Form-6 students talk to UM faculty members
The University of Macau (UM) recently held the Principals’ Recommended Admission Talk 2019/2020. This year’s Principals’ Recommended Scheme will include two new schemes with exam exemption, namely the Chinese and Portuguese Bilingual Talent Nurturing Scheme, and the Outstanding Student-Athletes Admission Scheme. The university will also launch a new programme, namely Bachelor of Science in Mathematics (Statistics and Data Science).
The admission talk attracted a record number of 600 people, including form-6 students from 40 local high schools and their teachers and parents. During the event, participants learned more about UM’s latest developments, faculty team, academic programmes, international exchange programmes, and career prospects for UM graduates.
In his speech, UM Rector Yonghua Song said that UM has earned widespread recognition for its quality of teaching and research thanks to the support of the central and Macao SAR governments. According to Song, UM has experienced rapid development in recent years, with all the necessary conditions for becoming a world-class university. UM is the only higher education institution in Macao to have entered the Times Higher Education and QS World University Rankings. UM’s five subjects are ranked among the top 1% in Essential Sciences Indicators. In addition to the three state key laboratories, the university has the largest residential college system in Asia. Recently, UM established two educational bases in Macao, namely the Macao Base for Primary & Secondary Education in Humanities & Social Sciences, and the Macao Base for Primary & Secondary STEM Education.
Rector Song also mentioned that as each student has different talents and attributes, university education should motivate them to become self-driven learners. UM provides a multifaceted education that is inspiring, interdisciplinary, inclusive, internationalised, interactive, and interconnected through a combination of the academic faculties and residential colleges, in order to enhance students’ creative skills and competitiveness, so that they can make a positive impact in society.
In order to nurture Chinese-Portuguese bilingual language professionals and encourage local student athletes and professionals to stay in Macao, this year’s Principals’ Recommended Scheme will include two new schemes with exam exemption, namely the Chinese and Portuguese Bilingual Talent Nurturing Scheme, and the Outstanding Student-Athletes Admission Scheme. In addition, in the 2019/2020 academic year UM will launch a new programme, namely Bachelor of Science in Mathematics (Statistics and Data Science). This programme will provide professional training in the analysis and management of statistics and data science. Graduates of the programme will acquire a solid grounding in mathematics and professional skills in smart technology and big data.
During the event, the students visited the teaching facilities and laboratories in the various faculties, including the Centre for the Studies of Translation, Interpreting and Cognition, the Gaming Laboratory of the Institute for the Study of Commercial Gaming, the Moot Court, the Creative Media Laboratory, and Automotive Engineering Laboratory. In order to increase the students’ interest in and understanding of UM’s academic programmes, they were also given the opportunity to operate laboratory equipment under the guidance of senior students. Students and their parents also visited Cheng Yu Tung College and Moon Chun Memorial College, and had dinner in the colleges.
