STAR Media Group’s (SMG) first ever virtual education fair was a hit among students and parents.

The Star Virtual Education Fair (SVEF) – the largest in the country to date – “welcomed” 12,000 visitors and 260,000 webinar viewers, before drawing to a close last Sunday.

The fair was held from May 29 to May 31 but the website (https://staredufair.thestar.com.my/) will remain active until June 30 for students and parents to browse and seek useful information on universities, colleges, courses of interest and available scholarships.

Despite it being the first Star Education Fair hosted in cyberspace, i.Star Events Sdn Bhd general manager Jason Yap said the virtual fair was very well-received.

Visitors could easily access pertinent, up-to-date information from 44 local and foreign higher learning institutions with just a few clicks, he said.

The fair, he said, helped to connect people from 132 towns across Malaysia to over 115 foreign cities and promoted local institutions regionally.

“Most importantly, we were able to raise awareness among students on the scholarships that are available and the institutions that can lead them to achieving their dreams, ” he said.

The event saw exhibitors chatting and making appointments with some 1,000 students.

And, over 1,000 questions were asked and answered during the webinars.

Several participants expressed their satisfaction with the event on social media.

Among the comments received, said Yap, were that the fair and webinars were very accessible as there was no limitation in terms of time and logistics.

Other positive comments included a comment from a student who was happy that she could ask many questions during the webinars and receive immediate response from the Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

A teacher from Kuching said she would share the information obtained from the fair with her students at school, while a student from Bidor said she enjoyed the webinars and benefited from being able to replay the parts she missed.

Others praised SVEF’s navigation and interface, its user friendliness, the vast information available in real time, and the interesting webinars.

Thanking Uni Enrol for bringing its tech expertise and experience to the education sector by collaborating with SMG, Yap promised that the SVEF will be an even bigger, better and more exciting affair.