Kuala Lumpur: Timothy Lim is a perfect example of an all-rounder and one of the few Malaysians to be accept by not one, but 3 top universities i the world.
A student at the prestigious Harrow School in Britian, he has been offered places in Oxford, Harvard and Stanford to further his studies in Biomedical engineering.
Being a top-grade musician, an ardent sprtsman and having a heart for helping others, Lim believes it was not only his 11 distinctions in the O levels which helped him gain entry into the universities.
"universities do not just look at academic result,"he said. "Grades are importang but there are so many who have excellent grades. Universities also look at the person’s character," added the 17year-old. Lim is also a gifted musician who plays the piano, violin, and guitar.
He leads the Harrow School Orchestra and is part of a piano trio that have been winning finalists in the UK National Schools Chamber Music Competition.
Lim was selected to play in the KL symphony Orchestra and the Asian Youth Orchestra. He was in a band which performed with jazz musicians Al Jarreau at one of the star’s concert. Lim is also an athlete and has competed in long jump at the national level (in Britian).
He also plays rugby, badminton, football and extreme sports. Last year, Lim took part in an expedition to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro to raise money for the Mvumi School in Tanzania.
He went on a trip to Phnom Penh in Cambodia to teach abandoned street children English and music. Lim said that to do well in anything, it is important to enjoy oneself. "The thing is not to do too much of everthing but to do the things you enjoy. I see some people work so hard and if things go wrong, they get disappointed.
If anything goes wrong, at least I had fun doing it. You learn to appreciate what you have. Everything I do, all my achievements i give glory to God," he said. His ambition is to be a biomedical engineer.
"I feel i can make a difference in improving the quality of life," Lim said. Last year, he and a team in a school engineering project, designed and built an underground air-cooling system to be used in a desert environment as a low energy alternative to air-conditioning. Although it will be a tough decision, Lim said he is inclined to choose Stamford University.
His father, Dr C. J. Lim, a medical doctor-turned-investment manager, said he is "amazed" at his son’s achievements. "His school master siad he studies really hard but when he comes home during the holidays, i do not see him do much studying. When i see him at home, he is going out with friends, relaxing enjoying himself,doing what normal teenagers do," the older Lim quipped.
