The demand for Mathematics graduates in Malaysia has been on the rise nowadays especially with many companies leaning towards Industry 4.0. In these companies, data science including data analytics, data mining, and several other related disciplines are used to make better strategic business decision-making. As a consequence, these companies have competitive edge in their respective industry. This includes the aviation industry.
AirAsia is one of the forefront names in the aviation industry. The company was awarded the World’s Best Low-Cost Airline for the 10th successive year running in 2018. A prestigious award was given by an international air transport rating organisation, SKYTRAX.
On Thursday, 23 May 2019, the Group Chief of Data Science at AirAsia, Mr. Kong-Wei Lye gave a talk on the company’s digital transformation and the job opportunities available for mathematicians. As part of this transformation, they are building up capabilities in data science. He emphasised on the importance of optimisation methods and predictive probability models in various operations and solutions in the company. Such specialised set of knowledge and skills can be identified with Mathematics graduates with background in statistics, operations, research and applied mathematics.
More than 90 postgraduate and undergraduate mathematics students including lecturers from the Department of Mathematical Sciences, Faculty of Science attended the event. Around 20 resumes were submitted to AirAsia on that day. Also in attendance were Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sharidan Shafie, the Director for the Department of Mathematical Sciences; Dr. Arifah Bahar, the Director for UTM-Centre for Industrial & Applied Mathematics (UTM-CIAM); and Prof. Dr. Zainal Abdul Aziz, the UTM-CIAM Advisor.
After the session, Mr. Lye paid a courtesy call to the Faculty of Science Dean, Prof. Dr. Abdull Rahim Mohd Yusoff and the faculty’s management team. The discussion included the possibility of further cooperation between the Faculty of Science and AirAsia Data Science Team.
The talk was organised by the Department of Mathematical Sciences, Faculty of Science and UTM-Centre for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (UTM-CIAM).
View more photos from the event at: https://science.utm.my/mathematics/2019/05/23/air-asia-recruitment-talk/
Written by: Dr. Norhaiza Ahmad & Dr. Siti Rohani Mohd Nor, Faculty of Science.