Evelyn Rebekah Wee Chia May: Beyond Academics: A Valedictorian's Transformative Journey

Evelyn Rebekah Wee Chia May: Beyond Academics: A Valedictorian's Transformative Journey

With the broad career options, the Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Accounting and Finance programme offered, I was inclined to pursue this particular degree. Hence, I converted my CFAB scholarship and took up the Foundation in Arts programme instead. The modules, and course structure were overall quite appealing to me. 

From an academic perspective, the subjects and their syllabus were relevant to understanding the business, accounting, and finance world. What I appreciated most about this degree was that we were exposed to other areas such as management, leadership, entrepreneurship, and other crucial areas which enhanced our understanding and better prepared us for employment. Combined with practical experiences from a double internship, these have been beneficial. 

This degree made me realise that Malaysia is a country with so much potential. Many may venture to other places or countries for added experience, however, with the opportunities and educational knowledge that I have, I was all the more driven to pursue my career locally accompanied by my experiences in other grassroots involvements. 

One primary skill set is from working across different sets of coursework, especially group-related ones. From just mere “groups”, my peers and I were able to establish “teams” in working towards a common goal. We worked well together and got better over time. Together, we enhanced our overall skills in managing, teamwork, raising feedback to one another, and finding means to improve our overall efficiency. 

From my college days till university, I have always appreciated the fact that Sunway Business School has top-quality academic lecturers who strive to provide the best to students under their care. Predominantly during the COVID-19 pandemic, lecturers have been present and helpful in caring for our academic and physical well-being. Although I would have wished for more physical means of learning during my degree, I am still appreciative of the different learning environments to which I was exposed, including virtual, hybrid, and physical ones, each one reaping different learning outcomes. 

While coping with my academics, I was also a Chancellor Scholarship recipient which also required my full attention to maintain its requirements. As a degree student and even during my college days, I have worked part-time for the university’s marketing department and worked on more than 40 events. I also had the opportunity to hold Director, Chairperson, and Presidential roles in both the Sunway-Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations and Sunway Student Ambassadors over the course of 4 years consecutively. Moreover, a core experience is being a part of the Sunway Cultural Exchange Ambassadorship which enabled me to act as an organising host for students from Lancaster University and Falmouth University for the 4-week inbound programme. Additionally, I was able to represent Sunway University as a scholarship recipient to the Summer Schools at Lancaster University, enhancing my knowledge of cross-cultural diversity and international relations.

One core memory would be pursuing extracurricular activities and leading teams. During my time as President both at Sunway-Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations and Sunway Student Ambassadors, I have had the opportunity to lead these distinguished organisations and empower those under my care to be the best version of themselves. During COVID and beyond, we navigated through challenging times and remained resilient in contributing back to society and the Sunway community. I am extremely grateful for the people I have worked with. 
 

Edited by
Arumugam Muthusamy
Sunway Business School 
Email: [email protected]