Cuban adventure

SAMUEL Raj Vasudayan paid about RM2,000 to apply for a Cuban medical scholarship. He considers the time and effort spent well worth it as he is one of the five successful Malaysian applicants.

“It was quite a tedious process as everything had to be translated into Spanish, by a translator recognised by Wisma Putra,” he says. “The forms had to be translated from Bahasa Malaysia to English first, then Spanish. Each translated document had to be stamped and certified and this cost money too.”

Samuel heard about the medical scholarship through a friend and was already in Form Six when he decided to apply for it. He will be the first person in his family to study abroad. And in Cuba, of all places!

Cuban embassy first secretary Florentino Batista is surrounded by the second batchof five Malaysian students who have left for Cuba under the medical scholarshipprogramme. From left are Luke Ashwin Lawrence John, Yokeswaran Goh Leong Huat,Sarah See Yi Bin, Samuel Raj Vasudayan and Mathen Muniasupram.

“I consider myself lucky to obtain a full scholarship to fulfil my life’s dream. I feel like I’m about to embark on a fantastic adventure,” adds Samuel, during a reception at the Cuban ambassador’s residence last month.

The Klangite, who completed his Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia last year, will not feel alone in Cuba though as his classmate from Klang High School, Yokeswaran Goh Leong Huat, is also headed there.

Yokeswaran, who scored 11As in his SPM, had been offered a scholarship to do a foundation in science programme locally, but decided to forgo it to pursue his dream of becoming a cardiologist.

“When I received the call that I had been successful, I was so happy that I shouted,” the 18-year-old lad recalls.

The other students who have already left for Cuba earlier this month are Sarah See Yi Bin , Luke Ashwin Lawrence John and Mathen Muniasupram.

Sarah’s father, See Keat Hock, has no qualms about sending his only daughter so far away.

“She is being given a chance to get a quality medical education for free. If not for that, we would have to mortgage our house to give her the chance to fulfil her life-long ambition,” he says.

Jasmin Wong Jiar Myin was among the pioneer batchof seven Malaysi ans who went to Cuba.

The Cuba-bound candidates are not taking a leap into the unknown though. The pioneer batch of seven Malaysians who left last September, and who returned to Malaysia recently for a holiday, have only good things to say about the medical programme and Cuba.

Jeevagan Rajasegram, for one, had no reservations about travelling the distance for his medical studies. “We had an orientation programme to help us adjust to life there,” he recalls.

After the orientation in Havana, the Malaysians were placed in the Faculty of Medical Sciences in Moron, a six- to seven-hour bus ride from the capital.

Jeevagan feels Cuba is an ideal destination for medical students as it is very peaceful. “Life is not stressful there. The environment is also very safe.”

He adds that all the Malaysian students have adjusted well to the medium of instruction there.

“At the beginning, it was difficult. But if you put in the effort and make it a point to socialise with native Spanish speakers, it becomes easier.”

Other than their airfare to and from Cuba, everything else is paid for by the Cuban government, including food and lodging.

Jeevagan is not perturbed by the fact that the Malaysian Medical Council does not recognise Cuban medical degrees as he can work elsewhere, including the United States.

His father, S Rajasegaram, is grateful that his son was given the opportunity to fulfil his dream, especially since he is financing another child’s medical studies in Ukraine.

With the high cost of doing medicine both locally and abroad, Jasmin Wong Jiar Myin is thankful for the Cuban scholarship.

“At first there was some culture shock, but the fact that the six of us were together helped. There were about 100 of us in the preparatory course and we made many friends with students from other countries, especially Africa and the Caribbean,” says Jasmin.

She also gives the thumbs up to Cuban medical education – “We have managed to adapt well to the language and culture” – and describes the experience of studying together with other international students as “priceless”.

After their preparatory course, Jasmin, Sasha Gomez and Rachel Saw Ee Ann will proceed to the Faculty of Medical Sciences in Camagüey, while Jeevagan, Sutharsanan Chinetamby and Chris Foo Sook Kuan will continue their studies at the Faculty of Medical Sciences in Ciego.

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