TAR College student recently came runner-up in the 2012 Cambridge English speaking competition held at Cambridge University in July.

Bong Yang, an Advanced Diploma in Commerce student, was one of nine young English language students from across Asia who was flown to the UK to take part in the final of the Best Young Speaker from Asia competition.

The final was held at Robinson College, Cambridge on 5 July 2012 and Bong, along with the other contestants, had to give two presentations with a business theme in English and answer a series of questions put to them by an expert panel. Speaking to the event organisers, Bong said he felt honoured to be part of the competition and enjoyed meeting and exchanging ideas with students from all over Asia. The other finalists were from Hong Kong, Vietnam, China, India, Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia and Japan.

Simon Wright, from competition organisers University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations (Cambridge ESOL) said:

“Bong is a highly talented English speaker and his performance was really impressive in the final. He showed what a great deal of commitment can achieve and I’m sure his English skills will help him in his future career.”

Bong secured a place in the final by impressing judges with his English speaking ability at the regional rounds held earlier this year. He also told event organisers that he improved his English by watching movies and reading books and that the key to achieving a high level is to practise.

Brimming with positive energy, Bong was very pleased to have gone this far and added that he learnt so much from the other contestants and the experience gained from the competition will stand him in good stead in his future endeavours.

Photo Captions:

Photo 1: Bong Yang, all smiles after having spoken on stage.

Photo 2: New found friends from different parts of the world.

Another segment of the PwC-ACCA STAR Programme, a collaborative programme with PricewaterhouseCoopers (‘PwC’) and The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (‘ACCA’), took place on 27 July 2012. The segment called “Impressions Session” was a continuation of a series of workshops held for 30 selected students from the Advanced Diploma in Commerce (Financial Accounting).

In this session, students were taught on the importance of etiquette and proper dressing in the workplace, how to present oneself and dining etiquette.

The speaker, Ms Monsy Siew who is the Head of Human Resource at PwC, gave very useful advice on how to create a good impression, how to dress according to body shape and what to wear versus what not to wear at work. She proceeded to talk about basic social etiquette in a corporate setting such as punctuality and also how to conduct a good social conversation. Monsy also touched on the subject of personal grooming and what one should do to keep themselves looking presentable.

In the second part of the segment, the group proceeded to the Training Restaurant, which is run by the School of Social Science and Humanities, to learn dining etiquette in a real-life set up. Again, Monsy gave very useful tips, this time on remembering the proper placement of cutleries, bread and drink. There was a special demonstration table with a full set of western cutlery and also a complete Chinese set where Monsy demonstrated the use of the cutleries during a meal. The students had the opportunity to use these new skills when they were served lunch in the restaurant. The entire session proved to be fruitful and was thoroughly enjoyed by the group seeking to improve themselves in this area.

Apart from excellence in the academic aspect, having the skills of social etiquette will add value to the students’ future employers. TAR College believes in equipping applicable and purposeful knowledge to students in order to give them a head start in the competitive job market.

Photo Captions:

Photo 1: Ms Monsy Siew talking about giving a good impression with proper working attire.

Photo 2: With a volunteer student, Monsy showed the right way to use cutleries on the demonstration table.

Photo 3: The training restaurant run by SSH proved to be a good setting for the dining etiquette session.

The “blue angel” in the form of Dr Cheang Lee Hwa, a fellow Malaysian who is the Director of the Office of Humanities, Tzu Chi College of Technology, Taiwan, the guest speaker for the day, could not be more committed in her conviction of helping others who are in need. This demure lady talked about what the Tzu Chi Foundation stands for and how the “lack of love for others” has been the root of many problems in this world. “To save the world, we must begin by transforming human hearts”, she said.

Whenever there was suffering, Tzu Chi volunteers were deployed very quickly to reach out and to alleviate suffering in all parts of the world, so much so that many people were being blessed very quickly by these “blue angels” (termed as such because the volunteers always wear their blue clothings when doing volunteer work). Dr Cheang emphasized that everyone should have a larger aim in life instead of just having personal satisfaction. Just like a lotus flower, growing clean in muddy land and shining in the darkness, a life of serving others is a life well lived”, she added.

The talk, organized by the School of Business Studies, was held on 27 July 2012 at the Auditorium in Bangunan Tun Tan Siew Sin. It was put together for TAR College students so that they are able to immerse into the real-life experiences shared by the leaders in the world of NGOs to widen their knowledge as well as to imbue them with the values of volunteerism.

After the talk, there was a Q&A session conducted where Dr Cheang answered questions about sustainability in volunteerism, among other things and at the end, students were given vegetarian lunch meals packed in special containers wrapped in nice cloths.

Photo Captions:

Photo 1: Dr Cheang Lee Hwa engaging the audience with her talk on compassion and love.

Photo 2: Dr Cheang Lee Hwa having some light banter with several students on stage.

Photo 3 : Dr Cheang Lee Hwa (left) receiving a memento from Mr Wee Chu Kok, Head of Division of the School of Business Studies.

Mr Teng Ngiek Lian, an alumnus of TAR College decided to set up the YS Chong SBS Fund (‘the Fund’) with the primary objective of providing financial support to deserving students of the College’s School of Business Studies (‘SBS’) and the Fund was officially launched by YB Tan Sri Dr Fong Chan Onn, the Council Member of TAR College, at the College Hall, KL Main Campus on 26 July 2012.

The Fund, to be initially seeded by Mr Teng’s philanthropic organization ‘The Silent Foundation’, aims to assist the students with financial constraints to complete their studies at SBS by means of bursary, scholarship or cash grant. Apart from that, the Fund will also be utilised for the purpose of conducting research and to promote the improvement of corporate governance and to assist SBS in discharging its social enterprise obligations through its newly launched Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

The fund named after Mr Chong Yean Seong, affectionately known as Mr YS Chong by his students, is to honour him for his immeasurable contributions to SBS and the College as a whole.

After the launching of the YS Chong SBS Fund 2012, Mr Teng Ngiek Lian had a private session with the School of Business Studies students to give them special insight into the world of fund management.

He went on to say: “As a fund manager, you need to know what you are good at, who are your customers or target audience, stay focused and don’t change your style.” These were the wise words of Mr Teng who believed that a good fund manager was one that had the ability to consistently outperform others at higher results and lower risks.

Following the talk, there was a competition held at the Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship among School of Social Science and Humanities (SSH) students. It was the brainchild of Mr Stephen Ong, a lecturer from the School of Business Studies who made tremendous effort to guide and assist the students in preparing them to come up with creative and convincing video presentations and sales pitches of a social enterprise. The students could negotiate with the judges as to what they would require in executing the project in terms of start-up capital, operating costs and so forth which involved real money.

This very interesting competition is actually part of the SSH students’ project where they would be collecting points for their coursework. This project will serve as a training ground for the students so that they are well-prepared to face similar challenges in the real world.

Photo Captions:

Photo 1: Mr Chong Yean Seong addressing the audience.

Photo 2: YB Tan Sri Dr Fong Chan Onn (4th from right), Mr YS Chong (5th from right), Mr Teng Ngiek Lian (3rd from right), Dr Tan Chik Heok (4th from left), Principal of TAR College and senior College officials launching the YS Chong SBS Fund.

Photo 3: TAR College alumni showing their support during the launch of the YS Chong SBS Fund.

Photo 4: Mr Teng Ngiek Lian giving precious advice to School of Business Studies students.

Photo 5: Mr Stephen Ong (right) briefing the SSH students prior to the sales pitch while Mr Teng Ngiek Lian (left) looks on.

In collaboration with the Truly Loving Company (TLC), 25 students of the Advanced Diploma in Public Relations from TAR College successfully raised RM 25,500 by organising the “Truly Loving Campaign - Green the Charity” for the National Autism Society of Malaysia (NASOM) from 16-18 July 2012 at the KL main campus. With the tagline, “Green A House, Gain A Smile”, this campaign aimed to aid NASOM in reducing their operational cost by changing two of its centres’ electrical appliances such as air-cons, lights, and refrigerators to energy-saving products.

One of the events highlighted was the “Mission Possible”, whereby 15 lecturers and the Principal of TAR College had to perform cleaning tasks once the fund-raising target was hit. Dr Tan Chik Heok, TAR College Principal, managed to hit his own target by raising RM8,000 and he delivered his promise of cleaning the glass doors at the main entrance of Bangunan Tun Tan Siew Sin. Leading a team of people comprising, Ms Chia Liaw Kee, the General Manager of NASOM, Ms Julia Chong and Mr Khaw Chay Tee, both founders of TLC and getting their hands dirty, he said: “TAR College will continue to support students in all future charity projects, as we are not only producing industry-ready candidates, but we are also teaching our students to be socially responsible practitioners.” Three lecturers who also reached their individual targets, performed their duties in cleaning the toilets at the canteen and school office blocks.

“I believe providing energy saving electrical appliances to NASOM in the long run would save their cost in running a charity home,” said Julia Chong, the CEO and founder of the Truly Loving Company. Ms Chia Liaw Kee, the General Manager of NASOM also said: “We appreciate the efforts done by TAR College students and lecturers who have gone so far in helping us raise funds for a better learning environment at NASOM. This has not just created greater awareness about autism, it also expresses the love for children who need care and acceptance from society.”

Photo Captions:

Photo 1: The 25 passionate Truly Loving Campaigners from TAR College PR programme successfully raising RM25,500 in the “Green the Charity” campaign for the National Autism Society of Malaysia (NASOM).

Photo 2: From left: Ms Chia Liaw Kee, General Manager of NASOM, Dr Tan Chik Heok, TAR College Principal, Ms Julia Chong and Mr Khaw Chay Tee, both founders of TLC, joining forces to clean TAR College Bangunan Tun Tan Siew Sin’s glass doors.

Photo 3: Mr Loong Yik Yan (in white T-shirt), Head of Professional Accountancy Division, raised RM5,000 to clean the female toilet with his colleagues.

Photo 4: Mr Superam Maniam (in black T-shirt), senior lecturer of Language Division raised RM3,531 and cleaned the male toilet together with his colleagues.

Photo 5: Mr. Julius Ang (in white T-shirt, red bandana and overalls), a Law subject lecturer raised RM 2,610 to clean 4 female and male toilets with his cohort of students.

With the growing importance of internet and the vast business opportunities that are available to those who can harness its influence, TAR College School of Arts & Science signed on to participate in the MyUniAlliance-Google Web Academy in July 2012. The programme’s objective is to provide people with learning opportunities and educational resources to succeed in a web economy. The Web Academy consists of business and technical courses with qualification; targeted at users who are, or want to develop skills as online marketers, web consultants and entrepreneurs, developers and IT professionals. Google chooses Malaysia as the pioneer for this programme. TAR College is one of the 10 IHLs in Malaysia selected for this programme.

In celebration of the 40th Anniversary of School of Technology ('SOT') and School of Arts & Science ('SAS'), the Queen' s University Belfast (QUB) and TAR College Alumni Dinner was held on 7 July 2012. The evening's dinner was a laudable initiative of the QUB Alumni Association to reconnect with the fellow members for networking, rekindling friendships as well as to savour the good memories of the alumni in both institutions. It was indeed a cosy atmosphere as there were altogether 36 guests who came for the alumni dinner at the pool-side of the Olympic-sized swimming pool in KL Main Campus.

The collaboration between TAR College and QUB goes back to the early 70s when the late Professor W.D. Ryan was the first external examiner for the Electronics Programme. He was instrumental in the drafting of the programme structure and syllabus for the programme. That led to the first TAR College Diploma graduate, Tham Siew Kian, to be accepted into the Masters programme in QUB in 1978. The following year, 2 students from TAR College, Wong Yoke Min and Siow Yue Yi, were accepted into the Masters programme in QUB. Since then many more graduated from QUB and a sizeable number had even graduated with PhD with some of them present at the dinner.

Recently, TAR College renewed its ties with QUB with the signing of Memorandum of Agreement in 2011 and a Memorandum of Understanding in February 2012, paving the way for more TAR College graduates to pursue their postgraduate education at QUB.

This alumni dinner marks the wonderful partnership between the two institutions and certainly TAR College and QUB will further strengthen their collaboration in the near future for the benefit of the students.

Photo Captions:

Photo 1: All the guests of the occasion gathering for a group photo.

Photo 2: Fellow alumni enjoying an evening of camaraderie.

Photo 3: Alumni and staff having a sumptuous, pool-side dinner.

Photo 4: Dr Chua Ping Yong (left), Head of School of Technology, with Professor James McElnay, Pro-Vice Chancellor for Research and Postgraduates, Queen's University Belfast, at the alumni dinner.

As a premier institution providing accountancy teaching and learning, TAR College was honoured to have the President of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (‘ACCA’), Mr Dean Westcott, for the first time on 6 July 2012. He was given a rapturous welcome at the Auditorium of Bangunan Tun Tan Siew Sin by senior College officials, College staff and students from the School of Business Studies.

During the event, Mr Dean Westcott shared his journey to becoming the President of ACCA. It is surprising to know that he did not start his career in accounting, but rather in retail management. Possessing ACCA qualification himself, he stressed on the flexibility of the qualification, saying “With this qualification you can work anywhere in the world, and you have the opportunity to work in any sector.”

He also gave words of encouragement to students who are sitting for examination papers; “Anything worth having is worth working for. This ACCA qualification will set you apart from the rest”.

After his speech ended to a thunderous applause, Mr Dean Westcott was called to present the High Achiever Award to Ms Lim Wan Teng, a student from the Advanced Diploma in Financial Accounting programme who came out top in her class and displayed good character, leadership and integrity.  Mr Dean Westcott took the opportunity to speak to some of the students.

TAR College, being recognized as Platinum Status of ACCA Approved Learning Partner (ALP) – Student Tuition programme, is always moving towards adding value to students’ education. The visit by the President will further strengthen the bond between the ACCA and the College, which has been providing the ACCA Internally Assessed programme since 1987. The College is the only institution outside the UK and Ireland to be accorded special privilege to run the programme.

Photo Captions:

Photo 1: Mr Dean Westcott, President of ACCA giving his speech on his first visit to TAR College Main Campus in Kuala Lumpur.

Photo 2: Simon Teoh, President of the Financial Accounting Society in TAR College (centre), presenting a token of appreciation to Mr Westcott (right). Looking on is Dr Tan Chik Heok, Principal of TAR College.

Photo 3: From left to right; Mr Dean Westcott, Ms Lim Wan Teng, who received the High Achiever Award for Academic Session 2011/12, and Dr Tan Chik Heok.

Photo 4: Students, College staff, staff from ACCA and senior College officials in a group photograph with the ACCA President