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 :)))

What Do You Want To Do After SPM?

[haven't let my thoughts flow free for awhile now, and my brain's thought processing machine has been clogged up worse than a drain you find in KL]

2:33 a.m.

I guess it's a question all f5s or near f5s students (dread to) face. 'What do you wanna do after spm?'. Whenever i get this question nowadays, i will give the most general answer i can to the person because i dread it now.

I used to think that because i know clearly what to answer and how that i'd be fine (while seeing my elder cousins/relatives get drilled with this question) but i found that no matter how clear minded you think you are, you'll learn to dread this question so much. 

One of the reasons is because people judge. 

No matter how noble your career/study choice might be, there's always that aunty/uncle/friend who thinks their opinions are the most right or most important for you to follow. If those characters can vanish from this world, most young people would feel more secure when sharing their creative thoughts and interests with everyone. But as of now, i see most still in their shells, not speaking up for their passions to people (esp nosy relatives ugh) because all those people know how to do is judge. 

'That career is not good enough for you'

'That course is too general'

'That college is to clichè'

'That course is so hard'

'You should be something that can make your parents proud'

Idk if its an asian thing or what, i feel every career/course options should be given the same oppurtunities and 'rank' in this world. People (esp older generation) must figure out that creative careers can also give you a pretty stable life. 

But this also rellies on the student/young person. If you really feel that a creative path or non mainstream way is the way to go, make sure you do it with extreme hardworkingness as if you're aspiring to be a doctor or lawyer. Only then will you be able to prove those nosy people wrong. Most people don't even put in enough effort to chase what they SAY they want to do, that's why they fail. 

Whenever someone asks me that dreaded question, i always find myself reviewing my choices. Most of the time not of my career choice, but how on earth im going to get that career. Right now i'm in a muddy place in terms of where do i go exactly after spm? Haven't really been able to discuss this hugely with anyone (but havent had the time to dicuss anything with anyone lol) but do i go for foundations or a levels? If foundation, do i go in May or in January? If alevels, which college? Decisions, decisions. 

The time i gotta face in college as well is so uncertain. Im probably going to look back soon and laugh at how nervous i am right now. At college you have to make your own stand and decide really if you want to stand out or be a background person. I have to find my own identity all over again because there'll be people that make me question that. I have to choose what to wear everyday and decide if i care whether people judge me based on that or not. 

Tbh im pretty tired of being in the background. For once i'd like my name to be called out as the most outstanding person in something and not always take second place. #curseofregina

I guess by then it will be up to me to decide whether to let someone else overshadow me bcs i can be my true kiasu self at college haha. 

What if i kena ns? I really would not like to go, but another part of me says that it'll probably be fun if i give it a chance. Sighs

And what after foundations/alevels? Can i afford to go overseas? Maybe not. Can i get a scholarship to go overseas? I'll tell you in a year +. IMU offers scholarships if you get a 4.00 cgpa in your foundation course and i literally lol-ed when i saw it. Who am i kidding? Im not smart. I'm not even jonathan level, how am i going to beat (possibly top people from everywhere)? All these things bother my mind so much when i know i can and should let it go for the time being. 

What is the point anyway if i don't do well for spm? I'd end up in like those unrecognisable unis that take in like any tom, dick or harry? 

I wanna be like celion, vivien, huiwen, reg, kelvin, etc, etc. it's not going to be handed to me on a silver plate. Damn i need to work hard for it. And damn i want that best subject glass. 

3:00 a.m.