NURSES have a lot of good things going for them.
Healthcare is a stable industry, the nursing profession is noble, there is much job satisfaction in helping people get well, and the work is never boring because it is different almost every day.
Even better, private hospitals provide tens of millions of ringgit in full nursing scholarships every year.
A school-leaver with the necessary SPM results and a caring nature will have the chance to be awarded a full scholarship, plus instant employment after earning a nursing diploma.
At UOW Malaysia, at least twelve private hospitals in Malaysia and Singapore offer full scholarships to nursing diploma students through the campus.
"Not only do they bear the full cost of the education, they pay students allowances to see them through," said Magesvari Subramaniam, Head of UOW Malaysia's School of Nursing and Allied Health.
She said those who succeed in receiving a nursing scholarship from Singapore get an allowance of RM1,000 a month throughout their three-year diploma programme at UOW Malaysia and are then guaranteed employment in Singapore under a five-year bond.
For students preferring to remain in Malaysia, they will receive an allowance of between RM550 and RM750 a month, plus other benefits.
"Some hospitals will provide you with extra allowances for books, shoes, handphone use. These range from RM160 to RM300 per allowance.
"If you do well and maintain a CGPA of above 3.5 a year, some hospitals will send you an excellence reward of RM500 to RM400 yearly," she pointed out.
Magesvari said to make the scholarships attractive to deserving students, some hospitals include medical coverage, plus bear the cost of Hepatitis B and anti-tetanus injections to add a layer of welfare for students.
One hospital even pays the flight tickets for successful scholarship applicants to fly to the peninsula for their studies.
"It is a measure of how important registered nurses are to the world that inspire hospitals to spend large sums on scholarships for nursing students.
"Up to 80% of all our nursing students per intake enjoy full scholarships.
"It is more than just a job. As nurses, we really make a difference in people's lives when they are not well," Magesvari added.
To be awarded these full scholarships, Magesvari said an innate caring nature was more important than academic excellence.
The entry requirements for the diploma programme is five SPM credits, including Bahasa Malaysia, Mathematics, either one of the credit in any science subject such as Science, Biology, Chemistry, Physics or Applied Science and credits in two other subjects.
It also takes at least a pass in SPM English or its equivalent, although additional English modules can be taken at UOW Malaysia.
School-leavers seeking the scholarship first submit completed application forms and the necessary documents to UOW Malaysia.
Then come the interviews; there will be two.
The first interview is with UOW Malaysia academicians, done virtually or physically.
After this hurdle is done successfully, candidates then go for a second interview with a panel from private hospitals offering the scholarship.
"What we want to understand during the interviews is why you want to study nursing.
"If you were a member of St John's Ambulance or Red Crescent Society at school and had learned about first aid and giving service to society, that is an excellent plus.
"We interviewed scholarship applicants whose family members are nurses. It was really inspirational to listen to their passion about wanting to be nurses," said Magesvari.
The subjects studied in UOW Malaysia's Diploma in Nursing are also highly interesting.
Students learn about Anatomy and Physiology; Microbiology, Parasitology, Immunology and Nutrition; Communication, Human and Public Relations, and Counselling; even Sociology and Psychology.
To learn what it takes to embark on this noble career, visit our Nursing & Health Science Day on the 8 and 9 April 2023 or via our website www.uow.edu.my to make an appointment with the campus' education advisors.
