MISS Scotland 2015 Mhairi Fergusson has jetted off to China ahead of competing in the 65th Miss World 2015.

And learning some of the Chinese language and culture is one of the challenges she has set herself.

Miss World 2015 takes place in Sanya, China on December 19 and the fashion student at Glasgow Caledonian University is hoping to bring home the coveted crown.

Upon arriving in China, she will join contestants from 115 countries, and take part in a host of events in the month-long lead up to the grand finale show. The event is being held at the 3500-seat Beauty Crown Grand Theatre, which was built especially for the competition, in the Beauty Crown Sanya China resort, which will be hosting the event for the sixth time.

Sanya is located on Hainan island on the south coast of China, and is known as the tropical gateway to China. As well as travelling around the island and learning about her host country, Mhairi, from Stirling, will attend charity events, where she will share gifts with a Scottish twist and show off her new Chinese language skills, learned at the Chinese Centre in Stirling High School. Mhairi will also showcase her Scottish Highland Dancing talents after taking lessons from her friend and seven-time British Champion Danielle Barrett.

Importantly, the Miss World competition provides Mhairi with a platform to raise awareness of her work with epilepsy support charity the Muir Maxwell Trust, which also forms part of her Miss World ‘Beauty with a Purpose’ project too.

The charity has provided invaluable support and guidance to Mhairi, who was diagnosed with the condition when she was 12.

She said: “This past few months has been a complete whirlwind for me. To win Miss Scotland was incredible, and to now be packing my bags for Miss World 2015 is a dream come true – I’m aiming to do Scotland proud.

“I’m really looking forward to meeting all the other girls taking part – and it’ll be nice to learn about the Chinese culture and different interests everyone has. It’s definitely going to be hard work, but lots of fun too. I’ve set myself some ambitious targets – but I’m keen to share my knowledge of Scotland.

“I’m also really proud to be an ambassador for the Muir Maxwell Trust. One of my most important goals is to raise awareness of epilepsy – not only in Scotland, but globally. Taking part in Miss World can only help me achieve my aims and help me educate the public about epilepsy.

“The Muir Maxwell Trust is also my focus for the ‘Beauty with a Purpose’ part of Miss World – and I’m really looking forward to sharing my story, talking about my fundraising initiatives and, most of all, to just make a positive contribution in front of a global audience.

“Scotland might’ve never had a Miss World winner, but I’ll try my very best to change that. The support so far has been amazing.”