KUALA LUMPUR (Bernama): More than RM120mil has been allocated under the Petronas Education Sponsorship Programme (PESP) this year, to be awarded to 301 Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) 2020 high achievers.
Petronas, in a statement Tuesday (Aug 17), said this would ensure high achievers can pursue their tertiary education at Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP) and other leading local and foreign universities.
Its senior vice-president of group human resource management Farehana Hanapiah said despite the uncertainties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, Petronas would continue to invest in education and human capital development to ensure a sustainable pipeline of capable leaders and a competent workforce.
"Petronas' commitment to enrich our talent pool continues despite the current challenging global economic environment. It is an effort that we have been driving for the past 46 years. We believe in the power and value of education in uplifting lives and progressing the nation forward," she said.
The sponsorship has also been extended to include disciplines such as Biochemistry, Business Administration (Marketing & Trading) as well as Environmental Science to support Petronas' cleaner energy and sustainability agenda.
This year's PESP recipients were selected from more than 10,000 applicants across Malaysia, with Petronas fully conducting the selection process online in adherence to the Covid-19 movement restrictions.
Apart from academic achievement, PESP also emphasises differentiated focus, critical skills and mindsets among its recipients, encouraging a culture that enables agility and innovation to prepare them for a fast-changing work landscape.
Since 1975, more than 37,000 Malaysians have benefited from the PESP with over RM3.3bil worth of education sponsorships to pursue higher education in various disciplines at leading local universities as well as top institutions in Australia, Canada, China, Japan, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. – Bernama