Ling receiving the Larry K Wilson Award from IEEE past president Professor Michael Lightner.
MIRI: Two students from the Student Branch of Curtin University Sarawak’s Institution of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) represented their university and the country at the IEEE Region 10 Student/Young Professionals/Women in Engineering (Student.YP.WIE) Congress 2015 in Colombo, Sri Lanka last month.
At the congress, president of Curtin Sarawak’s IEEE Student Branch 2013 – 2014, Esther Ling Pi Ya received the 2014 IEEE Region 10 Larry K Wilson Award for her accomplishments in the student branch. She is the first Malaysian to win the prestigious award.
Her accomplishments included being elected to the R10 (Asia Pacific) Student Activities Committee for 2014; initiating the first Malaysia Section Student Congress in 2013; and representing Malaysia at the R10 Student Congress 2013 in Hyderabad, India.
She also initiated a major membership drive for the student branch; organised the first national exhibition for IEEE Curtin Sarawak; and championed the Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC) ‘Science on Wheels’ programme in collaboration with the university’s Department of University Life.
Vice-president of Curtin Sarawak IEEE Student Branch, Esther Kueh Yue Ning was also at the congress.
In addition to the award presented to Ling, the student branch received the Region 10 Exemplary Student Branch Award for academic year 2014 – 2015.
The student branch is the first in the country to receive the accolade. According to Ling and Kueh, the IEEE Student Branch owes its success to the outstanding contributions of its past and current leaders and advisors.
Sarawakians Ling and Kueh promoted Sarawak to an international audience at the congress by performing a song and dance. Ling mimicked the sound of the sape on the guitar for a rendition of ‘Leleng’ while Kueh did an Orang Ulu dance.
The congress featured talks by past president of IEEE, Professor Michael Lightner; 2015 IEEE WIE Global Chair Professor Takako Hasimoto and director of IEEE University Programmes, Burton Dicht.
Kueh said the congress enabled them to gain insights into IEEE’s operations.
“It’s heartening to know that our student branch’s efforts are recognised internationally. It encourages us to continue impacting the lives of individual IEEE members, ultimately contributing to the IEEE vision of advancing technology for humanity,” said Kueh.
Ling said as the former president of the student branch, she still follows its activities closely and its current leaders are doing a fantastic job in sustaining its growth.
She encouraged members to seize chances, make things happen and find out what IEEE had to offer.
The IEEE Region 10 Student.YP.WIE Congress 2015 themed ‘Today’s Youth for A Better Tomorrow’ aims to create a networking platform for participating delegates, and enlighten their minds via sharing of ideas and knowledge.
The IEEE Student Branch of Curtin Sarawak established in 2008 has about 50 members.
For more information on the student branch, e-mail [email protected] or visit ewh.ieee.org/sb/malaysia/curtinsarawak.
Or visit its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/CurtinSarawak.IEEE.