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Flaunt Your Writing Skills In This Essay Contest To Win Prizes & Bursaries Worth RM200,000

The Sunway-Oxbridge Essay Competition is open to secondary school students studying the national syllabus.

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This Spotlight is sponsored by Sunway.

When it comes to nation-building and addressing important issues faced by the rakyat, what do YOU think needs to be done to ensure a better Malaysia?

Image via Vecteezy

The country has made great strides since achieving independence in 1957, but we still have a long way to go. Whether it's speaking out about injustice or putting in the effort to lift others out of poverty, there are many ways we can shape the future of Malaysia.  

If you're a Malaysian student who knows exactly what needs to be done, you should flesh out your idea in the Sunway-Oxbridge Essay Competition 2023!

Open to all Malaysian secondary school students who are studying the national syllabus, you are invited to take part in one of the longest-running English essay-writing competitions in Malaysia, with the theme centred around 'nation-building'.

In case you didn't know, the Sunway-Oxbridge Essay Competition is jointly organised by Sunway Group, the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation, Sunway University, and the Oxford and Cambridge Society Malaysia, in partnership with Sunway Super App. Endorsed by the Ministry of Education Malaysia, the contest aims to elevate English proficiency among Malaysian students nationwide and equip secondary school students with soft skills such as critical reasoning, creativity, and effective communication that will prepare them for their future careers.

Here's the best part — you stand to win up to RM172,000 in bursaries for pre-university programmes at Sunway College as well as up to RM28,000 worth in cash prizes, woahh!

All it takes to win your share of RM200,000 in bursaries and prizes is to pen your ideas and aspirations for a better Malaysia. :D

Here's a look at the categories for secondary students:

Category A (Form 1 to 3)
Word count: 200 to 350 words
Prompt: "What do you see as your responsibilities in building our nation?"

Category B (Form 4 to 5)
Word count: 500 to 650 words
Prompt: "Look at our society. What is the single most distressing problem our people are facing? How could your generation help to address this issue?"

The Sunway-Oxbridge Essay Competition 2023 is currently open for submissions until 22 May 2023 (by 1pm). You can submit your essay online here.

Following the submission deadline, a judging panel will then select and shortlist 100 finalists from all over the country to attend a final on-site essay writing competition

For the final writing competition, the winners from their respective categories will be selected by the same panel of judges, consisting of Margaret Hall, Past President and Executive Committee Member of the Oxford and Cambridge Society Malaysia, representatives from the Sunway Education Group Centre for English Language Studies, and officials from the Ministry of Education Malaysia.

Both categories will offer awards for the top three winners, along with 10 consolation prizes.

Here's the breakdown of prizes to be won:

First place: 
- RM5,000 cash prize
- Sunway Bursary worth RM16,000
- 10,000 Sunway Points
- An award certificate
- A trophy

Second place: 
- RM3,000 cash prize
- Sunway Bursary worth RM12,000
- 10,000 Sunway Points
- An award certificate
- A trophy

Third place:
- RM1,000 cash prize
- Sunway Bursary worth RM8,000
- 10,000 Sunway Points
- An award certificate
- A trophy

Consolation prizes x 10: 
- RM500 cash prize
- Sunway Bursary worth RM5,000
- 10,000 Sunway Points
- An award certificate
- A medal

In case you didn't know, Sunway Points can be redeemed via the Sunway Super App — a one-stop lifestyle mobile app that connects users to products and services across Sunway's expansive and extensive ecosystem.

Tan Sri Datuk Seri Razman M. Hashim, deputy chairman of Sunway Group, said the Sunway-Oxbridge Essay Competition reflects the group's long-standing commitment towards the role of education in shaping the destiny of an individual, society, and the country

"With English being the international language of business and science, this essay competition provides a national platform to promote and encourage the use of English among students in articulating their thoughts and ideas about their place in Malaysia's future," he said.

Ready to show off your writing skills with this competition? Submit your essay entry on Sunway's website before 22 May!

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