HELP University’s psychology programme continues to lead the way as one of the largest in South East Asia, with over 1200 full time psychology students, offering Bachelor (Hons) and Masters programmes at its campus in Subang 2.
HELP was the first private university to offer Psychology in Malaysia and also the first non-Australian university to attain the Australian Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC) accreditation, in recognition of its top quality psychology programmes.
As the world is also going through rapid changes brought about by the 4th Industrial Revolution, fast evolving technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), robotics, and Big Data will all shape the future of psychology. To be ahead, HELP has introduced new technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR) systems to arm students with the latest technologies in the study of psychology.
The VR lab provides opportunities for students, faculty members, and collaborators to conduct their experiments with VR machines. In this lab, researchers can present an interactive virtual world where participants easily immerse themselves and feel reality using VR headsets and controllers.
Compared to conventional visual/auditory stimuli, VR programs can induce more varied, unique, or real psychological states in participants, which will be measured by the researchers. The VR lab also has a potential for clinical uses such as a treatment for phobias.
Another exciting development is the use of EEG or Electroencephalography machines, which measure brain activity and functions to provide practical lab sessions and expose students to research methods used in biopsychology and neuroscience.
It also serves as a collaborative research hub and facility for the faculty by providing brain response measures in the investigation of areas like memory, language, and attention – hence providing a more objective and precise measure than traditional self-reports.
Thus, with a cutting edge curriculum, it is no wonder that HELP Psychology graduates, both local and international, work in top consulting firms, including Accenture, Hewitt, McKinsey, Hay Group and Leaderonomics.
Justin Hiew Jian Han who joined a top consulting group as Senior Consultant, graduated from the HELP BPsych programme in 2014. Not only did Justin win the Top Consultant award for Malaysia in 2015 but was crowned Consultant of the Year across APAC in 2015.
Esther Goh, another successful HELP psychology graduate today works as Business Strategy Manager in another top corporate company and had this to say of her experience studying in HELP,
“Memorable would be the best word to describe the years I had as a HELP Psychology student. I learnt not just classroom theories of what Psychology is and isn’t, but was empowered by forward thinking lecturers who encouraged us to go above and beyond in our critical thinking and research capabilities,” said Esther.
Extreme left, Dr Goh Chee Leong with (centre) Professor Saths Cooper, President of the International Union of Psychological Sciences with HELP award winning students
HELP University’s Faculty of Behavioural Sciences is also staffed by many promising and talented psychology students who have gone on to complete their PhDs but never forgetting their Alma Mater, HELP University (HU). Among those who chose to come back and serve are Dr Ng Siew Li and Dr Eugene Tee Yu Jin, who today lecture HELP undergraduates and postgraduates in various fields of psychology.
Today Dr Ng serves as Lecturer at the Faculty of Behavioural Sciences, HU located in Subang 2 and currently lectures and supervises students in the Master of Clinical Psychology program. A graduate of HELP University’s Bachelor of Psychology (Hons) programme with First Class Honours, Dr Ng went on to receive a Fulbright Scholarship to study her PhD in Clinical Psychology in Central Michigan University, United States of America. Upon completion of her PhD, Dr Ng chose to return to HELP to contribute to the training of new generations of clinical psychologists to fulfil the pressing need for trained mental health professionals in the country.
Dr Eugene Tee, Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Behavioural Sciences, HU, completed his PhD in Management at UQ in 2011. Dr Tee completed an undergraduate degree in Business at HELP in 2002 and then went on to complete his Bachelor of Business (Management) with First Class Honours at the University of Queensland in 2006. His supervisor encouraged him to consider a PhD in Management, which he completed.
His career path begun at HELP in 2011 and he has been teaching for over 7 years. A highly accomplished academic, he has published in top-ranking journals such as Leadership Quarterly, and presents his research regularly at regional and international conferences. He has also recently published a book on the science of emotions, along with another prolific HELP academic, Dr Choy Tsee Leng, a PhD from McMaster University, Canada, who also heads the department’s EEG lab.
For more information on the Psychology programmes offered at HELP University, Subang 2 campus, please call the HELP line on 03-27162000 or email elaine.fernandez@help.eu.my or visit our university website at www.help.edu.my