Medical School Interview #3 : IMU

So HELLO, it's been almost 3 years since the #2 of this series. So therefore I am also 3 years older now, and looking back at the previous posts just gives me major *cringe* (going to go back and edit it to be better if i'm hardworking enough).

Anyway, to complete this trilogy with the final medical school interview that I attended and the one I finally chose to study at: International Medical University (IMU)! However, this might probably be outdated as it took place almost 3 years ago now and with my (failing) memory oof but I do hope you get a general idea of it hehe.

Unfortunately, I don't remember much of the application process other than that it required a fee to apply and that the admin staff were really quick and efficient to reply to my every inquiry. 

In comparison with the other 2 schools that a interviewed at, IMU takes the prize for fastest interview at 10-15 minutes. On the day of the interview, I arrived at the stated time with my mom, and we were brought to a small room to watch a video on something like 'What Next After the Interview' (basically detailing what happens/what you need to do if you get accepted/not). Straight after, I was then led immediately to wait in front of the interview room. While there, I was sat beside another girl also going for the interview before me. Pretty quickly, it was then my turn already.

I was interviewed by two ladies (who I assume are lecturers, though after 3 years there I now know that they are not from the medicine faculty) who were really friendly. Since it was really short, there were only a few questions asked, all of them typical ones:-

1) Why do you want to be a doctor? or Why should you be a doctor? (something like that)

2) A scenario question (they had a stack of laminates with different scenarios), mine was: if you were the captain of a ship, and suddenly the boat is sinking, what would you do??

Other than those 2 notable questions I unfortunately can't remember much of it. But I do remember thinking that all their questions were relatively easy to answer. That being said, I know that some of my friends had different interview experiences (some got to mingle round longer and with more interview candidates, some had stricter lecturers who asked tougher questions, some had much longer interviews). But really, as you are (presumably) preparing for these interviews, just go ahead and try your best for them. As long as you are confident in your capabilities and your answers, just answer! Cringe at the memories after the interview or 3 years down the road. I would definitely say that medical school interviews in Malaysia are no where as rigorous as those in the UK or US, whether that is a pro or a con, I will leave that for you to decide. 

Many friends, family or acquaintances have asked me why I chose IMU. Well, just as everyone else, I can't give you a straightforward, black and white, this-is-why answer. But to sum it up in a nutshell, the decision was made based on some logistics, on some lack of confidence, and on IMU's reputation. I would say that the standards of medical schools in Malaysia are still kept up to some extent. If we're talking about the more known ones such as IMU, Newcastle, Monash etc, based on talking with my friends in those schools, I know that they are not THAT much different, fees and syllabus wise. 

Most people would overlook this part of a medical school, that is where you spend your clinical years. Usually, clinicals account for half or more than half of your medical school journey, so I think it should play a part when you're deciding on your medical school.  

So, that wraps up my experience going for 3 different medical school interviews. I hope it helps someone on their medical journey! My younger sister has recently gone for an interview for Monash's medicine course, so I might do a #4?

Medical School Interview #2 : Newcastle University, Malaysia

So here comes the second part, after a long long while.
I really do hope I still remember the process clearly hahaa.

I would say the application process for NUMed Malaysia is relatively simple compared to the other universities, save from the fact that NUMed requires the most from you; a 47 line personal statement as well as a reference from your mentor. But the process of submitting the documents and application form is the simplest, not to mention it's free whee!

I was really curious as to whether I would be going for a Skype interview or if I had to go down to Johor for the interview in person. Luckily, I didn't have to do either of those (my house wifi sucks ttm) because the interview panel was coincidentally in KL for some education fair one weekend so they arranged it at a hotel in the city centre.

My interviewers were both British (assuming from their accents), one guy and one lady professor. I was the last candidate for the day, so there was no one waiting with me outside except for the admissions lady, AND the door/wall was very thin so it was relatively easy to hear what was going on in the interview room as the candidate before me had his interview. The previous candidate drew a lot of laughter from the interviewers, so that added to my nervousness.

When I went in to the interview room, I didn't realise it at first but my throat had dried up. Like literally cannot speak dried up. Although I drank water before going into the room, I think it was because I wasn't talking to anyone or anything at all for an hour before my interview, so that probably played a role in it. I couldn't answer even a few words when my voice got caught, and the lady professor offered me water and even poured it for me omg i was so embarrassed (I should've poured it myself but i was too blank alr omg).

Anyway, they asked pretty standard medical school interview questions at first. But I felt they were sort of nitpicking my personal statement. Like, as I had wrote about going for a mission trip to the orang asli kampung, they kept asking me questions about the trip like, 'how did you get to go on this trip?' and 'what did you learn from it?' although I did already elaborate those points in my personal statement. Of course I prepared to answer questions about the mission trip, but somehow I was so flustered that I kept mumbling about my answers and didn't sound confident at all. Luckily, I found my footing again after beating about around the bush lol (the lady professor didn't look amused. She looked bored, even, until I sounded confident again) and they seemed pretty happy with my answers.

Some other notable questions (apart from those concerning my personal statement) I remember being asked were;
1. If your friends were to say something about you, what would they say?
2. (follow up from previous question) would they say anything bad about you?
3. If you could change something about the Malaysian healthcare system, what would you change?
4. Any questions? (Don't ever ever not ask anything. Just ask about the student life / campus if you really don't have any other questions. Leaves a good impression!)

The final minutes of the interview wasn't an interview at all, it was basically them casually talking and low-key promoting their uni haha.

All in all it took about 20-25 minutes. It was really a two-way conversation sort of interview, so there was really nothing to be intimidated about. Although I felt that they were really scrutinizing my personal statement in the earlier in the interview, the later part was quite enjoyable and the interviewers were friendly.

P.S. I was apprehensive about getting an offer from them as they didn't respond to me as warmly as they did to the previous candidate (less laughter) but hey I got it like, barely two days after my interview haha! So lesson learnt: sometimes what people show outwardly does not reflect what they think inwardly. Just let time tell.




NUMed efficiency 100%

things i would tell you #3

i know what you're going through now isn't easy.
i can't say i've been in your shoes, but i do understand the dilemmas and uncertainties you face.
but bro, you are not alone.
you are not the only one facing difficulties and difficult times in your life.
you're busy, i'm busy, everyone's busy and having a million things on their minds too.
we're all at very important crossroads in our lives, no doubt

seeing friends would probably be the only perk or 'break' time from our hectic schedules, so why bring it down with negative vibes all the time?
i understand it is important and healthy in a friendship to have serious conversations but LOL BRO you dont even have conversations with us anymore.

its tiring and painful to see you be like this.
i really dont think these are your true colours.

learn to count your blessings and see what you have, rather than always looking to beat a certain someone in something/everything.
its healthy to have a mindset of not being satisfied, im not asking you to be satisfied to be where you are right now, but i hope you also find the little joys in your hard-earned merits.
only these two together will serve a balance in your motivations.

i sincerely pray that one day you will be able to find a deeper meaning for living, that life isnt all about the successes you achieve, or the career you will have, or the girls you date, or the bars you visit.

i miss the old you
i miss the person i could message late at night with whatever dilemma im having
i miss my bro

im going to miss you even more when you physically leave me

but maybe not as much as i thought i would


since not much of you is with me now anyway

Medical School Interview #1 : Perdana University (PU-RCSI)

*waves* 

Hello, haven't been around much lately. 

I recently attended 3 interviews for 3 different medical schools and while preparing for those interviews, I found that reading accounts of other people's experiences were helpful and somewhat comforting. So, since I am trying hard to relax right now after two consecutive days of tests, I've decided to blog my experiences and share it with you, my non-existent reader. 

(it's also great for me to look back at my old posts myself to see how much i've changed over the years ahaha)

SO, 

my first interview was for Perdana University (PU-RCSI for short). They are working hand in hand with the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland to provide an international degree whilst still being affordable and easily accessible for Malaysians. The degree awarded at the end of the 5-year medical course would be awarded by RCSI with a slight modification to it's location of study (it'll say PU-RCSI, Malaysia rather than RCSI, Ireland). At least that was the information bombarded on me by their marketing executive when I went to visit their campus to submit my application. 

Come interview day - my interview was scheduled at 2pm on a Friday, but I was advised to be there an hour earlier. I had classes in the morning and my mom had half day's work till 12pm. I can't drive when I'm nervous for something lol as I'll get stomach cramps and a little light headed, so my mom had to rush back from work to pick me and then rush to Perdana.

When we got there at 1pm, however, the reception lady gave me a funny face when I told her I was there for an interview scheduled at 2pm. And the marketing exec assigned to me was nowhere to be found. So, my mom and I sat on a couch and chit-chatted for a good hour and a half before the panel was 'ready' for me after a 'typically longer friday lunch break'. 

Anyway, moving on the actual interview. My panel of interviewers consisted of an Irish lady professor (teaching microbiology) and a male professor (teaching epidemiology) of a foreign nationality (I was never told where he was from lol). They were really friendly and nice and gave me plenty of time to think of my answers and I could reply them without rushing. The lady asked most of the questions and the guy was writing alot on a piece of paper and that made me more nervous haha. 

Some questions I remember them asking were

1. Tell me about yourself.

2. What do you know of the curriculum here?

3. Do you like Chemistry? (as i got a B in chemistry for my forecast results lul)

And then they even asked some science-y knowledge questions (totally not prepared for this)

4. What do you think is the difference between Physical Chem and Organic Chem?

5. Give an example of a chemical reaction happening in our bodies right now.

6. What enzyme digests protein?

7. Is Chemistry important in medicine?

I felt like I was being tied to a pole and being prepared to be set on fire for getting a less-than-A forecast grade in chemistry. Next was the situational questions.

8. If you were a dean at a medical school, and you got to know that a student is abusing drugs. One day this student even turns up to take an exam under the influence of drugs. What would you do?

9. If you were working with a colleague attending to a patient one day and he hands you a syringe for the patient. However, when you are halfway through administering the injection to the patient, he tells you that he has given you the wrong medicine. What would you do?

It took about 45 minutes in total but it felt to me like it dragged on forever.

Honestly, I think I botched this interview. I didn't answer with confidence even for the 'tell me about yourself' question. I also answered the second situational question somewhat 'wrongly' albeit honestly, and they really pick up on the questions you are less confident with and drill you with more questions on that subject, putting you on the spot if you had lied or are not firm with your decision.

Overall, it was a challenging interview and a good experience to help me prepare better for interviews in the future. I have not heard from Perdana yet, and I have a feeling that I would not get accepted due to my performance in the interview, but I still gained much from the experience. 

On to #2!

Count blessings only.

 

PET (Post-Exams Trauma)

There it is again.

The feeling of not being good enough.

Actually, it never actually leaves, it never truly disappears from the corner of my mind.

Sigh, what to do? As we grow up, we get more and more assimilated into the world of 7 billion people and you slowly realise you're not as good as you thought yourself to be.
My primary school batch had less than 100 students, my high school batch had about 400 students and now I'm in a college with possibly the largest intake of A-Level students in Malaysia. (claps to my choices) As I graduate university (if i get in lol), I'll be competing with God knows how many thousands of graduates for work placements.

You know how as a child, you're so optimistic and positive that you can achieve to become whatever you aspire to be. Everyone encourages you to reach for the skies and that with hard work, you'll get the occupation that you want. What a lie that is. It breaks my heart to see the light and determination go out of people's eyes as they grow older and go through SPM. It is taking all my will to stay on track with my personal ambition and to tell myself I can do it when most of the time I'm nothing better than discouraged.

Me : Dad, what if I don't make the cut for med school? Can you handle the disappointment?
Dad : Why are you asking me if I can handle it? It's your dream. I'm wondering if you can handle it.

The real world is cold and harsh. The real world gives so little room for mistakes. The real world does not allow you to queue up nicely and wait for your turn to receive something. You want something? You have to be willing to push people down to get to your goal.

During my conversations with my current lecturers, I often realise how insignificant I am to them. I am but one of the thousands of students they will ever teach (as the college is big) and it's so hard to stand out as I am. I personally feel that I'm someone who you need to know for a long time before you can really understand why I do or say certain things.

Right now I'm questioning my decision to take A-Levels hahaha. Why did I make a choice where I have to go through the same dilemma twice? I'm referring to the dilemma I had when I was making the leap from high school to pre-u, and I'm about to have that same dilemma again (albeit on the bigger scale) when I choose which university to apply/go to.

AS results come out 4 days after my birthday (oh, the joy!), A2 mocks is in less than 4 months and by a couple of months, I'll know where I'm headed for the next few years of my life. Waiting for any exam results kills me omg. It's like I prepare myself for the worst, yet there's always a little light of hope in my heart. This is why I always cry when I receive important results, whether the results are good or bad - because all the emotions are built up and bottled up over 2-3 months and when I finally receive the results, its like the wall of a dam crashing down and the water behind it surging forward (lol so deep)

To my future self, if you ever come back to this post again : wherever you are now, whatever course/job you're taking, you've grown so much from the me who's writing this. I hope you're less awkward now and most of all I hope you can find the joys in life, no matter what disappointments or heartbreaks you've gone through. God loves you,

I've kinda made a deal with God - if it is His will to see me become a doctor, He will open up the paths for me. If it is not, then my applications will be unsuccessful and I will pray for His guidance for my degree choice. But whether I get what I want or not, I will give a testimony for His glory, never mind the people who think it's menial or unnecessary, I'll be doing it for God.

If I keep telling myself I'll be okay, I will be okay, right?

it's hard to be what everyone wants you to be all at once

A daughter. A child of God. A student. A friend. A listener. An advisor. An alumni. A committee member. An aspiring doctor. An old buddy. A sister. A pianist. A teacher. Human. 

Hi there, haven't blogged in a while. 

I believe everyone has this list in their heads, a list of roles we are expected to take on as a useful human being in this society. Some lists are longer than others, depending on your background. 

Maybe it's the two cups of coffee i had today. Maybe it's because i haven't truly laid out my heart in a long time. But it feels as if i'm trapped inside a four-walled space, and the walls are slowly closing in on me. I feel suffocated and helpless. 

-I probably won't feel this way in a while, but that's beside the point-

For the first time in my life i find myself having to write EVERYTHING i have planned on a planner, because things actually slipped my mind a few times already. And i'm not even active in any clubs yet, mind you. 

I need some breathing space. I need some time!

I need time to decide where i want to spend the next 5 years of my life.

I need time to decide if i want to be president for at least two years of my life.

I need time to decide what type of person i want to spend the rest of my life with.

I need time to decide if i want to join that gathering tomorrow night.

I need time to write my personal statement that sells myself and defines who i am in under 2000 characters. 

I need time to decide which friends are the ones worth keeping in touch with. 

I need time to decipher what i feel.

I need time. Time and space. 

People say, "these things will sort itself out, don't you worry"

But i'm scared.

I'm so scared i will miss oppurtunities. Among other things, i'm scared i'll miss the deadlines to apply, to take this admissions test and that.

That's it. 

I'm afraid. 

Afraid of what the future might bring with it. 

Am i going to lose touch w the people i love? 

Am i going to end up in a shitty place?

Am i even going to be in m'sia? 

For the first time in my life, i forget to reply people's messages. (Idk if they get mad at me, i sure as hell hope they don't)  i mean, can you believe it? Reg getting too many messages to reply to all of them? 

Just too many aspects to juggle. 

And i suck at juggling. 

These past six months without the closest people i've come to know has changed me. For the better? For the worse? 

Most times it's great, and it's sunshine and laughter, and i couldn't be more grateful for the friends (eventhough few) that i've made. I do hope we keep in touch (even when we're headed to literally opposite ends of the world after alvls)

Sometimes things come crashing down. And the brain panics. Boom. 

Updates : it's been busy trying to keep up with everyone and everything. Everyone's doing well managing their lives, i suppose. I'm still not good enough, that hasn't changed. Maybe i did have a little hope. Hope kills. Don't hope. Just pray. God won't let you down.

 

To end the night : 

Don't lead people on. 

MANCHESTER MOU #goals

#goals

So it's now after camp, and soon to be, after Christmas!
After Christmas hopefully all the hectic-ness will die down and I can have some time and energy to accomplish my post SPM goals woot woot.
I would probably have roughly 3 weeks of free time to do anything and everything :))))
So this is me listing down my 'goals' so I can come back to this and keep myself in check hehee.

1. Cafe hopping w bae !!

2. MCD trip w bri and small P :))

3. Watch a horror movie with someone/anyone

4. Sleepover w bbys !!

5. BBQ hohohoho

6. Catch up session w 6P gang (nick, rach, chow, joann)

7. Develop photos for my own wall and michk (sobs)

8. Learn to cook / bake omnomnomnom

9. Go for a MPO concert w friends or family

10. READREADREAD

11. Exercise / swim @ club hahahhahaha (macam yes)

12. Go shopping alone

13. Finish up blogposts for 2015 events / thoughts (or at least journal them in a notebook)

14. Get braces and contacts!

15. Practice uke / guitar / bass

16. Worship team jam / training session

17. Lastly, SIT LRT hoho

Hoping and praying that I'll be able to make full use of my free time and achieve all these goals safely hahahaha and that I'll be pro at getting parking w/o crashing my car lols :)))