Road to Harvard

Congratulations: Ishant is an all-rounder who is also active in community work.

IT is more important to be well-rounded than academically excellent to get into top higher education institutions, including Ivy League varsities.

This is exemplified by the six Malaysian students who have been accepted into Harvard College (Harvard) in the United States as part of its Class of 2026.

Among them is national squash player Ishant Shah, 19, who said he had always wanted to pursue his studies and his sport at the same time.

“I worked hard to get my squash to the national level and at times I had to slow down to do well in my academics,” he said.

Ishant said he had applied to many schools but he was drawn to Harvard because it is in the Ivy League and is dominating varsity squash.

Furthermore, he added, former world number one squash player Ali Farag is a Harvard graduate.

“This really showed me that even if my destiny might be different, having both an excellent education and a successful squash career is really possible,” he said.Hailing from Penang, he attended SMK Bukit Jambul and is now pursuing the Canadian International Matriculation Programme (CIMP) at Sunway College.

Ishan follows in the footsteps of Sunway College alumni members including Jarell Cheong, Nathaniel Tan and Jacintha Tagal, who furthered their studies at the world’s prestigious institution.

A Sunway Sports Scholarship recipient, Ishant first started playing squash at the age of five and joined the elite squad at the Nicol David International Squash Centre when he was 10 years old.

“Depending on the situation and circumstances, I am very open to the idea of training in the US or even coming back to Malaysia to pursue my career in squash, if all goes well,” said Ishant.

As for his involvement in community work, Ishant said his family started the WeCare KitaJaga initiative during the Covid-19 pandemic to help ease the burden some were facing due to the movement control orders.

“That was when my family and I, along with friends, helped refugees and locals by providing basic essentials such as food, diapers, milk and rice,” he said, adding that they managed to assist about 200 families.

“Community service and charity are something that is embedded in my father’s family and we contribute yearly to hospitals in Melaka for the children during Deepavali,” said Ishant.

Sunway College CIMP Programme director Heath Kondro said the institution prepares students for lifelong success by emphasising the balance of academics and activities outside of the classroom, while its Pre-University Studies director Dr Cheng Mien Wee praised Ishant’s pursuit of excellence in studies and sports as inspiring the path for more young Malaysians to follow.

Like Ishant, Chooi Je Qin, 19, proved that one does not need to be bookish to get into an esteemed higher education institution.

Instead, it is more important to be active in extracurricular activities to build one’s experience.

“I’m easily not the best in school when it comes to exams, but you can find me in some independent youth initiatives, from mathematics content creation to combating education inequality.

“Many real opportunities that have real impacts lie outside the school, and students have to look for them and seize them,” he added.

Having grown up in Johor, he completed his secondary school studies at SMK Sultan Ismail and is now at Kolej Tuanku Ja’afar pursuing the A-Levels.

Je Qin is also involved in a variety of Astronomy and Astrophysics Olympiads, coaching younger students along the way.

“I think many Malaysian youths share the dream of studying astrophysics. The study of the cosmos is the ultimate scientific study of our place and purpose in the world,” he said.

Although he has not decided what course he will take when he enrols in the varsity in August, he said: “I’ll probably end up graduating with a degree heavily focused on mathematics, which is better suited for me to contribute back to the country.

”Besides them, Carisma Michaela Wong, 20, Leong Xin Yang, 20, Alyssa Yap Xin Yi, 20, and Lee Ee Jenn, 18, were offered spots at the college.

This is the first time a record-breaking six Malaysians were accepted into the prestigious institute. They are part of only 3.19% of the 61,220 applicants accepted this year.