapak kena ada vision, strategies and plans. Tak heran nanti kalau Malaysia becomes ‘the country of origin’ aja. After all mana-mana pun di muka bumi ni Allah punya. Up to us to grab all the peluang. So tunggu apa lagi?..

BTW we all asal Melayu from kampungs.
Anonymous said…
BJ,

If u fancy ur chances, try for a MARA sponsorship. Its easier than JPA and if u excel, u can convert your sponsorship to a scholarship.

I was one of them. I did my A-levels and degree privately, and during my second year, I applied for a MARA loan based on my second year results. I had won a JPA scholarship dulu to study engineering in US but I wanted to read law in UK, so i turned down the JPA scholarship. I'm glad that then my paretns could afford my A-levels and further but seeing that I got good results, we applied for MARA sponsorship, and MARA sponsored me not just for the rest of my studies but they reimbursed whatever my parents had paid before award. And finally, last year, I managed to turn my sponsorship into a scholarship (yeah after 10 years of my graduation) but its ok. Whatever I have paid back to MARA, I think would at least given some other deserving child.

Hope that helps.
Aida.
Hope said…
MrsN

One of the reasons why I shifted my career and immigrated to UK is for the kids' education. Infact when we divorced, their dad and me agreed that our kids will be with me in UK so their education are guaranteed. I always remind them why they are in UK and I think they understand it. There are times that they feel life would be easier in KL but they feel that schools in UK are better for them. There are other challenges of course, but I guess it would be worth it.

I miss my life in KL and all the confort (maid etc etc) but at least the kids' education is now covered.

A friend of mine sent her daughter to German because of the free education. The downside is you have to learn German as quickly as you can while studying. But she did it and graduated with flying colours. Parents just paid for airtickets and living expenses. Maybe should check this out.

Goodluck!
kay_leeda said…
Mrs Nordin,

I was told that between JPA and MARA, study loan from the latter is easier to get. They are still selective but they'd give priority to students who are doing courses like medicine, bio-tech or engineering.

Private universities (IPTS) in the country is another option. They offer a myriad of programs, ader yang 2 plus 1, 3 plus 0 programs here. Expensive yes, but not as expensive as a full program abroad.

We are self paying our eldest's program in an IPTS. Apply for MARA loan, like you said lah, reject (and you know because of what lah kan) Nonetheless, we will keep trying, who knows with his good academic records, they may close BOTH eyes and give it to him. I keep my fingers crossed every semester when he submits the application.

Kalau still unsuccessful, tak pe lah, guess it's not his rezeki. The sponsoring will be our sedekah to him lah (cuma Moms here kena control banyaakkkk on the retail therapy je lah)

All the best to you & your daughter, Nadira.
busymum100 said…
MrsN,

I did a lot of homework when Nuni first told us she wanted to take up medic, and wanted to go abroad. I said the same thing to her, get straight As (which she did!) first, then we can talk.
But then, that was in 2000 (her SPM yr). Now even if you get 13As, there's still no guarantee, esp if you are a girl, honestly! stiffer competition among girls :-(

Back to Nuni, I had back-up plans in case she didn't get a scholarship. I checked many IPTS. In fact, in Jan (right after her SPM) I enrolled her for A-level at PRIME College (now SEGI College). She got some discounts from her forecast results. I'll excplain more when we meet up tomorrow, OK?

No.2 was a diff story. He only got 5As, and was adamant to go to MMU. Luckily he got a Telekom loan.

No.3 studied like crazy - he even scared us off. We were so worried if he couldn't get 11 1As, but luckily he did! Even then, he waited until the very last minute before we got news from MARA that he got the loan.

No.4 (form 4) and No.3 (form 3), we need to plan now. I really feel it's worth investing in their tertiary education. Primary & secondary can just go to government school.

The first 3 went to the school in our neighbourhood, and we are proud of that. No.4 & no.5 got places in SBP and they really wanted to go, so we just ikut lah.

no.5, still a long way to go. Hopefully the big sis and bros can help out? Thre Chinese do that...

True, education in Germany is free, but learning the language is not easy (though could be a bonus skill). I was teaching the A-Levle German students in InTEC (formerly known as PPP) for a few yrs.

Having taught in UiTM, PRIME College, and UNISEL, I strongly feel that it helps if the kids can get foreign exposure. It opens their mind a bit, if not a lot.

We'll talk more tomorrow ya? Apa nk nervous... We are not interviewing you (you've got MrN oredi, what, hahaha!). Honestly, I am excited to meet a (not so new) friend whom I've been communicating electronically for quite a while now..
busymum100 said…
byknya typo.... i must be sleepy... good night...
MrsNordin said…
Hi Madam,

Yeah, we'll probably do that. Hopefully, Nordin's 15 years of service with Shell would make them consider Nadira's application. I heard Khazanah, too, offers scholarship. Will check that one out as well.
MrsNordin said…
Hi Anon,

For now, migrating in not an option for us. We've thought about this before when my husband was still working with Shell, but circumstances didn't allow us to do that. I know the perks and benefits of working overseas, but for now, they just don't appeal to us.

When you're still young, yes, go ahead and make that move. It's good experience and good for your career development. I wish you all the best and hopefully,we can meet in the Arab land one of these days, insyaallah... Take care!
MrsNordin said…
Hi Aida,

I'll look into the MARA loan as well. These days, nak sponsor anak buat A-Levels pun sakit. Recently, a friend sent her daughter to the UK to do her A-Levels at their own expenses. I can't imagine how much she's got to fork out every month for the fees and living expenses. I wish I could do the same for our girls... it'll be good for them.

You're lucky you managed to get MARA to help you out in your studies. BTW, which uni did you go to?
MrsNordin said…
Hope,

It's easier for you to make that move coz you only have your children to think about. No other baggage (except the memories, of course).

I'd love for my children to be educated in the UK coz that's where we studied as well. But for now, I guess that option is out, unless they could get themselves a sponsor.

I'll check out the German thing as well. Thanks!
MrsNordin said…
Kay,

Thanks for your advise. I'll surely look into it. How old is your son and what is he studying? Which uni, if you don't mind.
MrsNordin said…
Busymum,

Thanks for sharing. You sure have a set of brilliant kids! Alhamdulillah...

Yes, we'll talk more when we meet today. See ya!
Waterlily said…
I pulak terbalik Mrs N. When we were in KL, we decided to transfer my eldest son to a private school after we notice his behaviour (and manners!) have deteriorated drastically after he went to a govt school (std 1 - 2) walhal time tu lah very crucial to bentukkan peribadi bebudak kan? Words yang keluar dari mulut pun kasar, and sometimes words yang tak pernah parents dia ajar :(

After we moved him to APIIT Smart School - things got better.

But truth be told - kalau dia okay masa kat govt school dulu, we would have kept him schooling there.

Now dah kat UAE, another headache pulak. He goes to international school - other arab students pun study kat sana (those outside UAE). My son said they are very quote 'ganas' unquote. Asyik nak mendera bebudak lain. Dia tak suka betul cara diaorang. But he's okay with Pakistanis pulak.

I think it depends on the school itself - how the head manages the school, kalau elok, elok lah jadi nyer...
Anonymous said…
Kak BJ,
The co that I'm working right now, P*B, offers scholarship to post SPM Students under the Yayasan Tun Ismail scholarship to study in UK or Australia as long as your girl get 8As or more in her SPM and pass the profiency / IQ Test carried out by P*B. A-Levels will be at Kolej Yayasan UEM at Lembah Beringin. One more thing, the sholarship is offered to those who want to pursue either economics, accounting, finance, law & engineering. No medicine of course. Parents' income is not the main criteria I think b'coz ada seorg anak ex-CEO of GLC pun being offered the scholarship. Tak taulah kot ada cable.The bond with P*B is 7 years. The monthly allowance is very attractive, I heard abt GBP 1,000++ a mth. Just watch out for the advertisement which is usually a mth b'fore the result. Better still I'll will alert u if it's in the paper or if u want me to ambilkan the borang also no problem, bleh kita jumpa kat Ampang Park, klu u sudi nak jumpa I le Kak BJ.He..He..
Mrs N,
My aunt had your dilemma (sponsorship and all) and her son wanted to do medicine. He applied to local U, thru UPU then heard that studying medicine in Egypt is really cheap.I mean, cost of living is really really low. Plus,if I'm not mistaken, they just go straight into medicine so it saves time too. Its also a recognised uni by JPA, and I think he got a loan/scholarship from Zakat Selangor as well for his living expenses there (RM6k a yr) when he's only using up till RM500 for living expenses (makan,minum, internet, rental) which is really cheap.Check it out, but I guess you'd want Nadira to study in Imperial or somewhere in Ireland where they are one of the best places to study medicine, kan?
Try also Renong Scholarships, the Star, and actually byk lagi. but I noticed that these scholarships would only be offered after your daughter gets a place. Most likely you'll have to fork out some money first...
MrsNordin said…
Hi Waterlily,

Yes, it really depends on the school and your kid's friends. I guess, when your boy was at the old school, his classmates ramai yang jenis macam tu. That;s why he picked up the bad habits.

Macam Nadim pun dulu, gitu jugak. Last year, he was in the last few class. His friends mostly yang suka ajak dia pegi cybercafes on the weekends and cakap pun gaya mat rempit. But this year, he's in a higher class. The friends jenis yang suka buat study group pulak. So he follows.

Bottomline is, we have to monitor them closely. Thanks for your input.
MrsNordin said…
Hello myjunior in stf,

Thanks for your input! I'll surely look out for that (mana tau, my daughter has a change of mind pulak after her exam)

Hey, we don't have to wait until keluar borang permohonan baru nak jumpa... I'd love to meet you. One of these days, kita jumpa kat Ampang Park, ok, for lunch. Let me know when you're free.

Btw, I've asked you this before but you haven't answered me. Which years were you in Stf?
MrsNordin said…
Hi Royalshopping,

Egypt sounds like a fine place to study. Medicine also originated from there, kan? I'll look into that as another option.

Been going through these websites on scholarships sampai mata I dah naik berpinar. I think I shall leave it at that for now.

Thanks again!
Ezza Aziz said…
Mrs N,
I cerita ni pasal cousin I la..dia ni suami isteri mmg la belajar kat UK ,cousin I ni ada PHD . Anak2 mereka semua belajar kat sek agama swasta di mana isteri nya mengajar di sana, Mahal yuran kat sana tapi isteri dia staff may be ada rebate sikit laa. Tapi anak anak dia ni pandai pandai..Yang sulung tu dapat 10As dalam SPM sekarang belajar kat Jepun tajaan Petronas. Yang ke dua lak dapat 8A jer tapi dapat tajaan JPA ke Korea. Saya tanya dia macam mana senang jer kamu dapat tajaan ni..anak orang lain nak masuk U tempatan pun payah. Dia gelak jer. Tapi saya rasa dia ni "cable" kat sana tu. Cable yang besar,bukan wayar kecik kecik. Cousin I ni Prof kat U di selatan ni..Dan diaorang ni cuma tolong klik mereka sajer..sebab bila I cakap kalau anak saya dapat lebih dari 8 A spm ni,kamu rekomen laa,dia kata sekarang dah payah laa. Tgk la tu,dia tolong sesama dia jer...Semuga anak anak you dapat apa yang sepatut nya rakyat Malaysia dapat dengan adil nya.
Anonymous said…
Kak BJ,
I dah jawab le when I commented on your hari raya posting.As I've said earlier, I'm just one yr ur junior, tp dah terbiasa kan panggil 'kak' dari sekolah dulu. Klu kat office ni, 4,5 thn junior pun blum tentu nak panggil 'kak'. Love to meet u too. I'll bring u to PNB Darby Park cafe. My treat.. Will inform u my name & contact no later..
the principal said…
Hai Kak BJ,

23 years ago, we were dorm-mates. I bet you dont remember a skinny kpg girl, tocang satu, very low self esteem...

I did my law degree in 6 1/2 years in UM(still holding the record as the law student yg bertapa paling lama di UM). Blame it on too much clubbing.

Life in UM was not easy. Premier U but facilities mmg teruk & yg rasa the pinch students like me yg tak berkemampuan. Hostel tak cukup, kena sewa rumah, berhimpit-himpit naik van sapu gi kampus. Lecture Hall kena kongsi dgn fakulti lain, classrooms for tutorials - old chairs, aircond selalu rosak....

Some big legal firms prefer law graduates from overseas unless your name berbin/bintikan Tan Sri/Datuk/Tun...

In short, belajar kat local U byk disadvantages...
Anonymous said…
BJ,

Most of my dr friends started their medical studies venture from local unis. After buat matrics locally, and with excellent grades, they were all sent overseas to continue to learn medicine in universities all over the world. Ada kat Ireland, ada kat NZ, ada kat Trinidad and Tobago, ada kat India, ada kat US and of course, kat Indonesia. These are all from one batch of ONE MRSM students.

I study kat UK dulu kat uni tak glamour... but I had fun, I did ok without any studying ehehhehehe

Aida
wanshana said…
BJ,

We all pun don't have expectations for our kids to get scholarship nanti - baik to study overseas or locally. Entah-entah 5-10 years from now, dapat 15 A's tu dah jadi the norm, and tak tentu pun dapat scholarship!

So, now ni dok jenuh nak penuhkan tabung, insya Allah, so that, at least they can further their studies locally.

Yes, our combined income makes anak-anak kita tak eligible for scholarship. But, at the same time, it's waaaaayyyyyyy not enough to support their tertiary education! Camno tu?
Anonymous said…
Didn't expect u to think about children's edu so soon. Well again, it really depends on one's preference. When my kids was young, IQ always stress that his kids should attend govt school simply becoz there's nothing wrong with us. But I guess that changes when they start their secondary edu.We sent Dini to MTS becoz we want her to have the best of both worlds. We were lucky becoz it was also her choice. My hope is for her to complete her studies there. We'll think of the next step when she is in Form 4. Kalau ada rezeki, can try doing medicine in Al-Azhar. As for Nadira, I'm sure she will excel with flying colors. Why not try the scholarships offered by State Yayasan? We'll talk about it more tomorrow over lunch,

Dada
Anonymous said…
bj,
hi...it's me again and i pun dok in the same dilemma....my eldest is also sitting for her SPM this year and i dok cari for her tertiary education. my hubby pun prefer if she goes overseas as i want her to be independent....taklah berkepit and timid. i did my degree in UK under full scholarship frm JPA and my hubby did his in US. To get scolarship memang susah sekarang not like our times.

still looking for all the options.

liza
Anonymous said…
Hi MrsN,

S*me D*rby also offer scholarship, tapi lepas tu kena bond la ngan diorang aa..

-mun
MrsNordin said…
Hi Ezza,

Kurang asam betul cousin you tu, ya? Very selfish! Apa lah salahnya tolong... bukan tentu dapat pun. Orang2 macam nilah yang saya kurang berkenan..
MrsNordin said…
Hi again my junior,

Tak perasan pulak... nanti I check balik. Darby Park Cafe? I like that! Dah lama tak pegi situ. My family likes to go to that Korean Restaurant there for dinner.

Hope the lunch will be soon! *wink*
MrsNordin said…
Hello Mdm Principal,

I've read your blog and left my comment.

I know what you mean about the local U. Looking at my daughter's living and studying conditions at UiTM, I feel sorry for her. Ada ke, kena duduk atas lantai masa lecture sebab tak cukup tempat duduk? And kena naik bas berhimpit2 ke kelas? And the lecture hall is constantly under renovation!

If only she could experience studying overseas... the conditions are so different.

My question is: Why our Kementerian Pelajaran cannot provide a more comfortable living conditions for the students in our local Us? Bukannya susah sangat pun.. make it more comfortable for the students to study. Ini bagi bilik, macam pigeon hole! Kesian budak2 tu...
MrsNordin said…
Aida,

I shall take note of that. Btw, saw your pictures in FB. Your kids are so cute and tembam!! Geram!


Shana,

What you said is true: 10 years from now, 15As tu could be the norm. So, budak2 ni nak belajar kat mana? Fees will definitely be more expensive. How lah??
jabishah said…
Hi Mrs.N,
This is such interesting post. Even my girls are still in their primary.. mmg byk tu kena plan for their edu.
I hv to agree with you. Parents' guidance is very important. And of course peers influence.
Klu I hv the money pun I pikir 2 , 3 kali nak enrol private school ni. But tu lah... I don't like the restiction of gomen school registration. Biar lah nak hantar anak kat sekolah mana pun. Sapa lmbt, pergi lah sekolah yg jauh. Sapa suruh lmbt kan. I dulu took the effort "mengelentoong" add rumah sbb nak good gomen school. Kena reject. Cikgu tu mcm takde benda nak buat pergi cx add I kasi tu. Rumah bujang kawan HB. Sabar je lah.
Now, the girls' school are getting better. The only thing sideback is, mostly malays. I prefer them to mix around with other races too.
BTW, St John's a good choice. But kena excell to get the 'A' class lah. Kelas bwh tu.. faham2 lah ;-)
MrsNordin said…
Dada,

For Dini, she should just continue in Al-Azhar after Form 5. She seems to be inclined in that direction, so let her be. You coninue giving her your support, that's all you need to do.

See you tmrw! Jangan lupa bawa buku Krabi, tau?
MrsNordin said…
Liza,

We can discuss this further since we seem to be in the same boat. My eldest did her matrics and now she's in UiTM. The second one ni yang tak tau mana nak taruk dia... If only we have all the money in the world!


Mun,

Thanks! I shall look into that too!
MrsNordin said…
Jabishah,

We all pun tipu address jugak dulu, but nasib baik masa tu cikgu sekolah tu tak de masa nak pegi check out the alamat. Kesian you... this is the first time I'm hearing such case! Hee.. hee...

My children's school has got quite a good mix of races, esp. in the secondary school. Primary school memang ramai malays lah...

As for Nizzar, he has no choice but to excel lah, kan? I'll make sure he does that!!
MHB said…
mrsnordin -- all these talk about tertiary education is making my heart skip a little faster. My girls are only 7 and 9 but i've had sleepless nights thinking how to get them through school, kalau boleh sampai habis masters... masa tu la baru boleh menarik nafas lega... insya-allah your kids are bright and hopefully your second daughter will get to do medicine in a uni of her choice (with full scholarship, of course!)
Anonymous said…
hi BJ,

I went to a local private U and i must say nothing wrong with it ! I had so much fun in fact many ppl from abroad r coming to malaysia to study.
nothing like msia good weather, good food etc. but even so i didnt not get a scholarship (due to racial reasons which is a whole different story all together) to study abroad, im somehow here.
I come from a family where all my cousins studied abroad except me so it was bit hard to terima as that time was the soros time everything melambung...but no i will never trade the experience. After all there is still the PTPTN loan and all those bank loans.

If the kid knows that he or she has to pay back they will give 100%at classes n not fail becasue they will eventually pay back. i think this is good character building.
Good luck to your daughter for SPM am sure she will do well after all she does have good guidance from you !!! :)
MA said…
Thanks for this post - my kapla pun suda pening memikirkan next year my son is taking SPM and 2 years down the road my daughter pulak...I told the kids that they have no choice but to excel in order to continue studies, and bukan setakat excel sahaja, but beyond that cos competition is very, very stiff. Just to be on the safe side, I pun kena expose them to some other living skills jugak to survive.
Anonymous said…
hi..

check this out : the yayasan sime darby scholarship award :
http://impact-my.jobstreet.com/jobs/jobs.asp?eid=14961869&ddt=1&wloc=0&pdt=0

mun
ummi sa'eed said…
Hi...I just love reading your entries. Although I still have about 16 years before I need to think about scholarships for my kids and what nots, education has always been an intriguing subject for me.

I was educated in the States (thank God). Not that IPTA/S in Malaysia are lousy, but to some extend, the system is. Which other gov't in the world 'dictates' what you can or cannot take? I have some brilliant friends who got dumped into fields which do not interest them at all...and of course they failed miserably.

Anyhow, the corporate scholarships are awesome since you get a shot at working for them later on...but bonded lah. I tell people to try for MARA because you don't get bonded at the end....just to give you options.

But then again, although going overseas is fine and dandy, some people don't make the most of it. Still mainly with Malaysians, don't mix around etc. I've heard stories of kids coming back with Kelantanese slangs instead of better English!
MrsNordin said…
Myhearbleeds,

Anak you baru 7-9 years old, you dah sleepless at night? Very advance! I dulu, masa diaorang umur maca2 tu, I tak kisah pun lagi..

I spoke to her last night and she's aware that the cost of doing Medic is very high. She's still undecided..
MrsNordin said…
Anon,

I agree with you. If the kid know that her study is being paid for either by the parents or study loan (which she has to pay back later), then she'll make sure she does well. Or else, I'LL MAKE SURE she does well!!

Sorry you didn't get the scholarship but from your writing, I think you had a great time here too. That's why I said, it doesn't matter where you study... if you know how to make the best of it, then you'll have a fulfilling time, whether local or abroad.

I had friends in the UK last time who kept to themselves all the time. I'm sure they didn't really have a good time there...

Having said that, I'll only send my kids overseas if I know they can do well and deserve it. At least I know my money is worth every cent spent on her. But some people, mati2 want to send their kids overseas just because it's more "glamour" than studying local. It is nicer, of course, but then bila anak dia tak pass, kena balik sini balik. Buat malu saja...

Nice reading your thoughts and do drop by again.
MrsNordin said…
Ma,

Living skills is very important. I'm teaching my children about this, albeit slowly. It's easier for you coz you don't have a maid. The children will be more independent when maidless, it's true!

Pasal abang tu, take it a step at a time. He'll get somewhere, I'm sure of that..
MrsNordin said…
Hi Umi,

It's quite sad to see some students (Malays mostly) who didn't make it when they were given full grant by the govt to study overseas. Such a waste of money, really.

I hope students these days are more clever and do not take their scholarships for granted. To me, kalau malas belajar, baik bagi biasiswa tu pada orang lain who are more deserving.

Corporate sponsorships are fine, if you can find a course that match your liking. Some corporates offer limited courses only. So, we have to be selective as well...

Now I wish we were back to the 80s where education fees were so much lower!
Kmar said…
BJ,

It is very good that your daughter nak buat medicine. Actually kalau dia nak buat kat oversea (UK), memang she needs the scholarship.

My sister dapat JPA scholarship buat medicine kat UK. In her final semester, she failed 1 paper and need to repeat the whole semester. JPA tak nak sponsor pulak tu. Masa tu my parents dah standby nak jual one of their houses nak cover the expense. Luckily JPA approved.. lega..

Bila dia habis, dia tak nak balik buat housemanship (2 years masa tu..) and applied to further study to do anesthatic. JPA tak bagi, suruh dia balik. Luckily she got herself a job at the hospital and ´sponsor´ herself to do the anesthatic. She passed a few exams and working as Senior Anesthatic at the moment. She paid the ´fine´ to JPA... breach of contract.

This year, dia ambil Master in Foreign Policy.. eem.. jangan tak caya adik I sorang ni!!! Dia kata dari dulu sejak kecil dia nak buat foreign policy tapi EVERYONE push her to medicine.

One thing, dia pernah mention about taking medicine kat overseas ni. Kalau nak study hanya nak jadi GP, then do it locally. Basic medicine course more or less are the same tapi kalau nak jadi doktor pakar, then it is worth do it overseas.
MrsNordin said…
Kmar,

I think what your sister said is true. Kalau takat nak jadi GP je, kat Malaysia pun boleh buat..

I honestly feel you must love the medical profession to enable you to get through your 6-7 years of studying medic. It's like teaching; you must love the profession to become a good teacher. If you take the course becoz others force you to, or you think a doctor makes a lot of money, then you're wrong. Yes, if you go all the way and become a specialist or something, you'll make lots of money. Tapi kalau takat lepas degree je, I don't think you'll go anywhere.

That's why students these days must choose WISELY. Learning is a long process.
J..

Pening kan....

I thank GOd that masa kita dulu tak ramai yang pandai pandai so I could go overseas..kalau sekarang SORRY agaknye heee hee.

And no one can say bumi dapat loans etc etc I rasa sekarang sussssssssssah nye sama.....

Oh yeah We also thought of living in Dubai, Australia and the UK, all for the sake of the kids' education..

Tapi kan......

There is always a price to pay, things you give up - so in the end,tanah tumpah darah ku lah tempat kita stay....

Lovely meeting you just now.
MrsNordin said…
Thanks for the lunch, SW. It was nice meeting you too just now. Whenever I'm with you, selalu macam tak habis2 topic nak berbual!

You should know better about living overseas since you've lived there quite sometime. I agree with you, at the end of the day, it's still this tanah tumpah negara ku where I'm staying.

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