“It’s never too late to learn” – a shining example would be these four elderly Malaysians who recently graduated with university level qualifications from the Wawasan Open University.
Madam Kamilia Tan Abdullah. Source: China Press
Setting a record of her own is 76-year-old Madam Kamilia Tan Abdullah, the oldest graduate from the Commonwealth Executive MBA programme. The Master of Education (MEd) programme witnessed two elderly female graduates take centre stage, majoring in Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) – Madam Mangayarkarasy Velayutham, 71 and Madam Wong Seow Chee, 72, while 73-year-old Mr Koh Choi Hing received his Bachelor of Business (Hons) in Sales and Marketing.
According to the Wawasan Open University website, Madam Wong is still going strong and currently enrolled under the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) programme. We admire your quest for knowledge, Madam!
As reported in China Press and World of Buzz, Madam Wong thoroughly enjoyed the experience of studying with her younger classmates as she had the opportunity to listen to diverse opinions – “Although our age gap is big, they (young classmates) are very friendly and their thoughts are one-of-a-kind. I’m always surprised by their unique ideas.”
Madam Mangayarkarasy on stage to receive her scroll. Source: Facebook\Malarvilli Selvarajoo
Madam Mangayarkarasy on the other hand decided to further her studies after retirement as she felt bored staying at home. She points out the importance of having a positive outlook in life and not giving in to fear of facing challenges. As she puts it quite succinctly -“Life will give you all kinds of difficulties, and all I need to do is to face the troubles to turn the impossible into possible.” Becoming a teacher is a dream come true for Mangayarkarasy as she stands for “equality in education” – “Everyone is equal, we all deserve the same opportunities to study,” she said firmly. Mangayarkarasy, a Johorian, aspires to pursue a doctorate in psychology related to education.
We admire these inspiring individuals for their passion to pursue knowledge and congratulate them on their great achievement!
*Featured image sourced from China Press
