To have qualified for the CISB Academic Scholarships in the current academic year, students must have scored 50 or more out of 56! Our scholarship winners in Grade 10 have proven themselves within one of the world’s most academically rigorous programs, the MYP (Middle Years Programme), and we are so proud of their commitment! 

We asked our scholarship winners what it takes to achieve this academic success and their future goals.

How was it possible for you to reach such a high level of academic success this past year?

“My academic success in ninth grade was driven by the mindset of trying my best and trusting the process. This allowed me to believe and trust in myself, knowing that every assignment I had to complete would eventually be finished. Complementing a growth mindset, I also had to remain persistent even in difficult times of stress, tiredness, and occasionally facing criticism and self-doubt. Despite knowing that there would always be imperfections in my work, I took everything I could and could not achieve as a learning experience to remember moving forward. Thus, I took pride in my work and understood how to improve, motivating me to persist as a learner.”

Emily. S

“I think the main reason is motivation. All my friends gave their best effort for every assessment we had last year. Naturally, I tried harder under their influence. My motivation also led to better time management, which is why I achieved good academic results.”

Nicole. W

“I believe my attention to detail is my greatest asset in terms of academic success. I try to understand every aspect of the assignment to know what I need to do to get the desired result. Then, after I finish, I triple-check my work to ensure it’s at a level I am satisfied with before submitting.”

Karen. L

What advice would you give to other students who want to achieve scholarship-level academic results? 

“I would advise other students who wish to achieve scholarship-level results to not over-pressurize themselves since excessive stress would only bring drawbacks to motivation, affecting even the best work ethics. Therefore, begin with short-term and smaller goals instead of expecting and aiming for drastic improvement; development comes eventually, at a gradual pace. Moreover, maintain a positive mindset to bounce back from anything that does not go to plan or as expected. A school is a place for learning, which makes it normal to make mistakes and have improvement areas even if you’ve tried your best – There is no true perfection. Thus, all should strive to produce work to the best of their abilities and will inevitably be surprised at how far they will go. Additionally, always ask for help if needed as it would provide direction and greater clarity of objectives and expectations.”

Emily. S

“Good time management is crucial to achieving good academic results. Good time management ensures that you have enough time for assessments/exams and therefore secures your performance. Additionally, if you have extra time before the deadline, use this time to ask the teacher for feedback for improvements.”

Nicole. W

“My best advice to anyone would be to know exactly what you want to achieve. We all have limited time and energy, so it’s always good to have a goal and prioritize your tasks accordingly. This will give you an idea of what to focus on to reach your goal so you won’t spread yourself too thin by pouring all your energy into every task.” 
Karen. L

What are your future academic goals?

“I have two personal academic goals which I am working towards related to work ethic. First, I want to be able to distribute my work progress realistically over the course of several days instead of intense, short-term work for my assignments. Secondly, I am striving to become more balanced by developing my time management skills to minimize the amount of time needed to produce high-quality work and still be able to continue pursuing my passions and extracurriculars.” 
Emily. S

“I would like to improve on English and Chinese, especially in structured writing, as it is a general skill that can be applied in all subjects. I also want to continue expanding my knowledge in math beyond what will be taught in high school. Finally, this year I want to focus on balancing academics with non-academic activities, like student council, school ensemble, and my hobbies.”

Nicole. W

“My ultimate goal as a student is to enjoy my academic journey and major in something I enjoy learning in university. Currently, that is mechanical engineering.”

Karen. L

Congratulations to these hard-working and high-achieving students. We look forward to sharing the stories of success from our Grade 11 scholarship winners soon.