Visitors at Star Education Fair thrilled with study options offered
KUALA LUMPUR: Over a thousand visitors turned up at Star Education Fair 2023 held at the Pavilion Bukit Jalil Exhibition Centre here.
Teacher Trevor Marcel and his fellow colleagues reached the venue as early as 9am yesterday.
They had travelled all the way from Muar, Johor, with their charges, with the aim of exposing the 16-year-olds to the various tertiary study options offered by the local and foreign institutions at the fair.
“We want to open their minds on what courses are available through these universities so that they can have a clear plan of their future careers,” said the teacher of an international school, whose students graduate at the age of 16 after taking the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) exams.
“A lot of our students are more interested in the art programmes, such as broadcasting and game development.
“This fair is a very good experience and an eye-opener. They have clearer information from the universities here compared to what I shared with them in school.
“It will be good for students if more organisations hold such fairs. Their schools may not be able to provide answers to some of their questions. But by bringing them here, the university representatives can instead help give them more information,” said the first-time participant of the fair.
Fellow first-timers Rosnizah Mohd Tahar and her daughter Wan Amirah Wan Hazmir were satisfied with their experience as the latter managed to enrol in a bachelor’s programme in business administration at Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM).
“We came to the fair hoping to find opportunities of enrolling in a public institute of higher learning (IPTA) as my daughter had missed out on applying through the Central University Admission Unit (UPU) Online after obtaining her diploma.
“We gained a lot of new information here, such as that students can still enrol in an IPTA through the ‘open channel’ avenue. We are very interested in this opportunity so we enrolled straightaway,” said Rosnizah.
Software engineer Nigel Isidto, who graduated last year, visited the fair to get more information about postgraduate programmes.
Major crowd-puller: Star Education Fair attracted over a thousand visitors on its opening day. — YAP CHEE HONG/The Star
He said his debut visit gave him a better idea of the fields he was interested in such as animation, virtual reality and design.
“I really love this fair. Most of the university representatives were professional with their explanations and information. I got a lot of information I needed here,” he said.
Organised by Star Media Group for the second time this year, the two-day fair, which ends today, offers various tertiary study options and financial assistance such as study loans and scholarships, with a total of 39 institutions occupying 71 booths.
Among the main exhibitors are Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU); Mahsa University; Management and Science University (MSU); SEGi University & Colleges; City University Malaysia; and KPJ Healthcare University.
Besides local institutions, the fair drew the participation of international institutions, such as the New York Film Academy Australia; the International Aero Training Academy, Malaysia; the Savannah College of Art and Design, the United States; the University of Life Sciences “King Mihai I”, Romania; Rennes School of Business, France; Health Careers International, Australia; Australian International School Malaysia; and Singapore Institute of Technology.
Hanson Canada president and chief executive officer Shouyi Ma, whose institution is collaborating with Limkokwing University of Creative Technology, said international education is important as it allows students to travel and learn at the same time.
“International education, which allows students to travel abroad and learn in a very different environment, will be critical for their self-development and finding purpose and meaning in life,” he said.
He added that both Hanson Canada and Limkokwing University of Creative Technology offer students support and services, including financial aid, to support their success.
“One of the discussion areas we are trying to explore and to find a feasible solution for our students would be for the students to be able to study in both Malaysia and Canada. Over a two- or four-year course of study, students would be able to obtain either a Canadian credential or a dual credential from both institutions,” he said.
Among the highlights at the fair is the exciting prizes up for grabs. Participants stand a chance to win a Gintell G-Beetle Plus Foot Massager, lifestyle knapsacks, Starbucks gift cards worth RM30 and TGV Cinemas tickets.
Don’t miss out on the interesting talks happening today, such as “Gold Coast as a filming location” at 1pm, and “Why pursue a master of education” at 4pm.
The fair is open from 11am to 7pm. Admission is free.
The Star Education Fair, which is in its 36th year, is one of the country’s pioneer education exhibitions. It has continuously provided visitors with educational programmes ranging from pre-university, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate to professional and vocational courses from various local and international institutions.
This year’s fair kicked off at the Setia SPICE Convention Centre in Penang on June 10 and 11, with the next and final edition of this year’s event to be held on Dec 9 and 10 at the same venue.
For further details on the Star Education Fair, visit facebook.com/stareducationfair or email email edufair@thestar.com.my.
