Thursday, December 31, 2009

Welcome 2010!!

THE NEW YEAR HAS FINALLY ARRIVED!!! HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010 EVERYONE!!!

Finally, 2010 has arrived.. New hopes, new dreams, new start.. What do I expect to accomplished this year?? Stay tuned to find out!!!

P.S. I'm going back to AIMST now.. Next week exam.. Arg!! Guess that's New Year Resolution 1: Pass the next CA!!! =p

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Goodbye 2009, I'll miss you!

In approximately 26 hours the year 2009 will be gone, never again to be seen in this life, only to be recall in memory of those who live..

One year has just gone by me without even me realizing.. I was looking at the calendar and I was like "gosh, is it over already? where did my year went??" Recalling back, an 8 month break from studies does really make the year go by super fast.. After all, time flies while your having fun.. =)

2009 has been a year of ups and downs for me.. Of happiness and bitterness.. Of joy and sorrow.. Let us review month by month of what actually transpired (if my memory still serves me rite)

January
- My first working experience (ok, beyond the confines of my home) in Jusco as a Carlsberg promoter.. Really opened my eyes to what is waiting out there.. I made new friends, gained new experience and managed to improve my mandarin.. LOL!! Also not to forget CNY.. Obviously the best rite?

February
- Nothing much occur here.. Not that I can remember off.. Working for dad, enjoy, lepak, tat's all.. And of course the departure of my friends to their unis in overseas, namely Australia..

March
- Dreaded moment.. Month where the STPM results come out.. And a real blessing from God that I did well.. Happiest moment in my life after SPM results.. Also the begining of a very busy week of application of unis and stuff.. Farewell to Chia Chi as she leaves for India and also Genting trip which was just fun.. Also, the month where I suffered the worst fever in my life.. =S
And not forgetting my bro's b'day..

April
- A trip to PD where we got conned (damnit).. Also when the 6th Southern Regionals was held.. Busy busy busy.. Miss Hon Joe's farewell (double damnit) as he was flying off to India.. And my dad's b'day.. Hehe..

May
- The month where I finally found out the truth about my friends (yes, itz still in memory) but I have already forgive all of them.. Yet, it changes my perceptions about things, on how naive I was.. Best thing is, May is where I turned 19.. However, things when down smoothly in the end.. =) Also trip to Penang, which was probably the best trip of the year.. =D

June
- Now this gotta be the saddest month in my entire life.. Disappointment, sorrow and anger.. I shall not elaborate on this but if u all really want to know, refer back to my post in June.. Till now, I'm still puzzled over the system.. A system that I have given up hope on.. However, a silver lining emerge at the end of in the end of it.. Entrance into AIMST.. And a shot to pursue my long live dream.

July
- An interview for a scholarship that didn't materialize and preparations for me to leave my home.. I'm still working thou..

August
- The big day came and I left Seremban to a place known as Farmer's River (Sungai Petani).. Thank God I was able to settle down quickly.. And so it begins, a new chapter in my life.. Another story to write after once has ended..

September
- Adjusting back to study mode, learning new stuff and of course, helping out in the Kabadi competition which was by far the best event I participated this year.. Blek.. Also the month where a lot of my friends flew to their respective unis in overseas, namely India, UK and Russia..

October
- My first test in medical program and also a week break.. Not to mention I went Penang 3 times.. LOL!! End of 1st half of sem 1, begining of the 2nd half..

November
- Mum's birthday which I was not there to celebrate.. Results out from the first test.. Glad I pass all; wish I could do better.. Got myself involve in more and more activities.. Just keep getting busier and busier.. And also was sick for 3 weeks.. =S

December
- Organized the Charity Night, which really took it's toll on me.. Attended the 20 Years Anniversary Dinner of Lasallian Youth Movement in Malaysia (a mouthful).. 2 weeks holiday break mark the end of my sem 1 and begining of sem 2 when i resume next Monday.. Christmas time! And an awesome party! Supposedly to prepare for my 2nd test yet here I am blogging.. =p And now we have come to an end..

So here we are, staring at the end of one year, eagerly awaiting the next.. New resolutions are for sure the menu for the day this Friday (somehow, they won't last) and of course hoping for a better year.. =) More experience, more challenges, more fun.. Stay tune and till then

WISHING YOU ALL A HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010!!

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Awesome party!

Yesterday I had my Christmas party (obviously at my place) and I'm very very happy that it was a real success.. Great food, delicious cake (it was bought, I didn't bake it!) and nice atmosphere!!

It was sooooo good to see old friends, some I haven't seen in a few months or maybe years.. XD Plus everyone had a great time.. So thank you all who came to my party.. You guys and gals really make it happening, without you, it won't be a party at all..

Hopefully my next party, more people can turn up.. Of course, those of u who came are sure eagerly awaiting the next one.. Most probably another Christmas party cause CNY holidays is toooooo short for me and during my birthday it'll be toooooo close to my 4th exam.. =(

TAKE CARE AND ALL THE BEST TO EVERYONE!!!

Friday, December 25, 2009

Christmas came and went, what's next?

Christmas is over.. So it's time to hit the books.. Bah.. Books.. Something I'll be facing for the rest of life with.. Nobody likes studying, believe me.. However, we constantly need to keep our knowledge updated, so the only way? Study..

By next Friday I'll be back in campus.. Another week left in Seremban.. Can't say I accomplished much.. Relatives came down.. I only caught up with 1 friend for yam cha.. Another invitation for lunch today.. Btw, Christmas is fattening.. I had 1 breakfast, 2 rounds of lunch and a heavy buffet dinner.. Not to mention the dinner at my place tomorrow.. Gosh.. All those weight I lost are coming back to haunt me.. T.T

And also would like to wish all my friends who are going back to uni to have a safe journey.. Some are taking the bus, others driving and even some by flights.. Hope you all reach ur destination safe and sound.. And hopefully we all can catch up another time in the near future..

Hitting back to the books again.. *shivers at the sight of piling notes*

Thursday, December 24, 2009

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! XD

I WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
I WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
I WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010 TO ALL MY FAMILY, RELATIVE, FRIENDS AND TO EVERYONE ELSE!!

GOD BLESS YOU ALL!!

Saturday, December 19, 2009

A counter to a letter..

I read an article yesterday (Fri, Dec 18) about my university, AIMST in The Star newspaper.. Here is the article:

Too many medical varsities

I READ with concern the worries of Concerned Doctor (The Star, Dec 10).

I have a daughter who just started on the medical programme in a private university up north. When I first saw the campus I was impressed with the large expanse of open space, the grandeur of the buildings and the excellent sports facilities including an Olympic-size swimming pool.

However, after a few months in this place, my daughter has complained to me about several things which are not right with this university. The lecture halls are cramped and some of them are not really suitable for lectures.

Lab facilities and equipment are shockingly lacking. Because of the large number of students involved (more than 200!), students are divided into groups of 10 or even more to share equipment.

The most frightening thing is the shortage of lecturers. There are departments with inexperienced junior lecturers who deliver lectures without actually understanding what they are delivering!

My daughter assures me that these are not only her opinions but those of other students as well.

In less than five years there will be three batches of students in the clinical years (years three to five). So, there will be at least 600 students being posted to the various hospitals in Kedah for their clinical training.

I believe the two main hospitals are in Sungai Petani and Alor Setar. Will these two main hospitals be able to cope with so many students?

Secondly and even more importantly, will the students receive adequate training? And if not, won’t they be a danger to patients?

Although I am a teacher and not a doctor, I have seen some of the questions set by the lecturers of that university and feel that they lack quality. Most of the questions merely require students to reproduce what is being taught in lectures, and very few require students to think about what they have studied.

Is this the sort of education expected from universities, i.e. to train students to memorise facts and not think?

I agree with Concerned Doctor that too many medical colleges are being set up in this country; in fact, they are mushrooming all over the place. There are now more than 20 universities/colleges in this country offering a medical programme.

At this rate, there will definitely be a surplus of doctors in no time. But what kind of doctors are we producing? Are they trained enough, and will they be good enough just prescribing cough mixtures and painkillers?

I believe the MMC/MQA should do spot checks on all universities (especially private ones) offering medicine and not just during accreditations. They should ensure these universities have adequate lecturers and sufficient facilities.

As a parent I am paying good money for my daughter’s education, and I expect that she receives it! Private universities should not just think of how much money they can make, but also ensure that students are properly trained and educated.

CONCERNED PARENT,

Penang.


Now for my thoughts on the article.. A lot of the points mentioned above are clearly inaccurate..
1. Lecture halls are cramped with students.. FYI, AIMST Lecture Theater 1 can fit up to 282 students.. Currently my batch has 200 students + 14 repeaters + 15 new students from Andalas.. We still got ample of seats to sit in.. And the sitting arrangement in the lecture hall is properly done, yet some people still complain here and there..

2. Lacking of lab equipments??? PLEASE!! There's only 2-3 students to a microscope, which is the most important tool of all.. Furthermore, by working in this small groups, we can actually discuss the experiment procedures and increase our understanding.. Of course, there were 1-2 experiments where a number of us cramped together but the lecturer let us to do the experiment over and over again so that everyone has a chance to do the experiment..

3. Shortage of lecturers? This is only a temporary problem in only one department in the medical faculty.. And it'll only last 2 months.. Furthermore, we got tons of experienced and very good lecturers.. The medical faculty has no less than 10 professors, a lot more associate professors and a good deal of lecturers.. And if the lecturers are not good to begin with, AIMST will not hire them..

Now for some additional points of mine:
1. AIMST is the ONLY PRIVATE UNIVERSITY in MALAYSIA that has CADAVERS!! No other private uni in Malaysia has that kind of facility.. Furthermore, our anatomy museum is complete, comparable to the major local unis..

2. AIMST is still by far the cheapest private uni to study medicine.. At 220k, the closest competitor is UCSI and that's not even an MBBS degree..

3. 200 students is nothing.. Try local unis, try private unis like IMU and see the amount of students u get in every year.. If u wanted a 1 to 1 session, then by all means please go to that uni that has such a service..

4. The condition of AIMST is much better compare to many other unis, be it local or private.. Yes, I agree the food is terrible at times, however, do try the local uni side and then come back to give ur comment.. THE GRASS IS NEVER GREENER ON THE OTHER SIDE!!

There are load of points I could mention but those are the important ones.. Looking back, I never regretted making the move to come here.. 4 months down the road and I'm happy with my life in my uni.. Plus, SP has a lot of great food, if u noe where to find them whenever ur bored with the hostel food.. =p

This is the same quote I used over and over again and thus I'll use it here also to conclude the above letter.. YOU choose to come to AIMST, YOU make your own decision, no one forced YOU or pointed a gun into your head asking YOU to come here, so in the end quit YOUR whining and live with the decision that YOU have made..

That's all folks..

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

A long update..

My blog looks really dead.. Maybe I should consider shutting down it.. Since I don't have the mood to actually update it anymore.. Sadly..

Anyhow, just to add something into my miserable looking blog, here are some highlights of this month that happened so far in my uni life..

10th Dec - Padang Charity Night
People might think, "Oh, another charity night.. Boring!!" Let me tell u something, u all are sooooo wrong.. It was probably one of the best events that I gotten myself involved in.. Well, 2 weeks of sacrificing sleep, studies and er... Laptop.. XD was really worth it in the end.. Hehe.. Turned out to be a real success.. Lots of photos can be seen in my FB profile (of course, those which I am tagged in la..) Plus we came out in TV.. Not bad for a uni event eh.. Anyhow, the concert was just superb.. Kudos to all those who have worked their socks off to make it a very successful event..

12th Dec - 20th Year Anniversary Celebration Dinner
OK, here is another LaSallian event in SMI, Ipoh.. This time, we were celebrating the 20th year of the LaSallian youth movement here in Malaysia.. Originally started in 1989, nobody expected that it'll last that long.. However, when u think of St. John Baptist De La Salle's work about 350 years ago, what's 20 years rite? =p Anyhow, it was a very very memorable event.. Met quite a number of my convention mates back at the dinner, some after 2 years.. Plus I took the opportunity to tour around Ipoh, looking for food.. Haha.. So in the end, was really worth the trip..

16th Dec - Levite's Christmas Gig
Now this just occured a few hours ago.. Levite's is the name of my Christian Fellowship group (I think) and this was the 4th concert beginning since 2006.. (hopefully my history is rite) Anyhow, loads of performances like drama, choir and dances were performed.. Not forgetting an awesome sermon by Pastor Ryan, it was more of a laughing session but the message was very clear.. Totally worth the time.. AMEN!!!

So later at night I'll be going back to Seremban.. Gosh.. Been like ages since I went back.. Later in the morning I volunteered myself to be the 'patient' in an examination for 2nd year medic students.. At least this gives me the opportunity to understand the exam structure..

Not to mention about my exam in another 2 weeks time.. But before that is my Christmas gathering.. Those who want more info pls PM me in FB or SMS me.. That's all for now folks.. Long update huh.. Take care people.. God bless!!