Thursday, June 26, 2008

In the Pursuit of Excellence

Congratulations to Amirah Hajirah for being accepted by the University of Oxford to pursue her postgraduate studies. May her achievements inspire everybody. Learning is in itself interesting. It will be even more exhilarating when the process involves an environment that encourages excellence, exchanging and sharing of ideas, while at the same time provide an opportunity to understand people from different cultures.

Getting a degree is one thing. Getting an education is another. Obtaining wisdom is another matter altogether. And what is the purpose of going to university if all that we get at the end of the day is just a piece of paper. I was informed by a tourist guide in Hanoi that the primary objective of the university over there in the old days (now known as Literary Museum) was to instill morality. I was so overwhelmed by the wisdom of their people.

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