Community scholars who graduated : (Left to right) Jagadesan, Azerena, Reenuka, Theresa & Khalid.

OVER 1,000 students at Sunway University College are enjoying the best of both worlds right here in Malaysia. They are pursuing joint degree studies in the Lancaster University affiliated undergraduate programmes in Accounting & Finance, Business and Management, IT, Psychology, Hospitality Management and Tourism. Their course curriculum is Malaysian – developed by Sunway academics while adhering to stringent standards set by Lancaster University. All graduates who complete the degree programme, receive two scrolls, one each from the two universities.

At the recent convocation for Sunway University College, 86 graduates in Business, IT and Psychology received their scrolls from the chancellor of Sunway University College and the vice-chancellor of Lancaster University respectively.

Out of the 86 were 33 First Class degree recipients, which was an impressive result. Professor Paul Wellings, the vice-chancellor of Lancaster University, said: "These results are a real tribute to the quality of the students and the hard work they have put in, and give the students a real advantage in realising their future ambitions."

Aimi Syazana Anwarul-Halim, a First Class B.Sc (Hons) Business Management, said: "The qualified and experienced lecturers were most helpful. When I did not understand something, they patiently explained to me. When I had trouble, they gave me advice. When I was about to give up, they put me back on my feet and supported me. I would not have achieved my result if it was not for them. I love my lecturers!"

Sunway University College was placed under the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation recently and all profits are channelled back to the Foundation. The Foundation was established with the purpose of receiving and administering funds for educational, medical and charitable purposes, including scholarships based on merit and need, regardless of race, religion or background.

One of the commendable scholarships funded by the Foundation is the Tun Omar Ong Yoke Lin Community Scholarship for the financially disadvantaged. The recent convocation saw a high achiever among the six community scholars. Jagadesan Chandra Mohan attained a First Class B.Sc (Hons) Information Technology. Jaga lost his father when he was 11 years old and his mother is a cancer patient. He is the first to obtain a degree in his family. This success is symbolic of what the Foundation endeavours, that is to transform individuals through education. Thousands of students have benefited from scholarships and financial aid provided by the Sunway Education Trust Fund, the pre-cursor of the Foundation, since 1997. A total of about RM50 million has been disbursed to deserving students as at 2009.

Sunway also has a "3+0" Bachelor of Business twinning programme with Victoria University (VU), Australia since 1994, and the "2+2" American Degree Transfer Programme from its 22-year partnership with Western Michigan University (WMU), allowing students to transfer to other US universities should they decide not to enjoy the twinning benefits with WMU.

There are also Diplomas in Graphic & Multimedia Design, Interior Design, Fine Art, Performing Arts, Nursing, Hospitality and Tourism Management, Conventions and Events Management, Business Administration, Computer Studies, Information Engineering and Information Technology.

Internationally recognised pre-university courses such as the Cambridge GCE A-Levels, Australian Matriculation (AUSMAT), Canadian International Matriculation Programme (CIMP) and the Monash University Foundation Year (MUFY) are available for those who wish to gain a good grounding for entry into universities. A new Foundation in Arts developed by Sunway University College is an academic transition into undergraduate studies offered in collaboration with Lancaster University at Sunway.

Visit the Sunway campus that will be open everyday including weekends and public holidays until Jan 10. During the Open Days on Dec 19 and 20, there will be career talks on medicine, hospitality, mass communication, psychology, IT, accounting, social media and much more.