On the 23rd of April 2019, as part of the activities for ‘Hari Kerjaya & Alumni Fakulti Sains 2019’, the Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) held a Chemistry Career Day 2019. This programme involved participation of 62 final year Chemistry students and 10 representatives from different industries, who were also the Chemistry alumni. Apart from them, 15 lecturers also took part as the facilitators and as the panels for the interviews held. As part of the MyRoadmap initiative, this event was organized by 2nd year Chemistry students for their 4th year seniors.
Group photo of all the alumni, participants and lecturers involved in the Chemistry Career Day 2019
The Chemistry alumni who participated in this event were:
- Eliyana Mohd Eadey from Seagate International (Johor) Sdn Bhd
- Farhana Ibrahim from Vance Bioenergy Sdn Bhd
- Nordiana Abu Bakar from GP Batteries (M) Sdn Bhd
- Tengku Muhammad Amirul Tengku Izat Azmir from Sterling Drug (M) Sdn Bhd
- Foo Sing Hao from Daya Awana Industri Sdn Bhd
- Wong Jia Tian from Uyemura (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd
- Mohd Rafiq Ramlee from Petronas Refinery & Petrochemical Corporation
- Zuraidah Yahya from Frost & Sullivan GIC Malaysia Sdn Bhd
- Ahmad Nazmi Roslan from Nakatec Resources PLT
- Mohamad Raizul Zinalibdin Jabatan Kimia Malaysia
The first activity was the Bus Stop Activity, where the final year students were given the chance to give their best first impression to the alumni. In this slot, an alumni, and a lecturer who was acting as the facilitator, were asked to man a station. Students in groups, took turn to ‘stop-by’ at each station. Here, the students grabbed the opportunity to ask varieties of questions, especially those related to industry and career. For every 10 minutes, the groups swapped station and this session ended when the students have visited all the stations.
Picture showing students enthusiastically asking questions during the Bus Stop slot
Following that, in the next slot, a reflection session was held. This was when the alumni and students filled up the feedback forms based on the earlier activity. The alumni were also given a chance to properly introduce themselves to their juniors, before being briefed on MyRoadmap which was only created after these alumni graduated.
The third and final slot was the Speed Dating Interview, where 3 candidates were interviewed at one go for a maximum duration of only 3 minutes. During these 3 minutes, the students had to dazzle the interviewers to create a lasting impression. The alumni also conveyed their initial thoughts and comments on the students’ performance.
Speed dating interview sessions slot
After all 3 slots have ended, a small closing ceremony was held and tokens of appreciation were given to the alumni. Indeed, through this programme, the final year Chemistry students were able to attend open interviews from related industry and agencies and were provided with up-to-date information on preparation that they need for job interviews. Apart from that, this programme has definitely enhanced the relationship between the students and their alumni. This initiative can foster future cooperation between the industries where the alumni are attached to and the faculty.
The panel of alumni and lecturers for Chemistry Career Day 2019
Written by: Dr. Sheela Chandren