Limkokwing University became the first private university to host the 27th Architectural Student Workshop 2015 from 21 till 24 Oct.
The Architectural Student Workshop is an annual gathering of public and private institutions nationwide which offers Malaysian students the opportunity to meet, exchange and share knowledge with their peers.
It was organised by Limkokwing University’s Architecture Student Council (ASC) and Faculty of Architecture & the Built Environment (FABE), supported by Malaysian Institute of Architecture.
Themed ‘Future Is Now’, this year’s workshop was officiated by Malaysia’s Deputy Education Minister, Senator Chong Sin Woon and attended by over 400 student participants from 15 public and private institutions.
Participating institutions included University Sains Malaysia (USM); International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM); Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM); Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM); Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM); UiTM Seri Iskandar, Perak; Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Skudai; Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman; UCSI University; Infrastructure University Kuala Lumpur (IUKL); City University College of Science and Technology (CUCST); Taylor’s University, Politeknik Sultan Azlan Shah (POLISAS), Kolej Kemahiran Tinggi MARA (KKTM), Pasir Mas and Limkokwing Cambodia.
The workshop featured exhibitions, presentations, learning modules and performances to motivate as well as cultivate creative concepts.
Some of the activities included creating 3D representational structures to reflect each participating university’s characteristics, build ‘Dragon Spine’ sticks to explore kinetic energy application and study ‘Illuminance’ techniques to add extra dimensions or movement on static objects.
These activities gave students from other institutions an insight on Limkokwing University’s learning approach and its multicultural environment.
Students also had the chance to learn directly from professionals through a series of industry talks on trends, challenges and architecture opportunities.
“I think Limkokwing is a very fascinating place,” said Oong Nien Tze from University Sains Malaysia. “It was nice to be part of diverse culture where everyone gets to take part in activities and bond with people from other universities.”
“Coming here and looking at the atmosphere is very exciting,” said Jolene Hor from Taylors University. “I hope that I would be able to learn how other students think.”
Liau Zhan Jun from University Sains Malaysia said he enjoyed himself and made new friends. “It was good to see everyone putting their hard work into their presentations.”
Through workshop projects, Limkokwing students got to expand their network with other institutions while receiving practical exposure.
“It was quite the experience that we needed to learn a lot of things in a short time,” said Architecture Student Council Member Ehsan Azman, who is studying Bachelor of Science (Architectural Studies) from the Faculty of Architecture & the Built Environment.
He learned that by motivating everyone with the right atmosphere and the right mood, they can bring creative ideas to life.
Project Manager Cheong You Leong, Bachelor of Architecture graduate later credited that the success of the workshop project was due to different faculties cooperating to provide support with planning.
“While this is the first time at being responsible for a major project, I learned that trust can be a major factor to success,” he said.
Limkokwing University encourages students to participate in various activities to gain work experience and multicultural exposure. Students learn to develop networking skills that will allow them to overcome cross-cultural barriers within a globalised environment.
