Cambodian Girl's Journey in Canada

Hello! Wow, it's been a long while since I have written on this blog. I guess a lot went down, and I got very carried away. Over the last months, I have gone through a few waves. Ups and downs. Downs were no different than the ones described in the last blog, but up's... I have got a lot to say. Around August, or September last year, I decided I was going to apply for the Cansbridge Fellowship as a "learning experience." I was 120% sure I wasn't going to get selected due to the fact that I am still a U1. It's not uncommon for them to want to select higher years, which makes sense, since they'd benefit more out of the internship in Asia given the skills that they have. But December rolled around, and after an application and three interviews, I was in. I was IN! I honestly couldn't believe it myself either. I was studying for my last final (Chee 231, which is Statistics) when I got the call from Ross Kelly. I was shocked, and I wanted to cry. I imm...

What about my PASSIONS? Here's how I have been trying to maintain them... Hello, and welcome back! I know, I know. I have been gone for quite a while now.. and even worse, I haven't even entered the blogs about my conferences I've promised. But here me out.. I've got some real good excuses-- or at least, I think. Hahaha. So here's what I was up to for my 2016 Summer. 1. First of all, I interned in the Risk Management Department for CIMB. I interned for a round a month, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I met a lotttt of really dedicated, lovely people, one of whom I have already started calling "mommy." Hhahah Bong Nita, you're hilarious. Thank you for the entertainment on the boring office days. Other than that, on the serious side, I actually sat down to read and understand a lot of the Group Policy, Credit Policy and Manual, etc. I also did many case studies on the credit loans, home loans, commercial loans. I'd like to think I have a pretty g...

I am still a very firm believer:  love  gives you hope. And I also know full-well, that God loves me. My family loves me, and my friends  love  me. However, I am at that point in life when I am struggling to answer the question of whether I  love  myself. Do I  love  myself enough? Do I need to start loving myself a little more? A lot more?   The answer is I am unsure, but my guts tells me 'no.'   The next logical question is probably, "When, then, did I lost this practice of  self - love ? and even worse, siwtched it with  self -loath, always heavily criticizing my own habits and amplifying my own wrong-doings? To answer that question, I need to dig a little deeper into my high school years. In tenth and eleventh grade, I was undoubtedly very focused in getting into Engineering school. Prior to entering twelve grade, I stumbled across a girl. My very first  love . As I am writing this, I am actually  on ...

Tools of Titans, Love, Life and everything else in between 1. Tools of Titans During the tech entrepreneurship conference in San Francisco, one of the McGill grads, who is now a venture capitalist in the Bay Area recommended this book. During my last two days in Montreal, before I hopped on the plane to come to Cambodia for the summer, I picked this book up at Indigo and I can tell you this: it was the best decision of my life. I have learnt much more from this book than anyone else. It's like I have 50 different mentors from all walks of life at once. Maybe I will do a review (in-dept) very soon, but as for now, I am really taking my time off. The most I'd been doing while reading is jot down notes on yellow sticky sheets. 2. Love Well, never thought I'd put this up on my blog since I'd considered it more on the "intellectual side,"but hey, love is a part of life, might as well talk a little about it. For those of you who know me, you all realize I a...

I just got selected to go to the Entrepreneurship Conference in San Francisco! Well, I woke up last night from (nearly) 2 hours of tossing and turning, not being able to go to sleep because the thought of a social media platform development was on my mind. However, as I was checking my email, I found out that I got selected to attend the conference!! I am super, super happy, because I am aware that we will be touring big names in the silicon valley, as well as connecting with people (and mentors) of the same passion and interest. The application consisted of: sending in a motivational paper and my CV, then an interview with one of the Cansbridge fellow. Questions ranged from, "why you?" "what do you want out of this?" "tell me about yourself, and your entrepreneurial side." I am so, so excited. Here's to hoping the visa will come out in time! As for now.. however... let's enjoy some aesthetically pleasing photos of San Frans while listening ...

Hello, everyone! ជំរាបសួរ។ I know. It has been a long time. However, I am back! As good as ever. In case you've been wondering why I haven't posted in sooo long what I have been up to, let me briefly describe. As you all know, I stopped my last post with a cliff hanger. And most of you are probably wondering-- did she end up getting that CIMB ASEAN Scholarship? I am happy to announce that I did! Here, I will link you to a Phnom Penh Post Interview about it: Besides from that, I might have not mentioned this in previous posts, however, I am currently pursuing a Bachelors of Engineering in Chemical Engineering with a (likely) minor in Finance. I will go into that a little later. During the course of my first year here at McGill, I have been involved with the Chemical Engineering Student Society as the U0 representative. I have also volunteered regularly with Promoting Opportunities for Women in Science and Engineering (conferences, etc). Last but not least, I was recentl...

Hey!    I know right, it has been a long long time since I last posted. Well, I am finally back now.. and I've got news but before that, allow me to explain why I haven't been posting much!    First of all, senior year has been really busy, emotional and stressful. Juggling friendship, work, college isn't easy. Besides, I couldn't think of anything to post about.. quite frankly speaking.   So I'll just jump straight to my news now. For the past few weeks, I have been competing for a scholarship called CIMB ASEAN Scholarship and just late 5 pm yesterday, I found out that I got it. It didn't take me long to realize that it was a life-changing moment for me.. and my family. My studies at McGill, accommodation and meals will be fully funded for; I will also be given allowances. Afterwards, I will be working for CIMB for a total of eight years (I believe), in which I do certainly hope that I will be relocating often. Omg.. my head hurts so much, let's see if I ...

Last Week as an Intern  I started my internship at the FTSS lab around the second week of June. It seems like it was my first day yesterday, really. Time flies. Right now, I am in my last week of the internship and I am starting to really appreciate the little things that I am doing. Recently, I started working on a research project on the Fermentation of Jambolan Plums Red Wine. We have done all the steps and are only waiting to chemically analyze and evaluate the wine. That means I'd have to take a few day off school to do this.. I guess I can say I learnt a lot from the internship- both in terms of laboratory and soft skills. I definitely want to work here again next summer. That is, if I am free.

Hellloooo! I've just had several thoughts that had been racing my mind and .. yeah. Well, A lot of thoughts had been racing my mind but here are a few: 1.Gender Inequality in Cambodia can still be seen.. and this makes me sad. It also makes me question EVERY single time I get in the car. "Why does the inequality exist?" After all the times I took to ponder on this question, I have arrived to answer: CULTURE. It's the culture that shapes the people's way of thinking and behaving. It has always been in Khmer culture for the women to have to stay home, cook, clean, raise babies. Guys has had it easier. "How do we stop the issue?" This is hard. It is hard because stopping the issue means having to change people's ways of thinking and behaving and THAT is HARD. When it comes to culture, there is no line drawn between the right and wrong. No one can say anything is wrong if it is accepted by the culture. This, is where religion comes into play. I be...

What I wish I had known before I started narrowing down my colleges 1. "Full scholarship" still means board, room fees and other expenses (so beware!) 2. There are 3 times of admission process: - rolling (all the time) - early action and early decision -regular 3. There are 3 times of admission decision: -accepted -rejected -deferred (if applied early) 4. If you are an international student, EducationUSA provides useful counselling (and sometimes, fundings) 5.Start registering for standardized tests early... because sometimes, the seats do run out! 6.Make use of your score reports and don't waste all dem 14$x4 free score reports. You will need that money for other things, trust me. (like TOEFL, retakes..) 7.Always have safe schools, reach schools and fall-back schools 8.Know your limits 9.Learn evaluate yourself (without being too mean, of course!) 10. Read threads on College Confidential BUT while keeping in mind that most of them are US citizens. ...

          Thoughts that go through your mind while you are taking Standardized Tests (ACT/SAT)           1.  Why am I here?                   2. Shoot, I need to go to the bathroom.           3. Am I expected to know this?           4.  This is a joke. I'm giving up. But then at the end of the day... It's worth it!

       Personal reflection on the first and second day of Intern @ FTSS      Okay, for a first day, mine went pretty well. I'd say there are few things I could have done better like: -Preparing questions about the company -Getting my mind ready (to schedule work time, that is) -Bringing extra shoes if you work in a lab... because you do not want to step on Acid (ouch) -Smile smile smile Here's what you do when your boss offers you coffee, btw: Say Yes!

        Very common question.     How do I choose my classes?     First, you have to ask your self, "am I willing to work? or am I just going to surrender to senioritis?" If you said, "yes I am willing to work." Then here are my tips for you: 1) Check out schools you want to apply to (or just general requirements for the major you want to pursue), see which of the classes you have taken so far and which you haven't. 2) Choose a course load that you think you can handle! Don't overwork yourself like I used to do. It's bad! 3) Make sure your schedule is balanced. By that I mean, do you have English? Math? Science? PE? Art? Or is 1 English, 4 Sciences, 1 Math and no PE or art? 4) Talk to your guidance counsellor. If you said "nooooo. heck no." Then here are m (i am too lazy to finish the sentence) 1)What do you think you can handle? Maybe just make a balanced, easy breezy schedule then. Ingredients: (Core subjects) - Science...

     So I decided around december that I wanted to apply for internships. I started putting my resume together and even asked for 2 letter of recommendations. I also wrote a personal interest statement just in case. Then... I emailed them out to different organizations which I will not mention. Fast forward, 2 months later I got calls from 2 different work places for an interview (which I totally should have prepared for). Buuuttt I ended up doing well on the interview and luckily got the job. A m i r a c l e. With that being said, I am currently interning at FTSS (food testing lab) and CCF (Cambodia's Children Fund). That was my experience, though. You could choose: Feeling productive? 1) You could work or intern 2) You could fill in your FAFSA or financial aid stuff 3) You could start on your college essays before developing senioritis (it's real) 4) Write a blog 5) Find a new interest 6) Learn how to cook .. or hunt. 7) Learn Taekwando? Feeling unproductiv...

       Okay, so I just thought I would start off by sharing this timeline I kinda of stole off the internet with you guys. I altered it a little bit since I am an international student and I have to take extra tests (like TOEFL). So there you go, feel free to copy/paste it .. I won't sue you. **The schedule includes: 2 SATs, 2 ACTs, Subject tests, TOEFL I, however, decided to not take the SAT and just stick with the ACT since my scores were pretty good. Important Schedule & Deadlines: Junior Year of High school: August 2014 - May 2015 August 2014: School Starts. October 2014: Prepare for the SAT. September 2014: Prepare for the SAT. November 2014 : Register for SAT . December 2014: Semester 1 Exams. January 2015: Take the SAT . March 2015: Register ( 4 months ahead for TOEFL ) April 2015 : ACT +   Register for subject tests April 2015 : Ask for letters of recommendations May 5-6 2015: AP Exams May 2015: High s...

            Do I really have to do an introduction?           Fine, I will.                      Hey, for those of you who don't know me, my name is Neath (that's what I go by) and I am a senior at Logos International school. Im graduating May 2016.                      I always look confused.                      I am also preppy. for everything. and anything. I schedule everything. Literally. That's not a bad thing though.. I think.                     I have too many interests. Piano. Soccer. Chemistry. You name it. Everything except rock music. (Sorry!)                     I like to do college search. Sometimes I tend to over do it. But it's fine, I am ...