Bangkok--6 Feb--Mentor International After the debut of the documentary film “An Inconvenient Truth”, the world has woken up to the undeniable truth about environmental issues. Thailand is also a place where words like “global warming”, “climate change” and “sustainable energy” fly about everywhere. Both the government and business sectors show their serious concern about these issues by launching frequent campaigns in the belief that they will eventually heal the world. However, there is one ordinary young lady sufficiently advanced in her thinking to truly think and believe that global warming is a vitally important issue and that Thailand needs to find an alternative way to produce energy. Her name is Puu Nim. She was granted a scholarship by the EPSRC Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the UK Government's leading funding agency for research and training in engineering and the physical sciences, to study for a PhD in “Advanced control of active distribution networks” at the University of Edinburgh. The scholarship is worth 17,000 pounds sterling, approximately one million Thai baht. This “Dr-to-be” girl graduated from Sirindhorn International Institute of Technology, Thammasart University and continued her master's degree in sustainable energy at the University of Edinburgh. Today, we have an opportunity to talk with her so that she can share with us her experience and happiness in being in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland and the city in her real life fairy tale.Question1: Why Edinburgh?Because it's beautiful. It looks like a city in the fairy tale, there are castles, hills. Moreover, I wanted to learn about Scottish culture. I think it's interesting that Scottish men wear a skirt, which they call it “kilt”; although this is usually only on special occasions such as prom night.Question 2: What was your first impression upon arrival?Well, it has to go back to the first time when I arrived at the University of Edinburgh for an open day. That day I took the train to Edinburgh. When I walked out of the train station, making my way up to the University, along that road, the picture of the city revealed itself to my eyes. I saw a white cloud floating just above the castle. And I heard the sound of the Scottish bagpipes all the time and the cool wind blowing on my face and I just said to myself, this is what I'm looking for. It's beautiful and it feels as if I'm in a fairy tale.Question 3: What about the city and people?As I said, the city is beautiful, even though the weather is not so good. It's very cold and it rains most of the time. It's windy too. It is a bit warmer in September when you can see some sun light. The cost of living is not as expensive as in other capital cities such as Bangkok or London. Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland but it's different from Bangkok or New York or even London. There are castles and older architecture that people try to preserve as of old. There are not so many buildings and skyscrapers as in Bangkok. Most of all, Scottish people are indeed nice and kind.Question 4: And the University of Edinburgh?The University ranks in the first place among universities in Scotland and also ranks in the top five universities in United Kingdom. In the University of Edinburgh, there are about 30 Thai students. I think it's a good number because it's not too many or too few. So you can practice English and learn about a new culture. You won't have chance to talk with Thais much.The University of Edinburgh is well known not only for Engineering but also Medicine and Law.Question 5: What about your course of study?I chose Sustainable Energy. Before I decided to go for this course, I searched for lots of information. I would suggest you think of your course of study or what you would like to learn before deciding on which university you would like to attend. I was interested in energy since I was in my freshman year at SIIT. I think that energy that comes from fossil fuels will not last long. We shall have to find an alternative way to produce energy. Let's think about energy from wind or sun light. So that's the reason why I choose to continue my study in this course.Question 6: What did you feel when you got this great news?Happy! Very happy. I got this scholarship because my dissertation scored 75 points which was quite high. So my supervisor advised me to apply for this scholarship. He showed me what I would do if I was granted the scholarship and how much I would be paid. This scholarship is for a PhD degree. Actually, the money I will get is the same amount as UK and EU students will receive. However, the tuition fees for students who are not UK or EU citizens is much more expensive than of those UK and EU students. So I still have to use my own money but it's less when compared to the whole cost.Question 7: What you would say to one who wishes to study abroad and get a scholarship? Well, let's say you have to have good English and make a really big effort. I think having good English will make studying in class a bit easier for you. As for me, I admitted that I had studied English in university and many years in high school but I felt that was not enough. So I took an English course for 10 months in England before I went to the University. In that time, I chose to stay with a host family because I thought that when I got back from the English class I would have a chance to talk with English people some more. Moreover, I collected lots of information before I decided which way I would go. I went to Mentor International because I thought that they would provide solid advice for me and they did! I am so appreciative of Mentor and its staff, especially P' Puey. They helped me giving advice and information that I needed, sending in the application and taking care all the processes before I left Thailand. And they charged nothing. I mean they did it for me for free. I didn't have to pay a single Baht. When I was at University, I had to study hard. I think whoever would like success in studying abroad has to put a lot of effort on study and have to keep in mind that they go there because they want a degree. When you have problems, you should consult with your supervisor, they all are willing to help you. When I did my dissertation, I always consulted with my supervisor, to check that what I was doing was all right and met the supervisor's standards. For more information, please contact Mentor International at 02-255-5157-9 or visit www.mentor.ac For more information, please contact: Miss Ratchadaporn Pichaisriswad, Marketing & Public Relations Executive Mentor International Tel. 0-2255-5157-9