Amid having to go through some challenges, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) is striding confidently into 2014 with many successes recorded by its community over the years. As 2013 came to a close, for example, a total of 8 more USM academics and scientists had been selected as Top Research Scientist Malaysia besides two lecturers receiving the Academy of Sciences Malaysia Fellows award.

 

USM has a long list of successes throughout 2013, particularly from the Schools.

Among them are:

• The School of Material and Mineral Resources Engineering has successfully published 387 works in refereed journals and proceedings with a 259.8 cumulative impact factor, 12 chapters in books, 51 journal papers in non-indexed citations and 90 works in other publications, won 13 academic awards from Malaysia and abroad including from MOSTI, International Polymer Technology Conference and Exhibition, The Academy of Sciences Malaysia, AUN/SEED-Net, JICA, ASEAN FOUNDATION and USM itself. USM clinched 10 awards for innovation through Green Conductive Tile, WEC - Breaker Novel Electro-Aquatic Circuit Breaker From E-Waste, R-Rubfoam - A novel global solution for oil spills, Utilisation of the Rejected Glove as an Eco-binder for Producing Precision Metal Components, 1 plus 1 - from Rubber Wastes into Novel Products, OILZOB-A novel oil absorbent, International Conference and Exposition on Invention of Institution of Higher Learning, PECIPTA 2013, TCP.COM - ITEX Gold Medal and Nanocoat: Remedy for VOCs, Bacteria and Fungi Growing World. Recognition also has been gained through the Best Paper Award, ITEX 2013 - 24th International Invention, Innovation & Technology Exhibition 2013; International Trade Fair, Ideas - Inventions -New Products, Nuremberg, Germany; International Innovation, Design and Articulation (i-iDEA 2013), and others.

• The School of Chemical Engineering achieved a range of successes among which are the recognition of the Academy of Sciences Malaysia with the selection of the School of Chemical Engineering lecturers Professor Dr. Abdul Latif Ahmad as a Fellow enabling him to use the prestigious designation of FASc. Prof. Abdul Latif Ahmad received the The World Inventor Award in Seoul, Korea; Dr. Lim Jit Kang won the Takeda Young Entrepreneurship Award 2013; and the students won a variety of categories including the Overall Champion in the National Chemical Engineering Symposium 2013 (NACES 2013). A team of young researchers, Meor Muhammad Hafiz Shah Buddin, 23, and Muhammad Razif Abdul Razak, 23, won two awards: the Gold Medal and the Diamond Medal in the British Invention Show 2013 (BIS 2013) in London.

• The Health Campus made efforts to strengthen the partnership between the USM through USM Hospital Department of Psychiatry in the field of Drug Addiction Treatment: Methadone Clinic that was pioneered in 2007 with Yale University, USA. The cooperation between USM and Yale succeeded in forming a group of researchers in USM to be trained. Besides, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), USA offered RO1 research grants worth about US$1 million. A Memorandum of Understanding will be signed for the purpose of research and the sharing of expertise.

• Also from the Health Campus, its Centre for Neuroscience Services & Research (P3Neuro) was one of the 16 centres awarded under the 'WFNS Post Graduate Training Centre' by the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies (WFNS) for having successfully organised the 'Neuroinformatic Course 2013' held in collaboration with several universities and the International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility (INCF) through the Neuroinformatic Malaysia Programme.

• The Health Sciences was awarded a Tier 5 rating for Health Science discipline in the Discipline-Based Rating System (D-SETARA), while its lecturer received a gold medal in the 24th International Invention, Innovation and Technology Exhibition (ITEX2013) for BAL EX-ZURAIDA-SHAH Rotatory Chair, a silver medal in the Malaysia Technology Expo 2013 (MTE) 2013 for product Functional Food Ingredient from Oyster Mushroom, silver in the Malaysia Bio Exhibition 2013 for product NutritiveMush Flour, Best Technical Innovation Category, Best Innovation Overall Winner in PECIPTA 2013 and Dr. Geshina Ayu Mat Saat won the ‘Education and Public Service Category’ and the grand prize 'Most Inspiring Woman' from the Malaysian Women’s Weekly ‘Great Women of Our Times 2013’.

• USM Advanced Medical and Dental Institute (AMDI) through the Infectomic Cluster has successfully developed a kit for detecting the presence of porcine traces in meat or processed foods, and it is believed to be of great benefit to the country's halal industry. This innovation product, DNA Porcine Detection Kit, won the gold medal at the 24th International Invention, Innovation and Technology Exhibition (ITEX 2013). A student at AMDI was selected as the sole recipient from USM of a scholarship by His Majesty Yang Dipertuan Agong. AMDI is recognised as a Centre of Bioequivalence Research by the National Pharmaceutical Control Bureau (BPFK), Ministry of Health Malaysia (MOH) to conduct studies involving drugs; AMDI has been listed on the website of BPFK (www.bpfk.gov.my). AMDI also produced Malaysia's first oncologist specialist, Dr. Gokula Kumar who obtained a specialist qualification (Fellowship) from the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists (RANZCR) after undergoing intensive training for five years in the field of Oncology at the National University of Singapore and the William Buckland Radiotherapy Centre, Melbourne.

• The School of Housing, Building and Planning achieved much success in the designing of interior spaces of the lobby, hotel‘s family room and the cafe for the D’ Feringghi Hotel & Restaurant in Batu Feringghi, Penang, by students in the Raja Zarith Sofia Design Competition, Diploma Light for Commission; “Student, Young Designers and Architects Competition Grants” Green Award 2013; the success in the OIC 2013 Langkawi CRC Velodrum Design Competition organised by MSSA and CIDB and the success of HBP (Architecture) undergraduate students who won the Parliament Building and Its Landscaping Sketching Competition besides the success of lecturers in the Best General Books Industry Awards (Architecture Category) through their book Architecture and Heritage Building in George Town, Penang; a RM 2.5 million Prototype Biogas Plant Award from Enerbon Sdn Bhd, a wholly-owned German company; and the success of lecturers who received the Anugerah Tokoh Ikon Belia Bumiputera (Profesional dan Akademik).

• The School of Computer Sciences held its Computer Science Intern and Recruitment Fair 2013 (CSIRF’13) involving 250 students, Tangkai Cermin community project involving 40 students and 25 staff with the Orang Asli of Tangkai Cermin, Perak.

                                                                                                                       

• A programme offering Master of Communication (Integrated Marketing Communications or IMC) by School of Communication is another success for USM branding network outside Penang. The infrastructure at Wisma Sejarah that offers IMC will be expanded to create a conducive learning environment, including the sourcing of more reference materials, internet and a place for discussion to attract students, including international ones, with a “USM Post-graduate satellite” office in Kuala Lumpur.

• The School of Social Sciences is involved in organising Education for the Rohingya Children Refugees run by the Research and Education for Peace (REPUSM)and USM Peace Club (Kelab Perdamaian USM - KeDAMAI USM) in helping to provide free education to refugee children every Saturday and Sunday involving 38 students. The School also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with St. Cloud University of Minnesota for academic cooperation.

• The Graduate School of Business (GSB) successfully achieved recognition as the "Excellent Business School" by Eduniversal Ranking, obtaining a revenue through research grants totalling approximately RM2.4 million, run Off-shore MBA programme for MARA; hosting MBA students (Executive) LUMS programme Global Exposure and students of the BINUS Research Methodology programme and initiated the CEO-Talk Programme with the School of Management.

• The National Poison Centre successfully completed the Tobacco-Free USM Project implemented since 2012, resulting in a Tobacco-Free Policy, turning USM into the first public institution of higher education to implement a comprehensive tobacco-free policy. It was implemented through a grant from the Ministry of Health Malaysia MySIHAT and various volunteer activities comprising ongoing campaigns.

                                       

• The Centre for Global Sustainability Studies (CGSS) successfully established the University Sustainability Council (MAKU) in USM resulting in USM Sustainability Policy 2013, producing Sustainability Assessment Methodology (SAM), establishing South East Asia Sustainability Network (SEASN), organising the International Sustainability Conference (ISCO) 2013 and the Disaster Risk Management Training for Sustainable Development (DRM-SD), offering Masters & PhD programmes (Sustainability) in Research Mode and Masters in Sustainable Development Practices (MSDP) Programme besides being involved with the Open Working Group, New York, USA that is important in preparing and developing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as agreed at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) in Rio de Janeiro in June 2012.

• The Centre for Islamic Development Management Studies (ISDEV) is trying to obtain approval to upgrade its virtual research centre and is presently working on the construction of the Wakaf-based ISDEV Complex which has been approved by the University and the Islamic Affairs Council of Penang, actively implementing the Program Pemerkasaan Pembangunan Akar-Umbi: Kes Komuniti Ban Nua, Thailand in collaboration with BJIM, Kolej Universiti Perguruan Ugama Seri Begawan (KUPU SB) Brunei Darussalam and TV Al-Hijrah and the production of 12 book titles by ISDEV personnel published by Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka as the first collaborative effort between ISDEV and DBP.   

• The University Quality Centre managed to ensure that all academic programmes offered by USM complies with the Malaysian Qualifications Framework (MQF) and to ensure that all programmes (undergraduate and postgraduate) that have complied with the MQF will go through the full accreditation process for listing on the Malaysian Qualifications Register (MQR) once the first cohort graduates allowing the programme to be recognised by the Department of Public Service/professional bodies. B.Comp.Sc. and B.Mgt. programme have undergone the full accreditation process whereby the accreditation audit process for the old postgraduate programme (course work mode, mixed mode and research mode) has started so that all the old programmes can also be listed in the MQR. Till now all graduate programmes at the Engineering Campus have gone through the process of accreditation audit.

• The Centre for Advanced Analytical Toxicology Services (CAATS) which has been accorded the full NATA ISO 17025 accredition is showing encouraging performance in terms of generating revenue of more than RM1.58 million, to collaborate internationally through Knowledge Transfer Programme including with the Sultan Qaboos University, Institute of Food Science and Technology, and the hosting of the 9th ISNS Asia Pacific regional meeting.

• The Legal Office was able to formulate and published the Kaedah Tata Tertib (Code of Conduct), enhancing and re-enacting the one of 1999 with the most recent dated August 2013. It was first enacted in 1975 and named Kaedah-kaedah Universiti Sains Malaysia (Tatatertib Pelajar-Pelajar) 1975 (P.U. (A) 426/75). It also issued a set of guidelines and a format template for the University MoU, MoA and NDA to expedite the process of establishing an agreement that involves the University and produced a Certified Integrity Officer who have undergone intensive training at the MACC Academy to help the University achieve its objective of combating corruption.

                                

Meanwhile, besides the above successes, USM also explores new opportunities through collaboration with leading universities around the world, including through USM International Office, which receives visitors and institutions for cooperation from countries such as Turkey, Germany, Denmark, Netherlands, Switzerland, the United States, South Africa, Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Japan, India, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines, Australia, Pakistan and some other countries.

USM also produced many staff and students among its community who are recognised in various fields through various efforts, including:

• Two young academics Dr. Nik Haslinda Nik Hussain from the School of Humanities and Dr. Ng Eng Poh from the School of Chemical Sciences brought glory to USM by gaining recognition in the National Academic Awards 2011-2012 ceremony which was presented by Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister, Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Haji Mohd. Yassin. Dr. Nik Haslinda received the Book Publishing Award for the National Academic Awards 2011 as a result of writing on the results of her research, Pentadbiran Kolonial dan Isu Pemilikan Tanah Di Kelantan 1881 – 1941, which previously won the MAPIM Award 2011 for the category of Best Book of Humanities and Social Sciences and is also listed in the library of foreign countries, including the British Library. Dr. Ng Eng Poh receives a Journal Publication Award (Science) for National Academic Awards 2012 research findings on the microscopic crystalline zeolite and its application in catalysis, purification and bio-cell toxicology study entitled “Capturing Ultrasmall EMT Zeolite from Tenplate-Free Systems" that was published in the Science Journal. Dr. Ng has produced 22 publications in high impact journals, mostly with the impact factor greater than 3.0 with the presentation of 19 papers in national and international conferences.

                          

• Professor Dr. Abdul Latif Ahmad of School of Chemical Engineering and Professor Dr. Darah Ibrahim from the School of Biological Sciences were bathed in glory at The World Inventor Festival (WIAF) when they won at the World Research Award 2013 held in Seoul, Korea recently.

                                                                                               

• USM researchers excelled by clinching 13 Gold and 2 Silver out of 15 entries at the 24^th International Invention, Innovation and Technology Exhibition (ITEX 2013) and winning three gold medals and a best design award at the Malaysia Technology Expo Exhibition (MTE 2013) that was held in Kuala Lumpur.

• USM researchers did the University and country proud when they won 3 Gold, 1 Silver and 3 Bronze medals for their research products in a competiton held in Nuremberg, Germany in early November.

                                                                                                          

• Professor Dr. Fauziah Ahmad of the School of Civil Engineering was announced as the overall winner of the European Women Inventors & Innovators Network Exhibition, Conference & Awards (EUWIIN) 2013 international design competition that was held in Stockholm, Sweden.

• Dean of the School of Materials and Mineral Resources, Professor Dr. Hanafi Ismail, and a lecturer of the School of Biological Sciences, Professor Dr. Chan Lai Keng, won two gold medals at the 6th International Invention Fair in the Middle East (IIFME 2013) in Kuwait.

• USM researchers also won three gold medals and two special awards in the research product category of institutions of higher learning and young researchers in conjunction with the International Conference and Exposition on Invention of Institutions for Higher Learning 2013 (PECIPTA 2013).

• USM won one gold, three silver and five bronze medals in the i-Inova where140 innovative products were submitted by 16 higher education institutions at the local and international level, including seven from Indonesia, Brunei, Gaza, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Sudan, and Pakistan.

• Malaysian Node of the Human Variome Project (MyHVP) was entrusted by HVP Global which is based in Melbourne, Australia, to coordinate and lead in the establishment of the SEA HVP after MyHVP managed to create a database that contains genetic information of the Malaysian population since October 2010. Human Variome Project is a global initiative that serves as a mechanism to collect and organise genomic data, variations in clinical disease and individuals of all ethnic groups in the country and shared worldwide.

• Expertise of academics and researchers from the Centre for Global Archaeological Research (CGAR) in scientific based archaeology is recognised worldwide as a consultant and is involved in training and human capital production in archaeology. It is recognised in Malaysia as well as in other parts of the world such as Bosnia, Sulawesi, Indonesia, and Pakistan. Professor Dr. Mokhtar Saidin and his research team also undertook research work in Kashmir Gandhara Smast Peshawar, Pakistan at a height of around 1,200 – 2,000 m above sea level and they discovered new archaeological evidence of various religious historiography. This was part of the collaboration agreement as set forth in the Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) signed with the University of Peshawar (UoP) at USM in April 2013.

• Two USM research products which are Wheelsaver and Novel Drug-Drug and Drug-Herb interactions Prediction Platform Bioinnovation secured special awards in the BioMalaysia and Bioeconomy Asia Pacific 2013 Conference & Exhibition.

• The School of Education (PPIP) also contributed expertise to the Maldives through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Education Republic of Maldives, represented by its minister, Dr. Asim Ahmed.

• To enhance the skills of grammar, a group of researchers from the School of Educational Studies produced a 'Grammar Assessment System' - GrAmS as a system of evaluating the use of a systematic grammar that can determine the level of competence of a student. It was awarded a special prize by the Korea Invention Promotion Association (KIPA) and won a gold at the International Invention, Innovation and Technology Exhibition (ITEX 2013).

• Three green technology projects were launched through the Malaysia Ministry of Education Knowledge Transfer Programme together with the Melaka state government and Performance Management and Delivery Unit (PEMANDU) of the Prime Minister Department in Melaka.

                                           

• The more significant point is that USM has been selected by the government to pioneer the process of rating impact and output of community engagement programmes that have been implemented and are asked to carry out a process to measure the impact and their effect on the development of society, especially in the form of community service activities, industrial relations, volunteerism, etc. Audits carried out subsequently recognised the efforts made by USM.

• USM set up a centre in collaboration with RIKEN Institute of Japan to strengthen the development of high impact transdiciplinary research and become a multidisciplinary collaboration centre to strengthen research collaboration with RIKEN through the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) last year.

• The establishment of SEASN: For the first time representatives of universities in ASEAN countries came together and discussed the way forward to plan for sustainability of the future. The group called South East Asia Sustainability Network (SEASN) served as a platform for planning of sustainability which was attended by 27 representatives of various institutions of higher education and non-university, including those from Thailand and India.

• University Sustainability Council: To ensure that there is a clear direction in all actions related to sustainability efforts in the university that can provide a huge impact on the nation and the world, USM established the University Sustainability Council to develop clear policies on academic and course offerings, research and sustainable activities through the involvement of as many participants as possible.

• In publications, USM achieved success as a recipient for three main categories of the National Book Award (ABN) 2013 in Kuala Lumpur, including the Anugerah Perdana Penerbit Universiti Awam. Under the Book Industry Award, the Best General Book category were won bybook titles Architechture and Heritage Building in George Town Penang by Sanusi Ahmad Hasan and Shaiful Rizal Che Yahaya (architecture category), and Cam-Melayu Abad Ke-19: Pemberontakan dan Diasporaby Mohamad Zain Musa under the category of old manuscripts study.

• USM Press was honoured when its literature publication Puitika Wanita received the Hadiah Sastera Perdana Malaysia (HSPM) award recently. The award was presented by Malaysia Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Dato’ Muhyiddin Yassin at the Premier Literary Award Presentation Ceremony 2013 in Kuala Lumpur. Two other works of USM also received the award in the ceremony hosted by Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP), one of which was a drama “Ini Rumah Kita” by Aina Nabila, a second year student, Literature Section, The School of Humanities. Also listed is the drama “Antara Bunyi Gendang Ibu dengan Tari Nihon” by Ahmad Hashim (a Dewan Budaya staff). Another book by a USM staff titled Kanser Payudara, published by DBP, also won the RTM-National Library Award and is now being reprinted on demand.

• A total of 15 titles on the medical field were published by Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) in collaboration with USM and were launched in conjunction with the Kuala Lumpur International Book Fair held at the Putra World Trade Centre, Kuala Lumpur.

• Two staff members from Universiti Sains Malaysia were awarded by the Malaysian Scholarly Publication Council (MAPIM). Rosziana Radli received the award for the Best Copy Editor Category (Appreciation Award) for the field of Humanities and Social Sciences two years in a row and took home cash prize and a MAPIM plaque with copies of the Architecture and Heritage Buildings in George Town Penang and Ilsup Ahn, editor of the Humanities Journal: The Asian Journal of Humanities Vol. 19.1 which won the Best Journal Article Category for the field of Humanities and Social Sciences.

• USM also received 42 sets of wheelchair together with other walking aids from the Rajanagarindra Institute of Child Development (RICD), Chiangmai, Thailand, for distribution to groups of people with disabilities (PWDs) who need wheelchairs and walking aids such as canes and shower chairs that are worth more than RM350,000, the result of an collaboration initiative between USM and RICD in terms of knowledge transfer and sharing of expertise through USM-RICD Free Wheelchair Contribution Programme following the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement in May 2012.

• Moreover, many other staff and lecturers also received recognition for their academic achievements, for example a lecturer from School of Distance Education, Dr. Chuah Lee Siang was selected to win L’Oreal Malaysia ‘For Women in Science’ Fellowship for 2013 and Dr. Issham Ismail received the Al-Khawarizmi Award (Award for Most Practical Product) and Open Category Gold Medal (Social Sciences) in the 4th Exposition on Islamic Innovation 2013 (i- Inova 2013); USM School of Housing, Building and Planning lecturer, Sr. Dr. Md Azree Othuman Mydin was awarded Bumiputera Youth Personality IKON Professional and Academic category by the Prime Minister Department while Manzoor Azwira Abd. Wahid, staff from the USM Alumni Liaison Office, was chosen as Penang Bumiputera IKON 2013 under the Sports Category, and a lecturer from the School of Mathematical Sciences, Prof Dr. Abdul Rahni Mt Piah topped the list of winners of the Malaysian Mathematical Sciences Society (PERSAMA) last year when he was declared as a PERSAMA 2013 Fellow.

• Meanwhile, students also achieved a wide range of successes such as the School of Housing, Building and Planning (HBP) student who won two prizes in the Open Ideas Competition (OIC) organised by the Malaysian Structural Steel Association and the Construction Industry Development Board Malaysia which aim to provide opportunities for students of architecture and engineering in Malaysia to collaborate in the design of buildings using steel as the structure and key finish. The event was held at the Langkawi Cycling and Recreational Centre (Langkawi CRC) in conjunction with Le Tour de Langkawi (LTdL) 2013.

• Lim Chee Wei, a School of Humanities student, did the country proud when he successfully contributed two gold medals for the national contingent in the team event at the Karate Tuai in the 27^th SEA Games at the Indoor Stadium Wunna Theik, Myanmar.

• Meanwhile Soh Sing Siang broke a 23-year record held by R. Subramaniam for the men's 800m at the 39th USM Annual Athletics Carnival (TOT) and was named the best male athlete two years in a row by winning two gold medals in the 1500m and 800m categories. 6 new records have been broken including 3 for veterans’ categories.

• USM students shone in the Novel Research & Innovation Competition (NRIC) 2013 by bringing home 6 gold, 3 silver and 1 bronze with the research by Ng Poh Sing, a final year student from the School of Computer Science, titled “The Eyes: Car Security System With Face Recognition” was identified as the Best NRIC Award and took home a RM5,000 cash prize, a trophy and a certificate.

• Students of Interior Design from the School of Housing, Building and Planning who represented USM at the prestigious Green Award Competition 2013 won first and second place on 12 October 2013.

                                

• The product design of two students from the School of the Art won the NST-Peugeot Design Competition 2012/2013. Ahmad Syafiq Aiman ​​Mohamed Raziff, 23, and Nor Azieiwani Mohd Ghani, 23, each won a full 5 days/4 nights package tour trip to Paris and the Research and Design Centre of Peugeot in Velizy, France, RM1,500 in cash and Peugeot merchandise.

• Two second year students of the Interior Design Programme, USM School of Housing, Building and Planning, won one gold medal each in the "Raja Zarith Sofiah Award" Design Competition which was held in Johor. It has four categories, namely, product design, fashion, crafts, and packaging. The students, Amy Fadzilla Ibrahim and Nur Fatin Amira Zakaria, won the packaging Design Category.

• Final year student of the School of Housing, Building and Planning, Grace Aleaxander was also announced as the winner in the PAQS-Iwata Foundation Essay Competition 2013. It was announced in a statement by the secretary of the Pacific Association of Quantity Surveyors (PAQS), John Granville.

• The USM Robotics Club team did the University proud again in the Malaysia International Robotic Competition (Miroc) 2013 when the robot they designed emerged as 1st Runner Up in the Rope Climbing category. It was the second time they had won since joining Miroc 3 years ago. They took home the cash prize of RM2,000 besides being praised by the judges at the competition for the remarkable performance of the robot in terms of ability and speed, beating all the other entries after successfully completed the climbing task within 53 seconds well inside the 3 minutes given.

• USM students and others were also active in volunteerism efforts, for instance, nearly 30 USM volunteers held a Volunteer Programme Across Asia through collaboration with the National University of Laos (NUoL) and the Malaysian Embassy in Laos. USM volunteers also assisted in the restoration work during the recent mud slide in Cameron Highlands and floods in Penang and Terengganu.

• USM also established a Volunteer Force and a MySihat ambassador: USM also launched MySihat Volunteer Force of approximately 300 students to ensure the success of MySihat’s primary agenda that is to promote a Tobacco-Free Campus, especially among the university community and as an agent to support health infrastructure that can help the community who should start with themselves. It also aimed at producing about 500 ambassadors comprising undergraduates for health promotion programmes in the community, equipping them with comprehensive training. Ultimately when they graduate they can be commissioned to carry out health promotion activities besides tobacco control programmes with the help of the Malaysian Health Promotion Board (MySihat), Ministry of Health Malaysia.

• USM also will introduce Apex Student Fellowship Programme to showcase the talents of students in the first degree to the international community through collaboration with government agencies and institutions as well as universities from abroad in order to expand the opportunities for graduates to serve a country wherever in the world and compete in the open market.

                                                                                                                    

• This year, USM received more than 25,000 applications for undergraduate studies, and exceeded expectations and projections for about half of the courses.

• The attempts to adopt the e-count in the selection process of the USM Student Representative Council (MPP) at the three campuses went smoothly and met the objectives set.

• Meanwhile, a multi-purpose USM indoor sports complex known as the Azman Hashim-USM Sports Arena, is expected to be completed by the end of 2014 with an area of ​​54,880 square feet accommodating facilities such as retail and office space, USM Human Development Office, multifunctional halls, executive gym, and courts for indoor games.

                                                                                                     

• As part of its 40th anniversary celebration, Toray Group (Malaysia) made a donation of RM4 million ringgit to Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) to build a new four-storey TORAY-USM Knowledge Transfer Centre at its main campus in Penang on 10 April. Expected to be completed by 2015, the centre is aimed at promoting, protecting and reviving the local culture, traditions, heritage, environments and other related issues that are more or less forgotten by today’s modern society. Besides serving as a Knowledge Repository, it will provide facilities for graduate research as well as integration and networking of local and international researchers.

• Four teams from USM Health Campus won top honours when they participated in the Innovative and Creative Circle (ICC) at the national level. They are EVO REHAB, LATERAL and GO BEYOND from Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia and PROTECH from the School of Medical Sciences. All three won three star gold award with the LATERAL Group emerging among the top 10 groups that will represent Malaysia in the ICC International Convention 2014. It was organised by the Malaysia Productivity Corporation and it is one of the most effective ways to encourage industries to improve their competitiveness, including among universities.

• In 2013, a new initiative, the USM-CEO Talk Series was launched, making USM relevant to all stakeholders to further strengthen its ties with the industry as well as share their experiences with students and other vendors/providers with the first lecture presented by Motorola Technologies Sdn Bhd CEO, T.T. Yew.

• USM Hospital launched USM Hospital tariff which uses a mix-case system through collaboration with UNU-IIGH since 2011 to facilitate the evaluation of the hospital management as well as the management of the operational and financial affairs by improving the quality and effectiveness of health care services provided in the hospital.

• Not missing out USM arts and theatre, they also scored successes, for example, excelling in various theatre festivals including the Malaysia Theatre Festival 2014 at Penang State level in 2013, as well as in Sumatra, Indonesia. USM captured three awards in conjunction with the MalaysianUniversitiesCultural Council(MAKUM) Arts Award and the MAKUM Secretariat Presentation Ceremony held in Kuching through a postgraduate student of the School of Communication, Lee Kean Wei, for the Best Script Award in the 1 Malaysia Art and Cultural Heritage Documentary Video Competition, Blue Ocean Strategy featuring a documentary the Heirs. USM Cultural Officer and Assistant Cultural Officer, Zulkifli Che Hussin and Mohammed Al Hafiz Md Sani received the Gendang Sari Award recognising the MAKUM officers who are most active and committed in participating in MAKUM activities and overall USM received the Saron Wangsa Seri Perdana Award in recognition of the University that is most active in participating and organising MAKUM activities.

• USM School of the Art also signed a partnership with Polymer Industrial Skills and Development Centre (PISDEC) to establish a Certification Course In Polymer Product Design 2013 for FELDA children through a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) signed to give a second chance to the children of the FELDA scheme who did not perform well in their Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) to acquire at least one skill for themselves.

• The School of the Art also continued its international collaboration by organising 2013 KSDT Malaysia International Design Exhibition with International Korean Society of Design Trends (KSDT) that aimed to showcase a total of 160 unique designs from artists of the ASEAN countries at the month-long exhibition on USM campus.

• The USM International Office efforts in implementing the exchange students from USM and to USM gained international recognition through the i-Awards 2012 (Internationalization Award under AIMS-ASEAN International Mobilisation of Students) provided by SEAMEO Rihed on 20 March 2013. This was to recognise the achievements of USM mobility of students in development, promotion and world-class internationalisation in higher education. Such efforts together with a variety of programmes for internationalisation in the context of promoting art and culture as well as education were implemented throughout 2013. These include the International Work Summer Work Programme and International Internship throughAIESTE (The International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience) membership, an organisation registered in Luxembourg which offers student exchange opportunities; organising the 'Internationalisation at Home' programmeand various other activities.

USM will continue to make strides to achieve the aspirations of the APEX Phase 2 in realising the efforts of Together for University’s Excellence (BUKU 2014) - Inclusivity, Sustainability and Excellence based on the motto We Lead and in the spirit of 1USM and We Love USM.

 

 

Teks: Mohamad Abdullah

Translation: Yong Check Yoon/Tan Ewe Hoe