Support Sai Oo's Dream Of Attending Uni (ongoing)

We are delighted to update you on the progress of Sai Oo's studies at Mae Fah Luang University in Chiang Rai, Thailand. In June, he completed the 2nd semester of his course in Information Technology and we learnt that he managed to gain a 3.83 Grade Point Average. This did not come as a surprise for us as we know all too well his hardworking and dedicated character.

His impressive grades earned him a potential scholarship to study in the UK for his 2nd year. This was an amazing opportunity for him and would of made Sai Oo the first person from Koung Jor refugee camp to study in Europe. Unfortunately, due to the late notice and the travel logistics of a required test, Sai Oo just missed out on securing this placement. We are hopeful that this once in a lifetime opportunity will be available to him again for his 3rd year.

Attending university does not come without its challenges. The following is a quote from a report we received from Sai Oo regarding his experiences so far:

"I missed my refugee camp very much while living in University. Missing the place where I worked every day, missing the people I would meet every day. Usually, when I move to new place alone, I miss the old place and people very much. However, I followed my goal by thinking for the future and therefore could continue."

During October, Sai Oo will be taking his midterm examinations and we will make sure to keep you updated. Until then, we would like to thank you on behalf of Sai Oo for your generous support.

With gratitude,

Tom Rosen and The Branch Foundation Team

Links:

• The Branch Foundation's website
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The Branch Foundation, on behalf of Sai Oo, would once again like to thank you for your generous support towards this project. At this present point in time, Sai Oo is extremely busy revising for his forthcoming exams and preparing his end of term presentation however he did have the time to write this message for which he wanted me to pass onto you:

"So far the second semester is harder than first semester. There is a lot of focus on academic writing, which needs good references. It's a lot easier when we get to work as a team, however I often find my English abilities are the strongest therefore I do a lot of the work. Even though we are in our second term, us first year students are still ordered about by the second year students - if they say jump, we have to say how high.

It is important for me to study in University because I need to improve my skills in my interest of computers. My main aim is to use Information Technology to provide education to the children.  My newly learnt skills have already benefited positively to my community so far. For example, I recently completed a project for Computer Aided Instruction (CAI) to help with children’s education which is named the 'DeakDoy' (hill children) application."

It's plain to see from his message that he is dedicated to use the skills that he is learning at university to give back to his community, showing himself once again to be a selfless individual. We are honored to help him achieve his goals and are sincerely thankful that you have supported us in doing so.

We wish Sai Oo all the best for his end of term exams and look forward to keeping you updated in the future.

With gratitude,

Tom Rosen and The Branch Foundation Team