A letter from Cheang (London Scholarship 2018)
What is the London Scholarship Programme?
Education is the best way to fight poverty. The benefits for a country to have access to education are multiple (growing the economy, improving mentalities, reducing discrimination…). At Children of the Mekong, we are convinced that providing access to education to young people will allow them to maintain a virtuous cycle around their communities and for their country, and end the cycle of poverty.
However, there is still a major challenge in South East Asia, where young adults find it difficult to carry on with their education due to a lack of financial support. They give up their studies and prefer to have difficult jobs, where they allow them to live and subsist on their necessities (food, hygiene).
This is the context in which we set up our London scholarship. The main objective of this programme is to encourage young adults to keep up with their studies despite the many challenges they are facing and leading them to drop out.
Our scholarship programme in London was set up in 2017, thanks to our partnership with Crédit Agricole. This project allows young adults to come to London for 3 months to improve their English and to do an internship for a company. This experience is a unique opportunity for the beneficiaries of this scholarship. Also, this experience allows them to increase their self-confidence and improve their skills. Our young adults who had the chance to benefit from our scholarship, leave much more confident for their future.
Read Cheang's letter
Hi all! I’m Cheang, a scholar of Children of the Mekong in 2018. Today, I’m very grateful to share with you all how things are going for me so far.
I was very interested in Applied Maths and analytical skills in financial sectors after going through job shadowing in some investment banks and financial institutes in London. At the time, I wanted to pursue a master’s degree in Applied Maths. So, I decided to study and prepare for the IELTS examination in order to get a scholarship abroad. Coincidentally, I saw a job announcement from a life insurance company seeking a junior actuarial analyst who would also willing to study and take exams to be a certified actuarial analyst. It really got my attention so that I applied for this opportunity. I thought it was great to gain experience and study at the same time. Unbelievably, I passed the interview. So, this is the story how I got here, working as a life actuary. I just finished and passed my first actuarial exam in Thailand last year. For the moment, I’m preparing for my next exam in late May this year. If I get certified, my other dream is to work abroad to get more professional and life experiences.
I sincerely appreciate all my sponsors, Children of the Mekong, and my host family for making this happen for me. I truly enjoyed the moments and gained valuable practical knowledge from this excellent scholarship.
Best regards,
Cheang