Two letters in Dr. Winch Sue’s name distinguish her from all other beauty queens. “Dr.”
Miss World Malaysia 2008 describes herself as a “mad doctor” and a passionate advocate for women in the field of education.
Dr. Hsu remembers being told in high school that women don’t need higher education. They just needed to get married and have children.
She set out to prove them wrong in a way that was as dazzling as the dresses she wore in past pageants.Listed in the Malaysian Book of Records as “Most Degrees Achieved by a Beauty Queen”.
So far, she has earned the following degrees:
- Obtained a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Reading, UK.
- Earned a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of the Sunshine Coast in Australia.
- in Business Strategy, Branding and Social Media from Open University Malaysia, Malaysia.
- He holds a master’s degree in music production, technology, and innovation from Berklee College of Music.
- Received a master’s degree fellowship in live music production from Berklee College of Music in the United States.
- in Art Production from Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain.
Although far from complete, Dr. Hsu plans to graduate six more Ph.D.s.
“When people ask me what my unique selling point is, I say it’s learning,” she says. “Everyone laughed at me back then, but it’s obvious now. Most beauty queens don’t choose to learn more.”
Dr. Soo earned his MBA from the University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia. He received his second of six degrees.Source: Dr. Sue Winch
After becoming a beauty queen, there is a career path, and common routes include modeling, publicist, and actress.
By taking a less conventional path, Dr. Hsu has amassed much, both as a person and as a professional.
Her in-laws degree helped her land a deal in the entertainment industry, and her MBA gave her the entrepreneurial know-how she needed to maintain and market her brand.
In fact, Dr. Hsu earned his MBA the same day he flew in. She will compete for the ultimate title against other Miss World in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Dr. Hsu represented Malaysia in the 2008 Miss World pageant held in Johannesburg, South Africa. Source: Dr. Sue Winch.
But wearing a crown doesn’t magically make your life better.
“We still have to work hard,” says Dr. Hsu. “When you win a title, you’re in the news for a year, or a month, or a week.”
“No matter what title you win, you tell yourself it’s only for one day. If you don’t have a new portfolio or new skills, you’ll be quickly replaced by someone else. . So I decided that, if anything, I could still rely on education.”
With that and a dream to pursue music, Dr. Hsu enrolled in the prestigious Berklee College of Music’s Master of Music Production, Technology, and Innovation program.
“I marketed myself as a producer,” says Dr. Hsu. “I wanted to learn technology and see how they do it and how they produce. I didn’t expect that to happen.”
The pageant was filled with women, but Dr. Hsu now finds herself in an environment dominated by her gender.
In 2017-18, while Dr. Hsu was pursuing his master’s degree at Berkeley, Women reportedly make up only 2.7% of the industry in the US..
Dr. Soo has personally experienced approximately 80% women in her undergraduate program, 50% in her master’s program, and 20% in her first doctoral program.
In Spain, just 10% of doctoral students are women, as is the case in Berklee’s music production program.
But that didn’t deter her from pursuing her goals.
A former beauty queen, Dr. Soo has released multiple albums as a singer and producer.Source: Dr. Sue Winch
From beauty queen to singer, producer and professor
When Dr. Su first pursued a music career in Malaysia, she set her sights on the vast Malay audience.
“I love the Malay language and wanted to make music in Malay,” she says. “A friend told me it was impossible for the Chinese to enter the market, but I admit I knew it would be difficult. But if I can make the impossible possible, others will It will be impossible to surpass it.”
Thanks to this tenacity and determination, Dr. Su was able to reinvent himself many times, especially in five countries with different levels of education.
“Leave your comfort zone,” she advises. “Leave the country and start from scratch. I exiled myself because I didn’t want to get comfortable. I didn’t want to. “Shok Sendiri” (Translation: to be full of oneself).
“My education is my intellectual property. I just want to see and learn from other people’s different perspectives.”
Winning Miss World Malaysia is just one of the many big goals Dr Hsu has for herself.Source: Dr. Sue Winch
By doing so, Sensei Sue has gained a wealth of experience and is returning the favor as a teacher.
Associate Professor in the Department of Creative Multimedia, Multimedia University Malaysia aims to teach students well.
“I used to tell myself that if people started recognizing me and my work, I would use this attention and push it toward a cause or purpose,” she says.
“I’ve been getting attention for a while now, so why not channel it into education?”
As a female public figure, Dr. Hsu strives to inspire inclusivity by highlighting the importance of women in education.
“Malaysia’s education system still needs a lot of work. We need to reinvent and innovate beyond the system. We need to work harder,” says Dr. Su.
“But I can’t fight alone. More women need to come on board and do their part because the more women we have, the more we can drive change.”
Sue likes to share the highlights and challenges of living abroad. Her goal is to show them that she got through them and emerged either unharmed or stronger.
“I hope that one day the next generation will not only be informed, but also educated on how to deal with the world,” she says.
“Seeing the students achieve their goals is so rewarding.”
Outside of academia, Dr. Hsu is making waves in a variety of industries.
Beauty queens wear many hats, including singers, recording artists, actresses, composers, celebrity chefs, hosts, and models.
Apart from winning the ‘Highest Degree Achieved by a Beauty Queen’ award in the Malaysian Book of Records, she has also won three other awards.
- “Miss World Malaysia’s first doctoral degree awarded”
- “Most degrees earned by a recording artist”
- “First Miss World Malaysia appointed as associate professor”
Ambitious and self-motivated, Dr. Hsu has a growing portfolio that will impress anyone.Source: Dr. Sue Winch
So here’s some advice for women out there from a crazy doctor and beauty queen.
“If you have a goal, you have to put in 400% of your effort. If you start with 100%, you might only give 80%. Things happen in life where you only give 40%. It’s okay to get lost temporarily, but you have to come back. Learn the skills to stand up for yourself and how to be independent in isolation. ”
As someone who started with her appearance, Dr. Hsu cautions against believing everything on social media. “Don’t be fooled by social media. Don’t be fooled by trends. Everything can change. If you have the strength to move forward in any situation, you can win the next game.”
And think of that “game” as something that will last a lifetime.
“And last but not least, you already have the courage to take the first step to do something,” she says.
“Results are not important. If you keep working hard, you will succeed someday, so aim for the long game.”