All praise belong to Allah alone, and blessing and peace be upon the final prophet Muhammad (s.a.w), his family and righteous followers. Asalaamu 'alaikum!

WELCOME ONBOARD!

A warm welcome to all the members and a special welcome to our new members starting this academic year. I trust that you all have enjoyed the summer break and are ready for a challenging year ahead.

As you know, MSA(UK) is run by Maldivian students in the UK and members meet at least twice a year, usually during the Christmas and Easter holidays to discuss the issues at hand. The Annual General Meeting (AGM) is held during the Christmas holidays to select a new Central Committee. This year our aim is to provide beneficial service to members that will enhance and assist their studies and develop recreational sound activities in the wider Maldivian student community in the spirit of friendship and unity. We invite you to join our association as a member and your participation will make an important contribution in building the future of our association. This is your opportunity to shape and reshape MSA(UK). Therefore, extend your spirit and get involved!

At present we are conducting a Young Science Writer Competition among Advance Level students in the Maldives. The main objective of this competition is to offer young people an opportunity to explore the challenge of communicating their scientific interest to the general public. The winner of the competition will be awarded an all expense paid three weeklong “educational tour” in the UK during the year-end break with a spending money of US$ 500 (US Dollar Five Hundred). This will give the winner a host of new experiences that he/she may never otherwise have the chance to experience. The educational tour will also increase the awareness on the importance of higher education among young students in the Maldives. Details about the Young Science Writer Competition are available on our website http://www.msa-uk.org.

MSA(UK) Freshers’ Day 2004 is also scheduled for the weekend 2-3rd October 2004. Details about the Freshers’ Day are also available from our website http://www.msa-uk.org. The Freshers’ gathering will be a unique opportunity for you to make a network of new friends who are specialising in different fields of study in the UK. This will also enable new members to understand better the student lifestyle in the UK and find answers to the questions regarding studies, employment, funding for further studies etc.

We intend to keep you up-to-date about the progress of the association by email and by news updates on our website. We also have a web-based forum, which can be used as a platform for discussion among members. Please register with our forum http://www.msa-uk.org/msaforum when you get a chance.
May Allah's blessing be with us ALL and give us success in our studies.

Ismail Mohamed (Habaru)
CHAIRPERSON - MSA(UK) 2004