KOTA KINABALU, MALAYSIA - The competitiveness of a Chinese school education is paying off for 18-year-old Noraudi Imus.

The former Kian Kok Middle School student emerged one of Sabah's top students in last year's SPM exam when she scored 12 A1s and is now looking forward to studying medicine thanks to a scholarship from Yayasan Sabah.

For Noruadi, of Kadazandusun and Indonesian parentage, studying in a Chinese school prompted her to "go the extra mile."

"I had to work extra hard to compete with my classmates. And I'm so grateful to my parents for encouraging me to study in a Chinese school," said Noruadi, who intends to pursue her medical studies in Russia.

She was among the 25 top Sabah students who were presented with the Yayasan Sabah education scholarships by Chief Minister Datuk Musa Aman on Tuesday.

Noruadi's mother tongue is Bahasa Malaysia but she is also fluent in English, Mandarin and Hakka and knows "a little bit of Cantonese."

Growing up in Tuaran district where her father, Imus Onsiang, works as a state Agriculture Department officer and her mother, Syafnidar Syahroeddin, serves as a teacher, Noruadi had many Chinese friends.

"So it seemed natural to join them when they went to a Chinese kindergarten and later at the SJK(C) Chen Sin primary school before doing my secondary studies as Kian Kok," she said.

Earlier in his speech, Musa said the state and federal governments were focusing on improving education in the country, but parents, civil servants and NGOs such as parent-teacher associations must also do their part.

He said the Education Department for example should step up its inspection of schools to ensure that facilities for students such as tables and chairs were sufficient.