Curtin Sarawak students shine in investment quiz competition

Miri – 18 September, 2009 – A 3-member team from Curtin University of Technology, Sarawak Malaysia (Curtin Sarawak) recently placed fourth in the finals of the PNB Investment Quiz Competition (Pertandingan Kuiz Pelaburan PNB 2009), a national-level competition organised by Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB).

Comprising third-year Accounting, Banking and Finance students, namely Millie Chang Hui Jin, Chin Bei Hao and Soon Yee Ling, the team received a cash prize of RM2,000 for their showing in the 2-day event held at the Putrajaya Marriott Hotel & Spa.

It was the Curtin Sarawak School of Business’ first time participating in a national competition, which saw 22 universities and colleges fielding a total of 55 teams.

PNB has been organising the competition annually since 2001. It is aimed at exposing students to practical applications relating to financial markets and instruments, investment, general economics and the concept of unit trusts. It also examines their knowledge of current financial issues and their creativity in applying their investment knowledge and skills to evaluating the potential costs and benefits of investment decisions.

The competition involves a preliminary round with two levels consisting of written examinations, and a final round in a ‘gameshow’ format. The four universities achieving the highest scores in the preliminary round go on to the finals, where they are given initial ‘capital’ to invest in four asset classes – equity, fixed income, derivatives and unit trusts. Each team is given 10 seconds to answer a question and for every correct answer, points are added to the team’s capital, or deducted if they answer incorrectly. Throughout the competition, both team and individual efforts are evaluated.

 “It was great to see our team qualify for the finals and eventually placing fourth. I look forward to seeing teams from Curtin Sarawak performing better in future competitions and hopefully emerging champions,” said Sia Chow Siing, head of the Curtin Sarawak’s Economics & Finance Department, who accompanied the team to the competition.

According to team-member Bei Hao, it was a great privilege to represent Curtin Sarawak in the competition, which he considers a lifetime experience.

“It being our first experience, we were not sure how we would fare. Reaching the finals was beyond our wildest dreams, especially when we were up against some very formidable opponents,” he said, attributing the success to their ability to effectively apply the knowledge acquired in their studies, as well as the outstanding teamwork they enjoyed.

Bei Hao’s team-mate Millie also regards the competition an experience to be cherished. “It was truly awesome. Even though we did not win the competition in the end, I think we did really well for first-timers and enjoyed ourselves tremendously,” she said.

Third team-member Yee Ling said, “I am very happy with our achievement, especially the fact we managed to finish ahead of so many other universities. I am thankful for everything I have learnt in my course at Curtin Sarawak and being able to use my knowledge and skills in the competition.”

The Curtin Sarawak team (centre) in the heat of competition.

The team with lecturer Sia Chow Siing (holding cheque).

The Curtin Sarawak team taking a breather.