By Abd Razak Hussin
Pix Izwan Azman

BANGI, 14 Aug 2012 – Fifteen students from the PERMATApintar Centre of The National University of Malaysia (UKM) have been accepted to continue their studies in a number of known American universities in the subjects of their choice that are needed by the country.

All the 17 year olds will do their first degree programme this year with some having left from Aug 9 with the last batch leaving on Sept 7.

They are:
Crystal Iskandar and Elena Zafrul who will take up Mathematics at the University of Iowa,

Lee Yan Joe doing Biology at Brown University,

Nor Qhadijah Rohayati, Nur Elena Mat Nayan, Chan Jia Huei, Timothy Ho Zhen Wei and G. Ashwin A. Ganesh studying Biology and Physics at Rutgers University New Brunswick,

Amirul Fitri Zainol Abidin at John Hopkins University doing Mathematics,

Kevinraj Naggan Sukumar studying Physics and Khoo Jia Hui in Biology at the University of Wisconsin,

Vishal Kalyani Mukudan, Kong Yek Ching and Kuhan Muniam in Biologi at the University of California Los Angeles, and

Nur Syazana Natasha Hisham taking up Chemistry at the University of California Davis.

 
All of them have been awarded the Higher Education Ministry MyBrainSc Programme scholarships.

They secured their places after obtaining excellent results in the TOEFL examination and the Scolastic Assessment Test 1 (SAT 1).

A number of those still in the country paid a courtesy call on the UKM Vice Chancellor, Prof Tan Sri Dr Sharifah Hapsah Syed Hasan Shahabudin at her office here today.

Prof Sharifah Hapsah congratulated them on their achievements saying that the country and Malaysians have high hopes on their success and advised them to always carry the good name of the nation.