PENANG, 26 April 2014 - Graduands were urged to make use of the knowledge acquired to do good to the community, nation and the world.

Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) Chancellor, the Raja of Perlis H.R.H. Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Ibni Al-Marhum Tuanku Syed Putra Jamalullail said this to the graduands in the First Session of USM 49^th Convocation Ceremony this morning. He reminded them that knowledge is used to bring goodness to others, to do good and to benefit other people.

"Graduands should always strive to increase goodness, including to oneself, make changes to the quality of life of the community and to willingly share knowledge for the benefit of all because the knowledge acquired allows us to give back to the community and the nation wherever we are," he said.

He added that regardless wherever we are and whatever we do, our contribution will bear fruits as a result of the knowledge that we harvested.

He also reminded the graduands to always hold firmly to the practice of their religion, the values ​​and ethics set out, honouring and obeying their parents and lovingly upholding the family values.

He expressed his grief over the loss of Malaysia Airlines MH370 and also expressed gratitude for the commitment and efforts of all parties involved, including the local and international cooperation in searching for the missing plane.

"I hope that the tragedy has taught us about the meaning of loss, unity, and patience. With knowledge, we learn about the challenges we face in life, and how to remain strong and persevere in adversity," he said again.

The Chancellor presented the degrees to 373 graduands at the Ceremony. Also present were the Raja Perempuan of Perlis H.R.H. Tuanku Tengku Fauziah binti Al-Marhum Tengku Abdul Rashid, USM Pro-Chancellor Tan Sri Datuk Mustafa Mansur, the Chairman of USM Board of Governors Tan Sri Datuk Dr. Zulkefli A. Hassan and Vice-Chancellor Professor Dato' Dr. Omar Osman, the members of the Board of Governors and the University Senate.

USM DESIRES TO PRODUCE GRADUANDS THAT ARE ABLE TO WORK ABROAD

Meanwhile, in the same ceremony, USM Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dato' Dr. Omar Osman said that USM desires to produce local graduands that are able to work with multinational companies and organisations abroad.

"Currently about 20% of USM graduands are working abroad and we intend to increase this figure to 40% within the next five years through various programmes including "APEX Scholar" programmeto help them familiarise with the international work culture and also to understand the global culture that transcends religion, language and so forth," said Omar.

He added, most importantly, USM must be able to produce graduands that have a global mind set, who are visionaries and capable of competing on the world stage.

“Equally important is the university’s ability to attract more international students to ensure cultural integration and global thinking development, and that various programmes can be undertaken to improve global values among our students.

"In line with its desire and future direction, USM hopes to see more of its students and graduates establishing a career in any part of the world, exploring every opportunity and ready to emerge from the existing cocoon because they can no longer stay status quo forever and expect greater economic opportunities to come easy; the time has come for our youth to go out to the vast open world and face it. Let them understand the universal values, manners, constantly reminding them to respect foreign cultures and always try to integrate themselves with the existing needs. In a way, we need to instill confidence and empower the graduates, allowing them to explore on their own in a realistic and bold manner," added Omar.

USM Vice-Chancellor also stressed that this was also USM contribution in helping the country to achieve a meaningful future, including educating graduates to embrace the values of cooperation and unity among the people of various races, religions and cultures.

"We acknowledge and realise the great challenges faced in developing a multi-racial country like Malaysia where unity and identity are the hallmark that we are very proud of all the time. We celebrate diversity in a strong and intact unity, and act according to the values ​​of knowledge. Just as the Malay proverb “Be like the padi, the fuller it is, the lower it bows” which means the more knowledgeable we are, the more humble we should become. We want to produce graduates who are capable of thinking and are far-sighted, creative and innovative, and make use of wisdom in making judgments and decisions," he said.

Overall 135,739 graduates have been produced by USM since its inception 45 years ago, of which 115,270 are undergraduates and 20,469 are postgraduates.

"We will be holding the 50th Convocation Ceremony in November 2014 where there will be a much larger number of students graduating. Our alumni are now all over the world in various fields ranging from political and national leaders to leaders of organisations, universities and the corporations," said Omar.

Translation: Tan Ewe Hoe/Text: Mohamad Abdullah/Photo: Mohd Fairus Md. Isa & Yong Check Yoon