Six International Medical University (IMU) Foundation in Science (FiS) students received a financial boost when they were awarded the University’s Scholarships for their undergraduate studies. The Scholarships in the form of full or partial tuition fee waivers are for students demonstrating outstanding academic excellence, extra curriculum participation and leadership qualities. Shamir Das and Chan Jie Yong both received 100% tuition fee waiver for their undergraduate studies in psychology and pharmaceutical chemistry programmes respectively while Lim Jia Min received a 50% waiver in tuition fees. Shamir who commenced the Bachelor of Science (Hon) Psychology said, “When I received the confirmation email, I felt thrilled and touched. At first I couldn’t believe it as I know the competition for the scholarship was stiff. I needed the scholarship to lessen the financial burden of my parents who are earning modest incomes and also have to support another sibling of mine. Also, I was looking forward to a scholarship as I had planned to use it to spur me to work even harder in my studies and fulfill my obligations towards the University.”
“The depth of the content in the subjects offered in the Foundation in Science has broadened my knowledge and provided a strong foundation for my degree. The high quality of teaching is another important factor. The lecturers would go out of their way to assist students in any way and provide further explanations on what we learned.”
“Additional subjects such as English for Academic Purposes helped me to improve my language proficiency. I found the variety of techniques used like debates, reports and analysis of issues strengthened my communication skills and also ability to work under pressure. Furthermore, the inclusion of cross-boundary project helped me in terms of boosting my leadership and collaborative skills. Lastly, the strong ties of friendship formed with coursemates during FIS truly provided a strong social network for me that I will cherish through my degree programme.” 
With the same intention of easing the family’s financial burden, Chan Jie Yong applied for the scholarship and is now a recipient of the IMU Scholarship. Jie Yong who is studying the BSc (Hon) Pharmaceutical Chemistry said, “The success of this scholarship application makes me feel more confident and I feel that my ability and all my hard work have been acknowledged. I believe that being a FIS student in IMU gives us greater advantage as we are more familiar with the environment, and the teaching methods. During FIS, the lecturers do not spoon-feed us or provide all the questions needed for revision. They taught us not to rely on them and find extra information for ourselves if needed. This has helped us to adapt better once we progress to our degree programme. Besides that, we also know a lot of friends from FIS and are able to socialise better.” Another recipient of the Scholarship is Lim Jia Min, who is currently pursuing a Dietetics with Nutrition degree. Jia Min felt very nervous when attending the interview. “What surprised me was I can speak fluently when I answered the interviewers’ questions. They were very friendly to me and made the conversation a relaxing one to engage in, pretty much the same like how I converse with my friends. The FIS programme is a very useful programme because I have gained new and extensive knowledge. The lecturers are very professional and they have their own style in teaching so that the students can be comprehend and understand more about the module after attending the lecture. This indirectly helped me in gaining this scholarship because without their help, I definitely couldn’t get good results and stand a chance to apply for this scholarship.”
“Besides that, FIS programme also helped me in coping with my degree, especially in the first semester right now. Most of the modules I learnt right now are indirectly related to FIS module. It helped me in being able to cope better with the subjects in degree programme.”
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