KUALA LUMPUR: Four students from UCSI University's Faculty of Business and Information Science were recently sponsored full scholarships by Averis Sdn Bhd after impressing the company during their two-month internship. 

Ann Marie Pang, Nicole Ng Swee Yin, Phuah Yin Mei and Tang Sing Sing were amongst the first few who were selected for UCSI’s Premier Co-Operative programme – an initiative that seeks to provide students with a well-rounded blend of higher learning and real world practice while allowing industry partners to identify their future human resource from among the best of UCSI’s students. 

The Premier Co-Op experience includes the Multidisciplinary Case-based Study which sees students and lecturers working together to provide solutions to current issues that their host company is facing. 

At Averis, the four ladies – who are all pursuing their BA (Hons) in Accounting and Finance – were challenged to improve operation processes in the organisation. Under the guidance of academic advisors Radha K. Krishnan Nair, who heads UCSI’s accounting and finance programme, and Assistant Professor Dr Ho Wai Kee, they successfully pitched their solutions to the company’s top management. 

At the same time, they were also exposed to the daily accounting and finance tasks required and were heavily involved in event management. 

"The Premier Co-Op was a very different experience from the other internships that I have completed,” said Phuah. “I had to present a proposal to the management on how to improve the company's operations, so I had to work on my presentation skills. 

I also learned how to process invoices using the SAP system and to organise events. Most of the time, the ability to multi-task was very important so it was a lesson in managing my time effectively." 

“I got to work with different levels of management and was able to learn the different perspectives on handling a situation and working with environmental constraints,” added Pang. “My time at Averis enabled me to enhance my accounting knowledge as well as to improve my communication and critical thinking skills.” 

Asst Prof Ho spoke of how the Premier Co-Op programme is helping students gain valuable applied experience and build their network in professional fields that they are considering as career paths. 

“Averis was a great resource in that regard as they were diligent in facilitating an experiential learning experience for our interns,” she said. “They created opportunities for them to not only gain operational skills but also the professional connections that are relevant to this industry.” 

Founded in 2006 to provide a set of common services to the Royal Golden Eagle (RGE) Group of Companies, Averis supports a growing business that is worth USD 15b in assets with a 50,000-strong combined workforce. It has always been a strong proponent of championing young talents. 

“We strongly believe in cultivating future leaders,” said Lim Ser Yong, Service Delivery Lead for Averis. “With our vast areas of coverage, there is no better nurturing ground for growing professionals to hone their skills and knowledge, and to springboard themselves to a successful and rewarding career.” 

UCSI’s Premier Co-Op is an enhanced version of UCSI’s flagship Co-Operative Placement Programme which has the honour of being Malaysia’s most extensive university-industry network with more than 4,000 companies in partnership. Each study year, UCSI students embark on a two-month internship to gain practical industrial experience and networking opportunities. This has translated into a track record of high graduate employability for UCSI – in fact among the highest in the country.