His Excellency Charles Hay MVO, the British High Commissioner to Malaysia, hosted a reception at his Residence today to welcome home the 2021/22 cohort of scholars. Apart from congratulating the returning scholars, Hay also said:
The Chevening Awards was launched in 1983, and Malaysia was among the earliest countries to benefit from the scholarship programme. The world has changed a lot in the last 40 years, but the UK Government remains committed in supporting Malaysians to get a world-class education in the UK. The scholarship programme in Malaysia has grown from offering four awards in 1983, to 40 awards in 2021/22. The returning scholars now join the 1,800 strong Malaysian Chevening alumni network.
The Chevening award is the UK Government's global scholarship programme, funded and administered by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. This is complemented by generous sponsorships by Malaysian corporate partners including Yayasan Khazanah and the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation. British universities are also providing additional funding in support of the Chevening programme.
The returning batch of Malaysian Chevening scholars from the 2021/22 academic year have graduated from disciplines such as Environmental Technology, Gender and Development, International Studies and Diplomacy to Public Health. They attended prestigious institutions such as the University of Edinburgh, King's College London and University of Cambridge.
Sabahan scholar Mohd Irsyad Bin Hamilin who got a Master's in Public Policy and Management from Birkbeck, University of London said:
On top of professional growth and personal development, the opportunity to meet and network with people from different countries and backgrounds has been the best part of my Chevening journey. Chevening has gathered remarkable individuals from all over the world who you can be inspired and taught by. This has allowed me to broaden my perspective of the world and deepen my understanding of various cultures.
Scholar Fazira Kamilan from Selangor completed an Environment and Sustainable Development Master's at the University College London said:
While I did not have the privilege to travel to Glasgow, I experienced the anticipation and outcomes of COP26 which reverberated to London, spilling over into numerous forums and demonstrations. The rallying cry surrounding COP26, "No climate justice without gender justice", has especially influenced my advocacy for sustainability. It serves as my guiding principle that it is crucial to fully and effectively involve women and marginalised groups in climate change debates, research, and policy-making to overcome harmful assumptions and promote more equitable climate interventions.
Scholar See Juan Wen, who attended University of Kent to obtain a Master's in Social Psychology, said:
Chevening provided an incredible opportunity for me to connect with LGBTQ academics, researchers and activists in the UK. Their commitment in ensuring the inclusion and visibility of non-binary people was inspiring, especially during a period of rampant transphobia. The bravery that UK non-binary activists and researchers showed in speaking truth to power, their commitment in changing existing research practices to ensure the inclusion of non-binary people, is something I will carry in my work back here in Malaysia.
