Hectic. One word is enough to sum up all the things that have been going on here, in Penang Matriculation College (PMC). As a matter of fact, I’m currently stealing a fraction of my precious time to brag a little about my life, which in fact, is another form of waste of time. Heck, I should be studying in my room or in the chilly library (it’s freaking cold in there). Apparently, I’m blogging directly from one of the college’s cybercafé which imposed a charge of RM 2 per use. I’ve been experiencing emotional turmoil since the first time I stepped foot in this college. I’ve never been away from my family for such an extended period (two weeks and two days till date), and being the youngest and paling “manja”, I find life in PMC to be extremely tough and challenging. Each day, I’d force myself to take cold shower at around 5am, while others were still asleep. I count myself quite fortunate as I can still drink iced coffee on a daily basis since the cafeteria here sells ice for only 10 cents. Class would commence as early as 8am and last till 4pm, except on Thursdays whereby it ends by 5pm.
I was taken aback by the fact that my matriculation syllabus is more or less similar to Form 6 syllabus. The only difference is that our examinations are carried out on a semester basis whereby any topics tested in the first semester will not be questioned in second semester’s exam.
Besides that, I’m the only Chinese and non-bumiputera in my class, which totaled to 24. Initially, there were 27 in total, but unfortunately, my ex-primary schoolmate (Aqram) left PMC after receiving a MARA scholarship to do medicine, together with another malay girl (Mira). The other Chinese girl was another successful JPA scholar (India medic) whom decided to take a “little vacation” here while waiting for her offer letter. Her vacation period, however, ended last week. There are also quite a number of JPA scholars still undertaking matriculation here after receiving their offer letters. They decided to stay a lil longer till their studies commence next month. [Idiots! You know you got JPA, pergi belah-lah, biarlah orang lain buat matric]. Who says that matriculation students don’t stand a chance for JPA scholarship? That’s plain bullshit. What surprised me the most was that someone with a 2A in biology was awarded the scholarship (9 1A, 2A2) despite the fact that there are other straight 1A’s scorer being deprived of the scholarship.
I find it hard to form new friendships here as most of the chinese prefer to speak in mandarin. At times, I was left out totally as I couldn't understand their mandarin (different accent). So far, I only have one close friend, who originated from pahang. His dad's an indian while his mom a chinese. Mind you, he speaks fluent cantonese, mandarin and english. Will update more later...
That's all for now. Good luck to those in Form 6.
Tuesday, 29 May 2007
Monday, 7 May 2007
United 300
I watched this short sketch at Yahoo! Video (Singapore) recently, and it was totally awesome. It features the original cast of 300 (the movie) and the acting is simply hilarious (especially when Xerxes commenting Leonidas on his yelling). Hope you guys enjoy it.
video link -> http://sg.video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=457131
[P.S. I'm freaking frustrated; blogger can't embed Yahoo! video clips !]
video link -> http://sg.video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=457131
[P.S. I'm freaking frustrated; blogger can't embed Yahoo! video clips !]
Friday, 4 May 2007
Lost
10 DAYS
That’s the precise amount of time left for me to mess around before departing to Penang for 1 whole year. I simply couldn’t picture myself living in a not-so-foreign land (I’ll still be in Malaysia) for such an extended period, and without any close companion. Imagine the hassle of forging new friendship (with a majority of Malays), living alone and having to do laundry myself. I’m a spoiled brat; seldom does household chores, let alone washing my own clothes (There’s a washing machine wert). One thing I can safely affirm without doubt is that matriculation will surely be much easier compared to Form 6, not to mention a shorter time span too. But, I’ll definitely miss my town’s famous Bah Kut Teh (certified non-halal) and the delicious coffee brew from Old Town Coffee shop. I’ve only been to Penang once in my entire life, later being my second time around, yet this whole experience is in some way portrayal of the mini-series Lost (only at the beginning of the series though). It’s a serial drama television series about a group of plane crash survivors living on a mysterious tropical island. Unfortunately, the entire storyline evolved into something overly complex and nonsensical to believe in. Bottom line, it kicked off with a blast, but ended up disastrous. Haha…Hopefully, I won’t end up like the series; start off brilliantly and end off splendidly, that’s more like it.
A few weeks have passed since I received the offer for matriculation, and my parents have bought me a lot of things to bring along. I’ll only highlight a few materials categorised under ‘necessities’, in which undoubtedly be my 60-day supply of 3-in-1 Nescafe (3 big packets) and a “dog-bone”-shaped pillow (costing around RM15). I actually don’t need the pillow, but since my brother has it, so would I. Ekekek…In the past, you can easily get one from Tesco but it’s only available at The Store Centrepoint for now.
P.S. Old Town’s White Coffee is priced at rm2.50 (including tax) for a cold, regular-size brew. Try it, you’ll love it!
(Free ad)…
That’s the precise amount of time left for me to mess around before departing to Penang for 1 whole year. I simply couldn’t picture myself living in a not-so-foreign land (I’ll still be in Malaysia) for such an extended period, and without any close companion. Imagine the hassle of forging new friendship (with a majority of Malays), living alone and having to do laundry myself. I’m a spoiled brat; seldom does household chores, let alone washing my own clothes (There’s a washing machine wert). One thing I can safely affirm without doubt is that matriculation will surely be much easier compared to Form 6, not to mention a shorter time span too. But, I’ll definitely miss my town’s famous Bah Kut Teh (certified non-halal) and the delicious coffee brew from Old Town Coffee shop. I’ve only been to Penang once in my entire life, later being my second time around, yet this whole experience is in some way portrayal of the mini-series Lost (only at the beginning of the series though). It’s a serial drama television series about a group of plane crash survivors living on a mysterious tropical island. Unfortunately, the entire storyline evolved into something overly complex and nonsensical to believe in. Bottom line, it kicked off with a blast, but ended up disastrous. Haha…Hopefully, I won’t end up like the series; start off brilliantly and end off splendidly, that’s more like it.
A few weeks have passed since I received the offer for matriculation, and my parents have bought me a lot of things to bring along. I’ll only highlight a few materials categorised under ‘necessities’, in which undoubtedly be my 60-day supply of 3-in-1 Nescafe (3 big packets) and a “dog-bone”-shaped pillow (costing around RM15). I actually don’t need the pillow, but since my brother has it, so would I. Ekekek…In the past, you can easily get one from Tesco but it’s only available at The Store Centrepoint for now.
P.S. Old Town’s White Coffee is priced at rm2.50 (including tax) for a cold, regular-size brew. Try it, you’ll love it!
(Free ad)…
Sunday, 29 April 2007
Friday (29/4/2007)
My brother woke me up today, at around 8a.m. It was significantly early, but the thought of seeing my ex-teachers again in school promptly awaken my frail human senses. He was to meet up with Mr. Loh (similar surname) to discuss about his job as a temporary teacher in school, however he wasn’t around. Unexpectedly, all my teachers were very busy, even though it was ironic since I saw some classes without teachers and some of the students, like usual, were fooling around like nobody’s business. Had they realised how tough life could get without excellent SPM results, I bet the situation will be much better than now.
After my brother found out that Mr. Loh wasn’t around, he left me to rot in school. Alright, I’m just kidding. Actually, I was left alone in school while he visited his other ex-teachers at STAR school. Unfortunately, I wandered aimlessly around my school, trying hard to relive my sweet memories of schooling as my teachers were busy in their work. Gosh, that might had taken awhile until Pn. Lim (my school counsellor) ushered me into the counselling room for some friendly talk on my future plans. Later that day, we left school at around 11 a.m. My brother only managed to leave a written note to Mr. Loh, regarding his job appointment.
Next, we returned home to fetch my mom to Jusco, Bukit Raja. It was mainly due to my bad habit of buying books, whether relevant or irrelevant books; a dire condition that persisted since I entered Form 1, sigh. I bought two STPM books, knowing I’m going to pursue matriculation programme and consequently, we had to travel all the way to Jusco just to exchange them for a MUET book, a Chemistry Matriculation syllabus book and one stack of paper. What a hassle…
We had lunch at pizza hut and went home soon after. Nothing special or interesting later on…mundane routine lagi
After my brother found out that Mr. Loh wasn’t around, he left me to rot in school. Alright, I’m just kidding. Actually, I was left alone in school while he visited his other ex-teachers at STAR school. Unfortunately, I wandered aimlessly around my school, trying hard to relive my sweet memories of schooling as my teachers were busy in their work. Gosh, that might had taken awhile until Pn. Lim (my school counsellor) ushered me into the counselling room for some friendly talk on my future plans. Later that day, we left school at around 11 a.m. My brother only managed to leave a written note to Mr. Loh, regarding his job appointment.
Next, we returned home to fetch my mom to Jusco, Bukit Raja. It was mainly due to my bad habit of buying books, whether relevant or irrelevant books; a dire condition that persisted since I entered Form 1, sigh. I bought two STPM books, knowing I’m going to pursue matriculation programme and consequently, we had to travel all the way to Jusco just to exchange them for a MUET book, a Chemistry Matriculation syllabus book and one stack of paper. What a hassle…
We had lunch at pizza hut and went home soon after. Nothing special or interesting later on…mundane routine lagi
Friday, 27 April 2007
Tuesday (24/4/2007)
It was yet another boring day. As usual, I didn’t help my mom with her daily household chores, such as sweeping floor, mopping floor, wiping sofas etc. etc. Reasons? Well, there weren’t any acceptable reasons other than excuses. I slept very late at night and as a result, I woke up late in the morning, occasionally as late as 11 a.m. Sometimes, I wondered if I’m comparable with a pig, only to find out that humans sleep as much as pigs do, which is an average of 8 hours per day. So that means everyone sleeps like a pig, great news to all. Better think twice before condemning your friends’ sleeping pattern.
After taking in an icy cold cup of Nescafe, I sensed a sudden rush of adrenaline in my body likened to drinking tonic or sniffing Ice (Syabu or meta-amphetamine). I felt so refreshed and rejuvenated, although my blurry eyes seemed to indicate the opposite. Later on, I waited patiently for my friend, Thinesh to pick me up at my home as we had earlier planned to pay my tuition teacher, Pn. Sunita a surprise visit. Apparently, it was delayed till 2 p.m. because her chemistry class usually began at 3 p.m. However, we still managed to visit Pn. Asiah (my two-month BM tuition teacher), which was totally unplanned. We chatted for around 30 minutes, with me dominating the entire session. It’s like attending an interview, but the scenario was completely reversed. Rather than answering questions, I was forced to come up with questions to maintain the conversation. It appeared as if someone has bought my friend’s silent since he rarely spoke throughout the time. Guess what? She still remembered my name; it was odd and unexpected in view of the fact that she hadn’t called me by my name in class but rather summoned me by my shirt colour or my lefty attribute (budak baju kuning tu, or budak tangan kidal!). She offered us some words of encouragement and advised us to work harder and that everything else is rezeki.
After that, Thinesh decided to have his lunch at Modern Restaurant while I ordered myself a cup of ice-lemon tea. I could barely drink another cup of coffee; the caffeine had indeed made me slightly drowsy and giddy. Worst of all, I was slightly feverish at that time, probably got infected through my student. After lunch, we waited for quite some time at Pusat Tuisyen Formula to meet up Pn. Sunita. This time around, she dominated the entire conversation, leaving me and Thinesh slightly dumbfounded. To my surprise, I was told that none of her 4 flat (CGPA : 4.00) students who did matriculation were offered medicine as their preferred choice of course at IPTA. Now, I’m starting to have second thoughts of pursuing sains hayat (life sciences) at matriculation level. According to her, scoring a 4 flat at STPM for biology stream will definitely guarantee the candidate a spot for medical studies at local IPTA whereas scoring 4 flat at matriculation will only carry a 50-50 chances of getting into a medical school. To me, it makes no difference although STPM is widely recognised by almost all institutions of higher learning because I don’t intend to pursue my course at IPTS or overseas. Furthermore, the chances of getting a 4 flat in STPM are almost negligible. Reason; the difficulty to secure 4 flat for STPM is in some way analogues to the difficulty of securing a placement in medical school through matriculation even with a 4 flat. Therefore, STPM and matriculation are equally risky and uncertain. DAMN!
Sigh, the whole conversation seemed to revolve around the issue of matriculation, frequented with students arriving for her 3pm class. We bid farewell and shook hands (like real interviews) at the end of the “reunion”. After reaching home, it’s routine as usual, dinner…read newspaper…and sleeping…
P.S. Pn Sunita has started her Chemistry STPM classes; it’s held on every Fridays for two hours and the monthly fees are RM60/ person. For more info, contact her or ask me if you need her cellphone number.
http://www.sleepco.us/sleep_info_facts.html - similarity between humans and pigs in terms of sleeping regime
After taking in an icy cold cup of Nescafe, I sensed a sudden rush of adrenaline in my body likened to drinking tonic or sniffing Ice (Syabu or meta-amphetamine). I felt so refreshed and rejuvenated, although my blurry eyes seemed to indicate the opposite. Later on, I waited patiently for my friend, Thinesh to pick me up at my home as we had earlier planned to pay my tuition teacher, Pn. Sunita a surprise visit. Apparently, it was delayed till 2 p.m. because her chemistry class usually began at 3 p.m. However, we still managed to visit Pn. Asiah (my two-month BM tuition teacher), which was totally unplanned. We chatted for around 30 minutes, with me dominating the entire session. It’s like attending an interview, but the scenario was completely reversed. Rather than answering questions, I was forced to come up with questions to maintain the conversation. It appeared as if someone has bought my friend’s silent since he rarely spoke throughout the time. Guess what? She still remembered my name; it was odd and unexpected in view of the fact that she hadn’t called me by my name in class but rather summoned me by my shirt colour or my lefty attribute (budak baju kuning tu, or budak tangan kidal!). She offered us some words of encouragement and advised us to work harder and that everything else is rezeki.
After that, Thinesh decided to have his lunch at Modern Restaurant while I ordered myself a cup of ice-lemon tea. I could barely drink another cup of coffee; the caffeine had indeed made me slightly drowsy and giddy. Worst of all, I was slightly feverish at that time, probably got infected through my student. After lunch, we waited for quite some time at Pusat Tuisyen Formula to meet up Pn. Sunita. This time around, she dominated the entire conversation, leaving me and Thinesh slightly dumbfounded. To my surprise, I was told that none of her 4 flat (CGPA : 4.00) students who did matriculation were offered medicine as their preferred choice of course at IPTA. Now, I’m starting to have second thoughts of pursuing sains hayat (life sciences) at matriculation level. According to her, scoring a 4 flat at STPM for biology stream will definitely guarantee the candidate a spot for medical studies at local IPTA whereas scoring 4 flat at matriculation will only carry a 50-50 chances of getting into a medical school. To me, it makes no difference although STPM is widely recognised by almost all institutions of higher learning because I don’t intend to pursue my course at IPTS or overseas. Furthermore, the chances of getting a 4 flat in STPM are almost negligible. Reason; the difficulty to secure 4 flat for STPM is in some way analogues to the difficulty of securing a placement in medical school through matriculation even with a 4 flat. Therefore, STPM and matriculation are equally risky and uncertain. DAMN!
Sigh, the whole conversation seemed to revolve around the issue of matriculation, frequented with students arriving for her 3pm class. We bid farewell and shook hands (like real interviews) at the end of the “reunion”. After reaching home, it’s routine as usual, dinner…read newspaper…and sleeping…
P.S. Pn Sunita has started her Chemistry STPM classes; it’s held on every Fridays for two hours and the monthly fees are RM60/ person. For more info, contact her or ask me if you need her cellphone number.
http://www.sleepco.us/sleep_info_facts.html - similarity between humans and pigs in terms of sleeping regime
Wednesday, 25 April 2007
YouTube...
It’s arguably agreeable that YouTube has been created for the sole purpose of entertainment and money. Upon further research and firm analysis, I utterly disagree with it, but would rather point out that YouTube is created on the basis of money and entertainment as its primary objective (but not 'sole purpose' as intended)
[1If it is not for money, then YouTube will not be created in the first place.] Let’s face it; if there’s no money, would YouTube exist in the first place? YouTube, like any other internet businesses, emphasizes greatly on the importance of profit-making. Business itself clearly defines as 2 the activity of making, buying, selling or supplying goods or services for money. As such, internet businesses (Google, YouTube etc.) should be held accountable under such definition and not be criticised for making millions or billions in revenue.
Aside from money-making, YouTube also creates an excellent avenue for amateur videographers to publicise their works for public viewing besides enabling vast audiences to comment on the quality of the videos produced and gauging the popularity of such videos through in-built hit counters. For instance, Haffizzuddin Zakaria got into YouTube almost a year ago and posted a song called Right Here, which received numerous positive feedbacks from his first video posting thus inspired him to rope up in his friends to make more videos to upload on the site 3. Moreover, YouTube provides ample job opportunities to run its core business, aside from creating new opportunities for visual-enthusiasts to market themselves through YouTube.
The video-embedding feature also enables all videos to be streamed anywhere, likewise at MySpace and Friendster, just to name a few. As most email providers restricts users from sending files exceeding 10MB, YouTube extends the capacity by providing a massive 100 MB or 10-minute limitation for all videos7 to permit users to send in and view large video files.
YouTube users have been increasing on a rapid rate, with users now watching more than 100 million videos per day4. With such a huge audience, amateur videographers are indeed making their presence felt through their video or films, in addition to providing a safe testing ground for filmmakers to observe how they fare in pursuing their passion for visuals. [5The most significant one will be the 44-second film showing graffiti over the king's face…] As opposed, YouTube has pledged evidently that it’s against defamatory, unlawful and copyrighted materials as stated in its terms of use and community guidelines. Although certain copyrighted materials are found lingering on its site, nevertheless YouTube has always uphold its responsibility to remove such contents on a regular basis 6.
Undoubtedly, it would be practically impossible and illogical for YouTube to eradicate them as soon as they’re uploaded. On your accounts of inaccurate medical information being circulated through YouTube, YouTube certainly doesn’t constitute a qualified medical information website for public to gain information on related health issues. As such, parents, as matured human beings, alike should be wise enough to seek professional advice on such an important issue.
1, 5 Excerpt from Yueh Phing’s article (YouTube)
2 Source: Oxford Advanced Learners’ Dictionary
3 The Star, StarTwo, page 2, 25/4/2007
4 Traffic monitor Hitwise, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5186618.stm
5 http://www.youtube.com/t/terms
6 http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?answer=55777&topic=10551
7 http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?answer=55743&topic=10527
This article is composed in opposed to Yueh Phing’s article (YouTube) available for public viewing at http://interestinghappenings.blogspot.com/2007/04/youtube.html . This article is intended purely an opinion and shouldn’t be held liable for any discrepancy, if present. It’s mainly my two cents' worth.
[1If it is not for money, then YouTube will not be created in the first place.] Let’s face it; if there’s no money, would YouTube exist in the first place? YouTube, like any other internet businesses, emphasizes greatly on the importance of profit-making. Business itself clearly defines as 2 the activity of making, buying, selling or supplying goods or services for money. As such, internet businesses (Google, YouTube etc.) should be held accountable under such definition and not be criticised for making millions or billions in revenue.
Aside from money-making, YouTube also creates an excellent avenue for amateur videographers to publicise their works for public viewing besides enabling vast audiences to comment on the quality of the videos produced and gauging the popularity of such videos through in-built hit counters. For instance, Haffizzuddin Zakaria got into YouTube almost a year ago and posted a song called Right Here, which received numerous positive feedbacks from his first video posting thus inspired him to rope up in his friends to make more videos to upload on the site 3. Moreover, YouTube provides ample job opportunities to run its core business, aside from creating new opportunities for visual-enthusiasts to market themselves through YouTube.
The video-embedding feature also enables all videos to be streamed anywhere, likewise at MySpace and Friendster, just to name a few. As most email providers restricts users from sending files exceeding 10MB, YouTube extends the capacity by providing a massive 100 MB or 10-minute limitation for all videos7 to permit users to send in and view large video files.
YouTube users have been increasing on a rapid rate, with users now watching more than 100 million videos per day4. With such a huge audience, amateur videographers are indeed making their presence felt through their video or films, in addition to providing a safe testing ground for filmmakers to observe how they fare in pursuing their passion for visuals. [5The most significant one will be the 44-second film showing graffiti over the king's face…] As opposed, YouTube has pledged evidently that it’s against defamatory, unlawful and copyrighted materials as stated in its terms of use and community guidelines. Although certain copyrighted materials are found lingering on its site, nevertheless YouTube has always uphold its responsibility to remove such contents on a regular basis 6.
Undoubtedly, it would be practically impossible and illogical for YouTube to eradicate them as soon as they’re uploaded. On your accounts of inaccurate medical information being circulated through YouTube, YouTube certainly doesn’t constitute a qualified medical information website for public to gain information on related health issues. As such, parents, as matured human beings, alike should be wise enough to seek professional advice on such an important issue.
1, 5 Excerpt from Yueh Phing’s article (YouTube)
2 Source: Oxford Advanced Learners’ Dictionary
3 The Star, StarTwo, page 2, 25/4/2007
4 Traffic monitor Hitwise, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5186618.stm
5 http://www.youtube.com/t/terms
6 http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?answer=55777&topic=10551
7 http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?answer=55743&topic=10527
This article is composed in opposed to Yueh Phing’s article (YouTube) available for public viewing at http://interestinghappenings.blogspot.com/2007/04/youtube.html . This article is intended purely an opinion and shouldn’t be held liable for any discrepancy, if present. It’s mainly my two cents' worth.
Tuesday, 17 April 2007
Yayasan TNB scholarship interview - My experience
“Early to bed, early to rise, keeps one healthy and wise”
I’ve been sleeping very late at night on a regular basis, slightly after 1 a.m. Gosh, my internal biology clock is in ruins due to my terrible sleeping regime. That’s why I’d decided to sleep early at 9 pm last night, skipping the 2nd episode of Prison Break season 2 for the sake of my health (I’m a die-hard of this series).
Alright, I’m just kidding!
I was forced to sleep early in preparation of another interview for the Yayasan Tenaga Nasional scholarship. Immediately after Buletin Utama ended, I dozed off in my room only to be awakened again at 1am, then at 2am, and lastly at 3.45am (just a mere, rough assumption). I guessed my mind was too clogged up with the interview and matriculation intake list that was due to be released on the same day. I got up at 3.45am and switched on my computer, knowing that the matriculation list was out by then (a sudden surge of instinct told me so).
And then,
GOOD NEWS for me, I’m selected to undergo the matriculation course at the Penang Matriculation College for a year. In actual fact, I didn’t apply Penang as one of the 3 preferred choices (they were Pahang, Melaka and Negeri Sembilan) but somehow, the ministry decided to place me there. I was so delighted, jumping wildly like a 3-year old boy (overly exaggerated) upon knowing the news. I walked over to my parents’ bedroom and woke them up, informing them the good news. For this year, there are 24 000 places available for the programme scheduled to begin on May 14th, 2007. Of 24 000 places, 10 percents are awarded to non-bumiputera students. So, I’m one of the 2 400 selected ones from non-bumiputera of about 400 000 SPM 2006 candidates in total. It felt like striking a lottery card.
It was already 4 am, but I could hardly sleep after that (my parents too!). My parents and I just chatted on many things till 5 am. Then, I got myself ready for the interview (i.e. bathing, combing, brushing teeth and shaving too). After taking my breakfast (a cup of icy-cold Nescafe – my favourite), my dad decided it was time to leave home for UNITEN, fearing that a traffic jam would occur at the HICOM interchange. We arrived in UNITEN at 6.45 am, which was slightly more than one hour earlier than my schedule time, at 8 am. Initially, I thought UNITEN is an undersized university with only a single building. I was so damn wrong; the university area is in fact as huge as UPM’s main campus. At first, we were lost in direction while searching for Yayasan Tenaga Nasional office because the lack of signboards in the university. Thankfully, after some help from a kind guard, we were able to locate the office which turned out to be a two-storey building – the lower flour was totally inaccessible.
After a short briefing, we were ushered into a meeting room whereby all candidates were required to complete three tests; verbal reasoning, verbal comprehension and a short personality test. Each test had to be completed in 10 minutes. Then, we waited patiently to be called for the interview with three high-profile executives. At about 10 am, I was called up for the interview. It was a 3-vs-1(me) interview, unlike JPA which was done in groups of seven. Indeed, this YTN scholarship interview provided me with a real interview experience, similar to a job interview.
Firstly, the interviewer (a Caucasian clad in black tuxedo) questioned me on why they should award me the scholarship. After giving them two reasons to support my answer, I was taunted about my ability of marketing myself. My mind was rather frustrated at that moment; nevertheless I kept giving them a few more reasons just to satisfy them. Next, I was shocked by his second question. He enquired about my Moral results (I scored 2A) – “why did you get A2 for moral? I answered him in a calm manner, citing the difficulty of the questions, answering techniques and a sudden change in question format. Several questions followed up, regarding national service, civic duties, any information on TNB corporation and so forth. I do admit that I fumbled slightly during the course of interview, especially on TNB objectives and core business information. Nonetheless, it’s a truly rewarding experience for me.
I’ve been sleeping very late at night on a regular basis, slightly after 1 a.m. Gosh, my internal biology clock is in ruins due to my terrible sleeping regime. That’s why I’d decided to sleep early at 9 pm last night, skipping the 2nd episode of Prison Break season 2 for the sake of my health (I’m a die-hard of this series).
Alright, I’m just kidding!
I was forced to sleep early in preparation of another interview for the Yayasan Tenaga Nasional scholarship. Immediately after Buletin Utama ended, I dozed off in my room only to be awakened again at 1am, then at 2am, and lastly at 3.45am (just a mere, rough assumption). I guessed my mind was too clogged up with the interview and matriculation intake list that was due to be released on the same day. I got up at 3.45am and switched on my computer, knowing that the matriculation list was out by then (a sudden surge of instinct told me so).
And then,
GOOD NEWS for me, I’m selected to undergo the matriculation course at the Penang Matriculation College for a year. In actual fact, I didn’t apply Penang as one of the 3 preferred choices (they were Pahang, Melaka and Negeri Sembilan) but somehow, the ministry decided to place me there. I was so delighted, jumping wildly like a 3-year old boy (overly exaggerated) upon knowing the news. I walked over to my parents’ bedroom and woke them up, informing them the good news. For this year, there are 24 000 places available for the programme scheduled to begin on May 14th, 2007. Of 24 000 places, 10 percents are awarded to non-bumiputera students. So, I’m one of the 2 400 selected ones from non-bumiputera of about 400 000 SPM 2006 candidates in total. It felt like striking a lottery card.
It was already 4 am, but I could hardly sleep after that (my parents too!). My parents and I just chatted on many things till 5 am. Then, I got myself ready for the interview (i.e. bathing, combing, brushing teeth and shaving too). After taking my breakfast (a cup of icy-cold Nescafe – my favourite), my dad decided it was time to leave home for UNITEN, fearing that a traffic jam would occur at the HICOM interchange. We arrived in UNITEN at 6.45 am, which was slightly more than one hour earlier than my schedule time, at 8 am. Initially, I thought UNITEN is an undersized university with only a single building. I was so damn wrong; the university area is in fact as huge as UPM’s main campus. At first, we were lost in direction while searching for Yayasan Tenaga Nasional office because the lack of signboards in the university. Thankfully, after some help from a kind guard, we were able to locate the office which turned out to be a two-storey building – the lower flour was totally inaccessible.
After a short briefing, we were ushered into a meeting room whereby all candidates were required to complete three tests; verbal reasoning, verbal comprehension and a short personality test. Each test had to be completed in 10 minutes. Then, we waited patiently to be called for the interview with three high-profile executives. At about 10 am, I was called up for the interview. It was a 3-vs-1(me) interview, unlike JPA which was done in groups of seven. Indeed, this YTN scholarship interview provided me with a real interview experience, similar to a job interview.
Firstly, the interviewer (a Caucasian clad in black tuxedo) questioned me on why they should award me the scholarship. After giving them two reasons to support my answer, I was taunted about my ability of marketing myself. My mind was rather frustrated at that moment; nevertheless I kept giving them a few more reasons just to satisfy them. Next, I was shocked by his second question. He enquired about my Moral results (I scored 2A) – “why did you get A2 for moral? I answered him in a calm manner, citing the difficulty of the questions, answering techniques and a sudden change in question format. Several questions followed up, regarding national service, civic duties, any information on TNB corporation and so forth. I do admit that I fumbled slightly during the course of interview, especially on TNB objectives and core business information. Nonetheless, it’s a truly rewarding experience for me.
Friday, 13 April 2007
JPA interview - my experience
I felt very sluggish and slothful these days. My mind has been idle, due to inactivity at home since SPM ended three months ago. Presently, I would teach on weekends for a modest wage of RM20/hour. To date, I am only teaching a (as in ‘the one and only one’) student who also happened to be a daughter of a tuition teacher. The pay is considered pleasant (this seems ironic since I mentioned ‘modest’ previously), considering that I have no particular experience in teaching whatsoever. The subjects concerned are additional mathematics, physics and chemistry. I found it rather challenging to teach science subjects (both physics and chemistry) as my lessons in school were conducted in Bahasa Melayu during the good ol’ days (actually, it was just last year!) but for now, I am required to teach all the 'easy, painless and effortless' scientific concepts to my student in English, *sigh. If truth be told, SPM science syllabi are exceptionally simple to understand because the scopes are pretty much restricted to colours, experiments, coupled with some simple concepts. A candidate with good memory retention skills will surely triumph in SPM as majority of subjects require candidates to memorise, and not analyse. No mind-boggling question, just “eat” the facts and “vomit” out on “the white piece of paper”. Alright, that maybe overly exaggerated. :P
Anyhow, I just passed another important phase of my life, which was the JPA interview. (What? JPA? Important phase? – Did I just hear someone snoring?) I’ve seen countless blog sites commenting on their interview process. Well, I’m just about to do the same, mundane thing. Here it goes…
On the interview day, I arrived shortly before 1pm, which was an hour earlier than the scheduled time. My parents accompanied me till we reached the second floor (or was it the third floor?) of the Putrajaya International Convention Centre. [I have to admit that Putrajaya is really beautiful, especially the bridge.] After that, I checked my name on the list which was firmly pasted on 2 whiteboards. There were 10 panels (each panel consists of 2 interviewers) and 47 candidates for each panel. I was placed under panel 7 with 13 others for the 2-4pm slot. My interview was scheduled to be held in Room 18. At about 1.40pm, I went up to another floor to prepare myself for the interview. The candidates seemed somewhat selfish, especially the ladies. Maybe they were too anxious about the interview. Nevertheless, I managed to meet some new friends from Taylor’s University College and a fellow mate from Raub, Pahang. My interview began at 2.20 p.m., as soon as I’ve handed my clear file containing all certificates to the jovial assistant.
Judgement time…
Firstly, each candidate was required to introduce themselves in Bahasa Melayu, stating our name, school, course, family background, financial concerns etc. etc. A lady candidate (pharmacy applicant) was speechless half way during introduction. The most amusing thing I heard was ‘mendispense medicine’, cited by another pharmacy applicant who was sitting next to me. Anyway, I was quite disappointed with my performance because I also had a fair share of difficulty speaking in Bahasa Melayu, alongside other candidates in my group.
After that, one of the interviewers gave us a topic (Crime rate among teenagers is on the rise) to discuss for 20 minutes in English. The lady who ‘mendispense medicine’ started the discussion and we discussed a whole lot, from parental concern to National Service. Nearing the end of the interview, the interview selected one of us to summarise the discussion and subsequently forwarded another 2 question to two candidates. Then, we shook hands with the interviewers and left the room. What a relief…
Next, we were ushered to Hall 2 to complete a personality test. The personality test consisted of a two-choice answer of 294 objective questions to be completed in 30 minutes. Once the test ended, we evaluated the marks and returned the answer sheet to the officer-in-charge. Soon after, I bid farewell to my newly-met friends and left the convention hall at about 5.30 p.m. I felt so lifeless and exhausted upon exiting Putrajaya to return home. Glad the interview had finally come to an end even though I didn’t play my cards well.
Enough said for today, tata!!
Anyhow, I just passed another important phase of my life, which was the JPA interview. (What? JPA? Important phase? – Did I just hear someone snoring?) I’ve seen countless blog sites commenting on their interview process. Well, I’m just about to do the same, mundane thing. Here it goes…
On the interview day, I arrived shortly before 1pm, which was an hour earlier than the scheduled time. My parents accompanied me till we reached the second floor (or was it the third floor?) of the Putrajaya International Convention Centre. [I have to admit that Putrajaya is really beautiful, especially the bridge.] After that, I checked my name on the list which was firmly pasted on 2 whiteboards. There were 10 panels (each panel consists of 2 interviewers) and 47 candidates for each panel. I was placed under panel 7 with 13 others for the 2-4pm slot. My interview was scheduled to be held in Room 18. At about 1.40pm, I went up to another floor to prepare myself for the interview. The candidates seemed somewhat selfish, especially the ladies. Maybe they were too anxious about the interview. Nevertheless, I managed to meet some new friends from Taylor’s University College and a fellow mate from Raub, Pahang. My interview began at 2.20 p.m., as soon as I’ve handed my clear file containing all certificates to the jovial assistant.
Judgement time…
Firstly, each candidate was required to introduce themselves in Bahasa Melayu, stating our name, school, course, family background, financial concerns etc. etc. A lady candidate (pharmacy applicant) was speechless half way during introduction. The most amusing thing I heard was ‘mendispense medicine’, cited by another pharmacy applicant who was sitting next to me. Anyway, I was quite disappointed with my performance because I also had a fair share of difficulty speaking in Bahasa Melayu, alongside other candidates in my group.
After that, one of the interviewers gave us a topic (Crime rate among teenagers is on the rise) to discuss for 20 minutes in English. The lady who ‘mendispense medicine’ started the discussion and we discussed a whole lot, from parental concern to National Service. Nearing the end of the interview, the interview selected one of us to summarise the discussion and subsequently forwarded another 2 question to two candidates. Then, we shook hands with the interviewers and left the room. What a relief…
Next, we were ushered to Hall 2 to complete a personality test. The personality test consisted of a two-choice answer of 294 objective questions to be completed in 30 minutes. Once the test ended, we evaluated the marks and returned the answer sheet to the officer-in-charge. Soon after, I bid farewell to my newly-met friends and left the convention hall at about 5.30 p.m. I felt so lifeless and exhausted upon exiting Putrajaya to return home. Glad the interview had finally come to an end even though I didn’t play my cards well.
Enough said for today, tata!!
Monday, 2 April 2007
JPA interview (April 3rd, 2007)
Doomsday is finally here, just 24 hours and I’ll be attending the second scholarship interview of my life. I passed my 1st interview few months back, but unfortunately, I’ll be rejecting the scholarship in favour of Form 6 because chances of getting admitted into a local matriculation college seemed so scarce. Hopefully, they are willing to offer me the scholarship in future, after securing a local IPTA degree spot.
Tomorrow’s JPA (better known as Public Service Department) scholarship interview is my most crucial scholarship interview compared to others. The interview format has been changing on a yearly basis. Last year, candidates are required to sit for a psychometric test before an interview of about 6-12 people in a group, lasting up to 1 hour. This year, however, might not be the same as before, yet I’m still harbouring hopes of securing a scholarship from JPA. Although my SPM result doesn’t look promising, I hope they will take into account my family background and other co-curricular achievements. Gosh, I’m freaking out! [My friend once told me “dun get dun get lo” – haha, she’s so damn right] If all else fails, it’s not the end of the road for me, there’s still form 6 wert… :P
Alright, wish me luck…I’ll detailed the scholarship interview process here, if and only if I done well tomorrow. Haha
Tomorrow’s JPA (better known as Public Service Department) scholarship interview is my most crucial scholarship interview compared to others. The interview format has been changing on a yearly basis. Last year, candidates are required to sit for a psychometric test before an interview of about 6-12 people in a group, lasting up to 1 hour. This year, however, might not be the same as before, yet I’m still harbouring hopes of securing a scholarship from JPA. Although my SPM result doesn’t look promising, I hope they will take into account my family background and other co-curricular achievements. Gosh, I’m freaking out! [My friend once told me “dun get dun get lo” – haha, she’s so damn right] If all else fails, it’s not the end of the road for me, there’s still form 6 wert… :P
Alright, wish me luck…I’ll detailed the scholarship interview process here, if and only if I done well tomorrow. Haha
Tuesday, 20 March 2007
Smart individual or clever individual: Make your choice…
Slightly more than a week ago, the much anticipated Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia 2006 results were released nationwide at 10 a.m. Some candidates who managed to secure 13 1A’s and above were pulled to the limelight on major local dailies, thereby sharing their success and jubilations with all other excellent candidates all over Malaysia. The Malaysian Ministry of Education (MOE), however, did not reveal the best overall SPM candidate for the year 2006, stating that such an act is inappropriate as each candidate has its own strengths and weaknesses in certain subjects. Instead, the MOE reveal the top 105 SPM 2006 candidates.
In case you don’t know, I've also sat the SPM examinations held last year, in the month of November and December for three consecutive weeks. I took 11 subjects, mainly Malay Language, English Language, Moral Studies, History, Mathematics, Additional Mathematics, Commerce, Chemistry, Physics, Biology and English for Science and Technology. Of all the subjects undertaken, I managed to achieve 10 1A’s and 1 2A. Aside from that, my English 1119 (GCE-O) also scored another 1A.
As a matter of fact, I was very disappointed with my results as I thought I could achieve a string of 1A’s. Sadly, that was not the case because my Moral Studies has earned me a 2A, instead of a 1A. My parents were unsupportive and didn’t even make an effort to congratulate nor advice me to move on in life. Who are to be blamed? The country’s education system has been emphasizing greatly on the importance of 1A’s that to a certain extent, it has failed to nurture good all-rounder to fill the so-called human capital of our nation. Grab a few straight 1A’s scorer, and don’t you be surprised if they can’t even converse coherently and eloquently.
Naturally, if a candidate scored a 2A for any subjects, chances of securing a government scholarship (the coveted PSD scholarship) is almost negligible. Did I ring any bell? Of course, it’s apparent that I’ll likely fail to secure ‘that’ scholarship giving the fact that I have a 2A for Moral Studies. At first, I fret about my results, day in day out for 2 months only to be disappointed by my moral subject. Nevertheless, I’m not giving up without trying; perhaps the government might take into account my outstanding extra-curricular achievements
Generally, there are many types of student in the country. This article will simply emphasise on the 2 major groups that will shape our society as we embrace vision 2020 with full enthusiasm. Alright, that sounds entirely robust. The two main categories of student are smart individuals and clever individuals. It is clear to me as I hope it is clear to you that many outstanding students are mostly clever individuals. What defines clever individual? Clever individuals are students who are academically inclined and have been achieving outstanding results in all examinations, be it school-based or major public examinations. In other words, they are bookworms or geeks who simply can’t interact well with others and have amazingly low self-esteem. However, they are not nerds as the term ‘nerd’ is defined as a person who is boring, stupid and not fashionable (according to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Compass). They may be boring to hang around with, or have a disastrous fashion sense, but are certainly clever enough to interpret even the toughest science theories or solve the most complex mathematical equations of all time.
What about smart individuals? Aren’t they the same as clever ones? The answer is, HIGHLY UNLIKELY. Smart individuals may not be scoring all the intended 1A’s but they are armed with soft skills that are relevant to meeting our current and future job requirement. Do you think a multinational company will hire a candidate who can express themselves well or someone with an impressive scholastic achievement that intoxicates the interviewee with technical terms? It’s obvious that all companies will choose to hire a candidate that’s both appealing in terms of academic and leadership skills, but how many such people exist in this world? Alternatively, companies are always on the look-out for bright individuals that are able to stand out and express themselves well with a good academic record (not best academic record, mind you!).
Bottom line is, never give up if you (SPM candidate readers) didn’t manage to secure a string of 1A’s in your exam. Spend some time to reminisce all the activities that you’ve taken part and the leadership positions that you’ve uphold in school. As my brother once said, “You might not be studying overseas, it doesn’t mean you can’t work overseas”. Acknowledging that I’m categorised under clever individuals group (well, to a very great extent), I'm now taking initiatives to make improvements on my soft skills ability (e.g. Speaking publicly, making presentation, communication skills etc. etc).
In case you don’t know, I've also sat the SPM examinations held last year, in the month of November and December for three consecutive weeks. I took 11 subjects, mainly Malay Language, English Language, Moral Studies, History, Mathematics, Additional Mathematics, Commerce, Chemistry, Physics, Biology and English for Science and Technology. Of all the subjects undertaken, I managed to achieve 10 1A’s and 1 2A. Aside from that, my English 1119 (GCE-O) also scored another 1A.
As a matter of fact, I was very disappointed with my results as I thought I could achieve a string of 1A’s. Sadly, that was not the case because my Moral Studies has earned me a 2A, instead of a 1A. My parents were unsupportive and didn’t even make an effort to congratulate nor advice me to move on in life. Who are to be blamed? The country’s education system has been emphasizing greatly on the importance of 1A’s that to a certain extent, it has failed to nurture good all-rounder to fill the so-called human capital of our nation. Grab a few straight 1A’s scorer, and don’t you be surprised if they can’t even converse coherently and eloquently.
Naturally, if a candidate scored a 2A for any subjects, chances of securing a government scholarship (the coveted PSD scholarship) is almost negligible. Did I ring any bell? Of course, it’s apparent that I’ll likely fail to secure ‘that’ scholarship giving the fact that I have a 2A for Moral Studies. At first, I fret about my results, day in day out for 2 months only to be disappointed by my moral subject. Nevertheless, I’m not giving up without trying; perhaps the government might take into account my outstanding extra-curricular achievements
Generally, there are many types of student in the country. This article will simply emphasise on the 2 major groups that will shape our society as we embrace vision 2020 with full enthusiasm. Alright, that sounds entirely robust. The two main categories of student are smart individuals and clever individuals. It is clear to me as I hope it is clear to you that many outstanding students are mostly clever individuals. What defines clever individual? Clever individuals are students who are academically inclined and have been achieving outstanding results in all examinations, be it school-based or major public examinations. In other words, they are bookworms or geeks who simply can’t interact well with others and have amazingly low self-esteem. However, they are not nerds as the term ‘nerd’ is defined as a person who is boring, stupid and not fashionable (according to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Compass). They may be boring to hang around with, or have a disastrous fashion sense, but are certainly clever enough to interpret even the toughest science theories or solve the most complex mathematical equations of all time.
What about smart individuals? Aren’t they the same as clever ones? The answer is, HIGHLY UNLIKELY. Smart individuals may not be scoring all the intended 1A’s but they are armed with soft skills that are relevant to meeting our current and future job requirement. Do you think a multinational company will hire a candidate who can express themselves well or someone with an impressive scholastic achievement that intoxicates the interviewee with technical terms? It’s obvious that all companies will choose to hire a candidate that’s both appealing in terms of academic and leadership skills, but how many such people exist in this world? Alternatively, companies are always on the look-out for bright individuals that are able to stand out and express themselves well with a good academic record (not best academic record, mind you!).
Bottom line is, never give up if you (SPM candidate readers) didn’t manage to secure a string of 1A’s in your exam. Spend some time to reminisce all the activities that you’ve taken part and the leadership positions that you’ve uphold in school. As my brother once said, “You might not be studying overseas, it doesn’t mean you can’t work overseas”. Acknowledging that I’m categorised under clever individuals group (well, to a very great extent), I'm now taking initiatives to make improvements on my soft skills ability (e.g. Speaking publicly, making presentation, communication skills etc. etc).
Saturday, 24 February 2007
worries
My driving test is coming soon, on the 26th of February, 2007. Anxiety and nervousness are getting the better of me as the date draws closer by the seconds. It's my second test since I failed my first test on the 12th of February. I was really devastated after the test on that day because I didn't manage to pass either one of the two test. The driving test consists of two test : the obstacle test ( hill, parking and three-point turn) and the road test. For the obstacle test, I failed my hill test as my car, a kancil reversed after letting off the handbrake at the wrong time. For my road test, I failed on the first junction (what a bad driver I am!) because I've forgotten to pull the handbrake when I stopped the car. A mandatory mistake it seems. What a crap!
So, here I am. Just two more days, and I'll be going through all that again. The long wait is terrible and the whole test could take up my entire day. Please let me pass this time around, I don't want to burden my parents with another rm150 to re-sit the test. I really wondered why it's so expensive. All they have to do is provide me with a car to test, why do they need rm100 for that purpose? (By the way, the other rm50 is the fees for extra class.)
Aside from that, my results day is around the corner, even though the ministry of education has yet to decide the release date for my spm 2006 results. If I'm not mistaken, the highest amount of subject ever taken by a spm candidate last year was 19 subjects. I've only undertaken 11 subjects, what a loser ! Still, I'm rather anxious and worried I would not achieve my expectations. Worries...worries...worries... Life is so full of stress, and I'm just so terrible at handling stress.
Besides that, I'm also having problems with my friends. Personally, I dislike people who are unable to stand on their on feet and be independent. It's alright to ask for support or advice whenever it's appropriate, what are friends for? I'm just very disappointed that one of my friend is over-reliant on me to get his things or agenda done with. I'm not your slave man, you gotta do it yourself! (I won't say elaborate further on this matter) Right now, I'm looking for ways to ditch this so-called friend of mine.
At the moment, I couldn't describe what's in me or my feelings. I might have just walked onto a long and winding path, till sometimes I feel like crying but couldn't bring myself to cry it out. Damn it ! Just damn it !
So, here I am. Just two more days, and I'll be going through all that again. The long wait is terrible and the whole test could take up my entire day. Please let me pass this time around, I don't want to burden my parents with another rm150 to re-sit the test. I really wondered why it's so expensive. All they have to do is provide me with a car to test, why do they need rm100 for that purpose? (By the way, the other rm50 is the fees for extra class.)
Aside from that, my results day is around the corner, even though the ministry of education has yet to decide the release date for my spm 2006 results. If I'm not mistaken, the highest amount of subject ever taken by a spm candidate last year was 19 subjects. I've only undertaken 11 subjects, what a loser ! Still, I'm rather anxious and worried I would not achieve my expectations. Worries...worries...worries... Life is so full of stress, and I'm just so terrible at handling stress.
Besides that, I'm also having problems with my friends. Personally, I dislike people who are unable to stand on their on feet and be independent. It's alright to ask for support or advice whenever it's appropriate, what are friends for? I'm just very disappointed that one of my friend is over-reliant on me to get his things or agenda done with. I'm not your slave man, you gotta do it yourself! (I won't say elaborate further on this matter) Right now, I'm looking for ways to ditch this so-called friend of mine.
At the moment, I couldn't describe what's in me or my feelings. I might have just walked onto a long and winding path, till sometimes I feel like crying but couldn't bring myself to cry it out. Damn it ! Just damn it !
Wednesday, 14 February 2007
The interview...
First off, I would like to apologise for not including the background research on the company in my blog. As a matter of fact, I wouldn't want to engage in a legal pursuit if my facts are found to be incorrect. My apologies to all.
Erm, allow me to reiterate the day's event. I had a hard time falling asleep the night before the interview. It's my first scholarship interview, and the first interview with top executives from a high profile company. Guess I might had fallen asleep at around 1a.m. but was forced to wake up at 6.30 a.m. Dark rings around my eyes were very visible, yet there's nothing I can do about it. My problem with dark eye rings have plagued me for the past few years. I'm still finding solutions to overcome it, maybe a lil facial treatment in future. Hehe..
At about 7.10 a.m. , we started our journey to damansara (the location is bangunan malaysian re). Just merely 1o minutes after taking off, we were hampered with a massive traffic congestion along the banting stretch. The interview was scheduled at 8.30 a.m. but I reached there at about 9.00 a.m. Goodness gracious, I was late for my first interview. Fortunately, they understood the dire condition I was in earlier. Or maybe they just made it up, I don't know.
After that, I was briefed about the scholarship ; allowance, conditions etc. It was a one-to-one briefing since I arrived late. Then, I waited for another hour before I was called in for an interview with two executives. Sigh, the interview only lasted for about 10 minutes. There can only be two possibilities
a) My resume was very concise, clear and complete. So, it was unnecessary for them to interrogate me further.
b) I performed horribly and there was no need to waste their precious time to interview me.
Anyway, the results will be informed in late march or early april according to its FAQ website. Alright, that's about all for now.
Erm, allow me to reiterate the day's event. I had a hard time falling asleep the night before the interview. It's my first scholarship interview, and the first interview with top executives from a high profile company. Guess I might had fallen asleep at around 1a.m. but was forced to wake up at 6.30 a.m. Dark rings around my eyes were very visible, yet there's nothing I can do about it. My problem with dark eye rings have plagued me for the past few years. I'm still finding solutions to overcome it, maybe a lil facial treatment in future. Hehe..
At about 7.10 a.m. , we started our journey to damansara (the location is bangunan malaysian re). Just merely 1o minutes after taking off, we were hampered with a massive traffic congestion along the banting stretch. The interview was scheduled at 8.30 a.m. but I reached there at about 9.00 a.m. Goodness gracious, I was late for my first interview. Fortunately, they understood the dire condition I was in earlier. Or maybe they just made it up, I don't know.
After that, I was briefed about the scholarship ; allowance, conditions etc. It was a one-to-one briefing since I arrived late. Then, I waited for another hour before I was called in for an interview with two executives. Sigh, the interview only lasted for about 10 minutes. There can only be two possibilities
a) My resume was very concise, clear and complete. So, it was unnecessary for them to interrogate me further.
b) I performed horribly and there was no need to waste their precious time to interview me.
Anyway, the results will be informed in late march or early april according to its FAQ website. Alright, that's about all for now.
Tuesday, 6 February 2007
career and education
Great, I just received a letter from MNRB Holdings Berhad that I'm eligible for an interview session regarding my scholarship application. What a relief! I have been waiting for a reply for more than a month since I last sent in my letter of application. Finally, they are willing to offer me an opportunity or a shot for the scholarship. By the way, my scholarship interview is scheduled to be held next week (13th February, 2007), right after my driving test on the day before the interview.
Now, I barely remember what I wrote in my personal statement and I'm very sure that they will question me on my future career goals, particularly in the field of actuarial science. Though I might want to impress them as much as I can, I'll still have to get past my biggest hurdle ; that is to secure a placement in a matriculation college prior to be awarded this scholarship if I pass the interview.
So, one week, 7 days, 168 hours or 10080 minutes counting down to my interview. what should I do? I'm totally clueless as to what to expect during the interview that might last up to half an hour. "If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail" I know it damn well that it sounds like a cliche, but it's damn true. I guess I need to come up with a plan, but what plan?
.............................
After much thoughts, there are two major tasks to be accomplished.
a) A thorough research on the company's background
b) An in-depth analysis on my choice of course (actuarial science)
That's all for now. In my next post, I'll include a background research on the company. Till then, so long...
Now, I barely remember what I wrote in my personal statement and I'm very sure that they will question me on my future career goals, particularly in the field of actuarial science. Though I might want to impress them as much as I can, I'll still have to get past my biggest hurdle ; that is to secure a placement in a matriculation college prior to be awarded this scholarship if I pass the interview.
So, one week, 7 days, 168 hours or 10080 minutes counting down to my interview. what should I do? I'm totally clueless as to what to expect during the interview that might last up to half an hour. "If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail" I know it damn well that it sounds like a cliche, but it's damn true. I guess I need to come up with a plan, but what plan?
.............................
After much thoughts, there are two major tasks to be accomplished.
a) A thorough research on the company's background
b) An in-depth analysis on my choice of course (actuarial science)
That's all for now. In my next post, I'll include a background research on the company. Till then, so long...
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