2010 SSA Welcome

Hi everyone,

Firstly, I would like to welcome all of you to Macquarie University on behalf of the Singapore Students Association in Macquarie. I trust that most of you are already in Australia by now and have almost everything settled and are roaring for the new semester to get started.

I believe that all of you would be very excited as I myself was pretty excited about studying in a foreign country, a new environment and under a different education system when I just arrived in Australia.

There may be an initial culture shock when you interact with the locals and various other international students but don't be afraid! Don't hide yourself in your own comfort zone. Be adventurous and embrace these opportunities to talk to people and know more about people of different nationalities. You may find that although the country we come from may be different, we have a lot in common.

I am sure all of you will enjoy your time in Australia and who knows, you may feel attached to this country when the time comes for you to leave. If you need any help at any time, feel free to contact us from the Singapore Students' Association and we will try to help you in any way we can. We are not just about having fun, we are also there to watch the back of our fellow Singaporeans and our friends.

Lastly, I would like to inform all of you that Orientation Week starts next week from Monday to Thursday and SSA will be having a booth in the central courtyard. Please do come down and sign up to join our club. There is a one off lifetime membership fee of $10. You will definitely get back the value of the $10 through the various events that we organise for you that are usually free. Please do join our facebook group at ssamacquarie@gmail.com to be updated on our activities and to interact with other members.

We have various activities planned for the coming semester like paintball with our good friends and straits neighbours the Malaysian Students' Association, a combined welcome reception for all new students to Australia, with UNSW and USyd and possibly Newcastle Uni, graced by the High Commisioner of Singapore to Australia, a Inter-Uni Sports Carnival between us, UNSW, USyd and possibly ANU, Newcastle Uni and many more.

We know these events will be great and we hope you'll join us for them, and we look forward to seeing you soon during O-Week.

Sincerely

Stanley Tjhai
President
Singapore Students' Association
Macquarie University

PS: Wish you all a very Happy and Prosperous Chinese New Year. May you be blessed with good fortune, good grades and most importantly good health.