Elite students visit UTAR

Front row, second from left: Dr Chin, Dr Chong, Dato’ Wong, Prof Yang and Loh with the participants

A group of elite students from Taiwan visited Sungai Long Campus on 20 July 2018. They were accompanied by Persatuan Perniagaan Malaysia—Taiwan (MTTFA) Vice Chairman Dato’ Wong Yew Kai. The objective of the visit was to develop a global vision for the students and help them gain more international exposure.  

Ng delivering his welcome speech

Giving his first speech as the Chairperson of Student Representative Council (SRC) of Sungai Long Campus, Ng Jia Wei welcomed all the students from Taiwan and he hoped that they will have a pleasant experience in UTAR. Meanwhile, Department of Student Affairs of Sungai Long Campus Head Loh Nyuk Leung said, “UTAR is a very young university. It is only 16 years old. Nevertheless, our students actively participate in the university activities. Now, we have over 60 clubs and societies in both Kampar and Sungai Long Campus.” She hoped that UTAR students would also have the opportunity to visit the universities across Taiwan.

Representing Division of Community and International Networking Director Assoc Prof Dr Lai Soon Onn, Ong Yoon Furn said that there has been a large number of UTAR students studying in Taiwan on yearly basis. “Universities such as National Taiwan University, National Tsing Hua University, National Chiao Tung University, National Cheng Kung University and Feng Chia University are all our collaborative partners,” said Ong. She also noted that UTAR is delighted to welcome Taiwanese students who wish to continue their education in Malaysia.

Also present at the event were Institute of Chinese Studies (ICS) Dean Assoc Prof Dr Chong Siou Wei, Fu Jen Catholic University’s Master’s Program in Social Enterprise Prof Chang-Lin Yang, UTAR staff and students.

Dr Chin explaining the history of Malaysian Chinese

The event also featured a talk titled “The Immigration of Chinese and the building of Malaysia”. It was given by ICS of Sungai Long Campus’ Contemporary China Studies Unit Head Dr Chin Chong Foh. In his talk, Dr Chin provided a brief history and the origin of Chinese migration to Malaysia. He also explained the development status of the Malaysian Chinese.

“The decreasing of Chinese population ratio is not only because of low birth rates, but also due to other ethnic groups which were registering higher birth rates and rising faster in its population,” explained Dr Chin on the falling trend in the percentage of Chinese against the total population.  

“Teh tarik” demonstration

One of the students trying to make “teh tarik”

In order to share the culture of Malaysia while engaging the students in a fun way, the students were taught some common Malay words and phrases that can be used in a simple conversation, for example “Apa Khabar” and “Terima Kasih”. They were also given a chance to make “teh tarik”, a beverage commonly found in Malaysia.

National Cheng Kung University student Lin Ming Chien and National Tsing Hua University student Chang Yu-Chi said that they were truly impressed with the tasty dishes in Malaysia. When asked about UTAR, they said that the University’s buildings were more westernised compared to their university.

The visit was organised by MTTFA, with its co-organisers Overseas Community Affairs Council and Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Malaysia. There were a total of 20 students from different universities in Taiwan participated in this event, including National Taiwan Normal University (国立台湾师范大学), Fu Jen Catholic University (辅仁大学), National Cheng Kung University (国立成功大学), National Tsing Hua University (国立清华大学), Ming Chuan University (铭传大学), National Chengchi University (国立政治大学), National Chung Hsing University (国立中兴大学), Feng Chia University (逢甲大学), and National Chiao Tung University (国立交通大学).

Group representative Chang Han Ni (left) presenting a token of appreciation to Prof Chong (right), while Dato’ Wong looks on