But a 'job shadowing' experience with Member of Parliament (MP) Dr Fatimah Abdul Lateef helped her to see there were others more unfortunate.

The Bedok Town Secondary School student now aims to be a policewoman to protect fellow citizens.

She is among the participants of a pilot programme empowering Malay and Muslim girls that was officially launched yesterday.

The progamme aims to provide role models to boost the girls' self-esteem and confidence and to motivate them to complete their secondary school education.

According to Ministry of Education statistics which tracks academic performance across ethnic groups, 83 per cent of Malay students are admitted to post-secondary institutions as compared to 90-odd per cent for other groups.

Read the full story in Friday's edition of The Straits Times.