Another Take of UiTM Mass Comm Degree Interview

The previous post was about my experience during the Mass Comm Degree interview.
Now, depending on who your interviewers are, it could be a totally different experience for you.

So, now I'll share what the others' stories about their interview:

That's right people. Read the newspapers!

1. CHECK OUT THE CURRENT ISSUES

Some panels would ask about current issues. Friends have gotten the question:

PANEL:
What happened in history yesterday?

STUDENT:
*in his head*
What? I only watch Maharaja Lawak last night?
Should I say, "Sir, yesterday in Maharaja Lawak, Jihan was finally eliminated!"

Thankfully, he did not answer that.
But I can imagine how hilarious it would be if he did.

After he came back, we thought about what exactly happened yesterday.
Ha! Something popped into my head!

I know it! Prince Charles and Kate Middleton got married!

... Wait a sec, wasn't Prince Charles the FATHER?
Imagine that, the father marrying Kate Middleton.

I was lucky my panel didn't ask me that question.

Or else, I would have answered it like the above.

2. GET THE NAMES OF OUR MINISTERS

Let's play a game of 'Who are the Ministers?'

PANEL:
Who is the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia?

STUDENT: *confidently*
I know that our Prime Minister is Najib Razak.

PANEL:
Okay... the deputy?

STUDENT: *retains confident face* *then shakes head*
I. Don't. Know.

The friend above did not know what the word 'deputy' means. So that was why she only answered for Prime Minister.

Now, if you CAN answer the question above, the scenario will be a little different.

PANEL:
Who is the Deputy Prime Minister?

STUDENT:
*gives correct answer*

PANEL:
You said you are from Selangor, right?
Who is the Menteri Besar of Selangor?

STUDENT:
*gives correct answer*

PANEL: *quietly thinking*
... Ha! Now who is the Menteri Pertahanan??

STUDENT:
-_-"

Haha. Yes. The panel will dig deeper until he or she found a minister that you don't know or cannot name.



3. BE PREPARED IF PANEL DOES NOT EVEN WINK AT YOUR CERTIFICATES

I think half of us actually worked hard to get the certificates just so that we could impress our interviewers.
So to see it being wasted just like that, must have hurt.
It did somewhat hurt for me.

They hardly touch the file. My panel only opened my file to see the first page- my transcript.
Half of the times, they would not even touch your files.

There was one guy who was persistent.
He got up to the table,
the first thing he did was opened the file to the desired page and put it in front of the panel.

The panels' reaction?
He immediately closed the file and pushed it aside.

Yes. Pushed. It. Aside.

Unless you come in with a file that's unique- like a HUGE file, or with sparkles and glitters all over, I doubt they'll even look at the files.

UiTM Mass Comm Degree Interview

Statistik terbaru. Broadcast 51 applicants, PR 32 Applicants, Advert 22 Applicants, Publishing 14 Applicants, Interpersonal 10 applicants, Journalism 10 Applicants, Policy 5 Applicants.

- Dhiya

The above were the statistics of the students applying for Degree in Mass Communication in UiTM.

Yes, quite a competition there.

We had to go through an interview first during 30th April 2011.

Here are just some of the random things we've learnt from that day:

So, did I fare as great as the scores above?

1. BE PREPARED TO TALK ABOUT YOURSELF

This was where I was stuck at. Talk about where you come from, what you are currently doing now, your family, parents' occupations...

I stumbled and fumbled through this and ran out of things to say.

PANEL:Yes, go on.

JAZ: I'm from Ampang...

PANEL:*motioning with his hands* Go on, go on...

JAZ: I've just graduated my diploma yesterday...

PANEL: ... Go on?

JAZ: ... What else is there to talk about???

Yes, I seriously asked that question to my interviewer. TWICE.

Very bad move on my part. And I did not prepare for this question at all.

So yeah, please please please be prepared with an autobiography of yourself in case the panel likes to hear the story of your life.

2. BE PREPARED IF THE PANEL DEBATES AGAINST YOU

Oh yeah, I was stuck here too.

PANEL:So, what are you doing now?

JAZ:I've just graduated my diploma yesterday.

PANEL:Ahh, I see. Final paper yesterday, eih?

JAZ:Nope, it was a presentation for our research. There was no paper for that subject.

PANEL: *a 'duh' face* Yes, that was what I meant. The paper IS the subject. So when I said final paper yesterday, it meant final subject. Regardless if it actually has an exam paper or not.

I just nodded my head.

But I still think a 'Paper' refers to an actual 'Final Exam Paper', not a 'Subject'.

JAZ:I choose to major in Advertising because it's a constantly evolving industry.

PANEL:Why do you say it's evolving?

JAZ:Previously, we used to have only newspaper advertisements, television advertisements... Now, it evolves into many different non-traditional forms.

PANEL:Yes, but the traditional ones still exists.

JAZ:Yes, I don't see a problem with that.

PANEL:Non-traditional advertising is only a miniscule of the industry. Companies don't invest much in non-traditional advertising. Do you know what form of advertising they mostly invest in?

JAZ:Television advertisements.

PANEL:Are you sure?

JAZ:... Newspaper advertisements?

PANEL:You don't even know?!

JAZ:I don't know. But it's either one of the two, I think.

How easy I was to be psycho-ed by the panel.

Sometimes interviewers would just debate with us on purpose to see how we think and react.

Only 5 minutes after I walked out of the room that I could think of a sensible idea to rebuke that point

It does not take a large portion of company's budget because non-traditional advertising is quite cost-effective and cheap.
Just because not much money is spent there as compared to traditional advertising, it does not mean that the advertising method is not effective.

My brain must be really slow to not think of this when I was supposed to answer the question. Bummer.

Another example of this debate during the degree interview can be read at Awin's blog post.

3. PREPARE AT LEAST TWO OF THE ESTABLISHED COMPANIES IN THE INDUSTRY

Since I was sitting for the Advertising major interview, he asked me to list two international advertising agencies.

PANEL:Name me two international advertising agencies.

JAZ:Leo-Burnett.

PANEL:*nods head*

JAZ:DDB.

PANEL:*nods head*

*5 seconds of awkward silence*
Was he still expecting an answer? And I really can't think of any other agencies at that time because I didn't prepare for this.

PANEL:*still nodding head, expecting an answer*

JAZ:*nods head with panel too, not answering*
... Erm... I've named two agencies already...?

4. POINT OUT STUFF TO THE PANEL

My panel wasn't very convinced of me. Can't blame him, I look timid in that interview.

PANEL:With advertising, you have to be good with concepts.

JAZ:*nodding head, not realizing it's a question*

PANEL:... Are you good with concepts?

JAZ:... Yes, I think I'm good at it...

PANEL:Are you good in writing?

JAZ:Yes, I think I'm good in writing.

PANEL:Why do you say so?

JAZ:...............................

Yes, how horrible was I?

I felt so unsure to boast about my skills when I don't have evidence to show it!

Reality is, I've had all those evidence in my files right on that table.

I've printed most of the designs that I've done throughout diploma- including an advertisement for Advertising class in semester 4 which got the highest marks in class that time.

And if that does not show my copywriting skills, I could have just pointed him to my transcript.

I've gotten A- for Advertising, and A for Journalism.

That would suffice to at least allow me to be confident with my skills, right?

*smacks face*

Thankfully, he took a look at my transcript and CGPA himself and my interview immediately ended.

Just like that.

From a normal human being, I suddenly felt like I was the chimp at the left because I was so clueless and unprepared for the interview.

Now, that felt REALLY bad.

It was like my CGPA was the only thing saving me from being a total failure at the interview.

Have learnt my lesson about preparation for next time.

Don't repeat my mistakes, alright?

A Sexy Photoshoot?

Haven't met my ex-schoolmates in ages!

So a reunion is in order.
They suggested for us to meet up at KLCC.

Question:
What's our agenda for the day?

Answer:

Photoshoot Seksi-Meksi di Taman KLCC.

Oh, dear. What should I wear? What should I wear?
I've never been to a sexy photoshoot before.


And so another friend posted up the Dress Code Guideline.

Since this is a sexy photoshoot,
all participants are required to:
1. Pakai baju yang tak cukup kain dan seksi-seksi.
2. Pakai baju yang terlebih-lebih kain, tapi transparent. INI TETAP SEKSI!

* Option Number 2 seems very interesting.

Well, of course. We were all just playing around for fun.

In fact, the sexiest photo of the day that we can get would be as below:

this photo is proudly taken by yours truly :)

See? No kurang-kurang kain or transparent-transparent kain, kan?

Pointless Conclusion:

We are very good girls 

and our mothers would be proud to have raised such poised ladies.

Now, Looking Down On Swimming Babies

Continuing from the previous post, about how I'm always doubtful of my brother, Kitten.

He wanted to join his school's swimming carnival.
When we asked what he wanted to join, he said everything.

Is this boy serious?!

So he signed up for

• 25 metres Breaststroke (Level 2)
• 4 X 25m Tube Race (Level 2)
• Water Games 2

Sheep and my first concern,

"Do you even know what a breaststroke is?!"

"Yeah! ... Erm, yeah?"

Not the most convincing answer.

And yes, we are very bad sisters, aren't we?

by  Sun-wing on deviantart.

Finally, when he jumped into the pool, we were surprised.
Kitten actually does know how to do a breaststroke.
Even more shocking, he got first in his group!

Again, Sheep and I were slapped by reality.
Our brother, our baby brother, is pretty good at something.

We were amazed,
couldn't contain our excitement!

... Until we saw another group of students doing another round of breaststrokes.


Could it be... 
(-_-") *awkward pause*

Kitten did get first,

but for the WRONG CATEGORY!

He was supposed to be in Level 2, but he competed in Level 1.

So for the next swimming carnival, we'll make sure he's in the right category.

He may not win the competition.

But he won our respect.

Looking Down On Babies

I'm sure everyone have faced times when their families doubt whatever they do.
My family is not that different.

Kitten (nickname).

My brother.

My BABY brother.

(Although he'll be 10 this year)

He likes to participate in activities. Which is fine.
But I'd doubt he'd win.

Yeah, maybe I look down on him.
Maybe it's because he seems a little wimpy at home.
Or maybe because I still think of him as a baby brother.

Few years back, he entered a colouring contest.
Sheep (my sister) and I looked at his artwork and laughed.
It wasn't ugly... But I guess it just looked funny to us.

When they announced the prize winners, Kitten eagerly stood near the stage, hoping for his name to be called.

Sheep and I just laughed.
While my mom went to Kitten and told him,

"You didn't win, dear. Now, move aside. Don't block the way for the winners."

"And the third place winner is... Kitten!!"

Yes, right at that moment, Kitten's name was announced.

Sheep froze. I froze. Mom froze.
Then she quickly cheered for him to go on stage, while we chased him with a camera, laughing at the sheer randomness of it all.

The person we doubt, proved us wrong.

You'd think that we learned our lesson after that, right?

Well, wait for the next post.

A similar episode, but with another random twist.

"What's your weakness?"

Okay, so we were in another ceramah the other day.
It was mainly about how to nail job interviews and find our purpose, dreams, and goals in life etc etc.

Most of us still haven't got our goals clear yet.
I would be one of those people who have no idea what she wants to work as.

So the speaker wanted us to outline what we're going to be in a few years.

QUESTION:

WHERE WILL YOU BE IN 3 YEARS?

As expected, a lot of people wrote down that they're going to be successful people, rich, and have a very stable family etc.
I have no idea what to write. I'm not very ambitious to the point that I can imagine myself being a millionaire.
Thankfully, as I counted down in 3 years, it's not too difficult.

Currently = 20 years old, fifth semester of diploma

Later = 23 years old, final year of degree

So while everyone was dreaming to be big in 3 years,
I just wrote that I'll be a final year degree student.


For a friend of mine, let's call him Cow.
He got that question, but in 5 years (because he was in a different session).
So he wrote:

"Dalam masa 5 tahun, saya akan menjadi bapa yang berjaya, kacak, lagi bergaya."

Yes, that statement was too cute to pass away!

There was one session where the speaker told us to write on the paper:
1) Our strengths
2) Our weaknesses

Now, keep in mind that these will be the answers we give to employers during job interviews whenever the question of, "Tell us what is your strength/weakness."

For Cow,

QUESTION:

WHAT IS YOUR STRENGTH?

ANSWER:
My good looks!

I assure you, that is entirely NOT true.

Zura, my classmate, pointed out that the tip was to show yourself as very confident and charismatic, that you won't admit to having weaknesses at all!
She said that's what she did during the Diploma Mass Comm interview.


But she wrote on the paper anyway,

QUESTION:

WHAT IS YOUR WEAKNESS?

ANSWER:
1) I have too many pimples and zits.
2) I'm not good at cooking.


Fisa, another classmate, laughed looking over at Zura's answer.

"Just imagine that!

In a job interview, when the boss asks you what's your weakness,

and your answers are that you have a lot of pimples and you can't cook?!

What kind of answer is that?!?!"

She got a point lol.

So now I'm sitting in this 4-hour ceramah.
And it is organized by those higher-ups management of my university.

Yes. These people who can turn a simple talk into a torture.
What would they feel if they had to sit in a 4-hour ceramah, that's hardly fun nor interactive?

I bet they wouldn't like it either.

So if they don't like it,
Why are they forcing the same thing they'd hate- on us?

Explaining My Sense of Humour

Yes, I know what you would be thinking,

"Do you even HAVE sense of humour?!"

Yes, I agree. I don't really strike jokes or any funny things when I'm with a lot of people.

That's mainly because I don't think they would find any of my jokes even remotely funny.

Which goes to explain on how my sense of humour is

(considering I even have any):

9 Words

So. Lame. 

That Only Lame People Would Laugh At It.

It's not inferiority complex or any other psychological terms to describe low self-esteem.

The reality really is like that.

I can list down the people who would crack up at most of my jokes:

1. SHEEP

This is not her being a 'supportive sister'.

She is able to get my jokes because she's just as lame as me!

2. TADPOLE (cousin)

She's not lame at all. 

In fact I think she's one of those 'cool people' in the 'cool crowds', who gets 'cool jokes' and laughs about 'cool stuff'.

But I guess growing up with me have made her gotten used to my so-called sense of humour.

Really, I don't think she's faking it when she laughs at my jokes.

... At least, I don't think it's fake? Or I might be in denial???

3. MY GEEKY FRIENDS (especially from school)

Because they are lame too.

And I simply love that about them!

Because of our common 'lame-ness',

we are able to enjoy each other's plain humour and find those 'unfunny' moments to be very hilarious.

Guys/Girls, let's not ever change and stay as lame as we are.

These 3 on my list are probably the only ones who would get my jokes.

Yes, my sense of humour is so pathetic that it cannot be open to the general public. 

Wrong way to count down

Here's another story about my brother, let's call him Kitten, from Sheep.

KITTEN:

When are we going for that family vacation?

SHEEP:

It's on the 15th.

KITTEN:

Ouh... It's the 5th day of the month today.

How long until then?

SHEEP:

I don't know. Go ahead and count from today to the 15th.

KITTEN:
Okay!
*counts with his fingers*
Today is 5th...
So, 5-4-3-2...

SHEEP:
Wait a second, you'll never get to the 15th like that.
You're counting backwards!

KITTEN:
*looks at fingers*
*quickly recover*
5-6-7-8...

I'm starting to question my brother's ability to count and make logical conclusions.

Hah. =DD

Our Simple Life

Me and my sister, let's call her Sheep.
We have always believed that our life is plain simple and plainly dull.

The kind of life that if were made into a reality tv show or a movie,
the plot would mainly be about our redundant routine day of life.

Can you stand watching a movie of a few hours depicting the same-old way how:

• We wake up from sleep
• Fiddle around with our laptop 
• Play games for the whole day
• Fell asleep for hours in the evening 
• Wake up around 4pm to realize that we still haven't bathe?

Yep, it is dull.

So Sheep and I attempted to conclude our simple life with very simple equations.

SHEEP:

Our life is SO simple!

It is like 1 + 1 = 2!

JAZ:

I think our life is SO simple, it should be

1 + 1 = 11~!

A very simple life that you don't even have to count!

SHEEP:

Yeah! All you need is just common sense!

JAZ:

Another similar equation in BM would be

"1 tolak 1, jawapannye 1 jatuh la!"

And we both agreed that our life is so simple and straightforward and these 2 equations are most fitting to describe our very simple life.

Abusing My Laptop

Some people have been wondering why my laptop is getting darn slow now.
I myself wonders too.
But I shrugged it off as all things go bad as time pass.

But apparently, my laptop isn't to be blamed.
It's me.

I've just realized yesterday that my laptop is only left with about 2GB.

What on earth is eating up the space in here?!

Have checked on applications, it wasn't as much to eat up about 157GB...



Then after much snooping, I found that most of my "supposedly" free space is filled up with only media files.
Yes, I am the kind who downloads and collects all sorts of shows and movies,
but never really bother or have the time to even watch any of it.

Answer to all questions:

I am the laptop abuser.

I abuse my laptop with unnecessary files,
yet blame my laptop when it gets slow.

I'm a horrible laptop owner/master/slayer.

Of course, I have some of those box-office movies and latest-high-ratings shows.
But can you guess what TV show that has been hogging the most space out of all files?

Can you possibly think what I would keep for almost 30GB and not delete it because I love it too much and it's a waste not to keep them.

It's... POKEMON!

No, please don't give me the look like this is just a childish hobby that should be forgotten.
It's my childhood love, people!
3 seasons of Pokemon just simply rules out any other TV shows.

And for that, I do not mind it leeching away with about 30GB of my laptop's space.

Reaching my 20s,

and I'm still a Pokemon fangirl at heart.

Tonka the Wombat

Okay, you may think I'm a bimbo here

because I have never heard of this common animal.

Wombat.

Yes, what???

When I first see the name, I'm expecting it as some sort of bat.

Or a scary-looking animal.

But on the contrary, it's actually one of the cutest things around!

I didn't bother looking up for this animal before.

But while I was researching on Australia Zoo, something appeared at the sidebar.

Tonka

Adopt him

For the first time in my life, I finally know what a Wombat looks like.

And I'm tempted to get one.

But I know I can't.

I hardly can take care of myself, and any plants or fishes can die if they are put under my full responsibility.

It would be sad if I was to cause death to Tonka.

Tonka was born on November 24, 2005 and is the first male wombat to be bred at Australia Zoo. He is by far one of our cheekiest wombats and makes sure his keepers are always on their toes. Tonka is part of the 'Wandering Wildlife' team, so you're sure to see him out on his walks, which are actually more like jogs! He loves to visit all of the animals in and around the Zoo.  

Tonka is a very playful Common Wombat who loves all the attention he can get. This cheeky boy truly believes the world revolves around him! You can't help but fall in love with Tonka's amazing personality; he will always make you smile.

Doesn't he sound adorable??? And spoilt too considering he thinks the world revolves around himself.

I told my sister of my intentions.

And she said that it's a bad idea for me to adopt Tonka.

"That thing would die!

All you would give him eat is Maggie mee!"

True true... my sister knows me well enough.

Because I'm not a good pet-caretaker,

Tonka will only be in my dreams now.

At least I know now how a wombat looks like...

Cons of Studying Overseas

SOMEONE: I'm studying overseas.

PEOPLE: Woaaahhh.... *impressed, admire*

No. I am not the 'someone' who has gone to embark a larger-than-life experience of studying overseas.
I am one of those 'people' who would be impressed and admire those who do that.

Despite being impressed,
I've made up my mind that I would NOT want to study overseas.

Let's round up the 4 vital barriers for me to studying overseas:


1. COST OF LIVING IS HIGH

I am not a wealthy human being with unlimited cash in her bank accounts and 4-years-old wallet.

Sure, there are scholarships.

But Malaysia's currency is nothing much compared to other countries'.

Any mediocre amount of money will not be sufficient enough when currencies are converted.

I know, I should learn to be frugal and all...

But would I really want a life surviving ONLY out of instant noodles and cheap food?

[Good food is a priority in my budget]

Because I assure you, I'm the kind who loves to splurge when I can ;)

2. FOREIGN PEOPLE AND PLACES

Yes, I should open up my world more- Explore new places and meet new people.

But I am terrified.

Wouldn't it be difficult to get around if I have to ask for help?

Get easily lost because roads and places are so unfamiliar to me?

I would have NO IDEA where I'm at in the world too, right?!

No, thank you.

I haven't even explored the depths of Malaysia

and I'm far off from having the 24 million population of Malaysians in my social network.

Home country has enough places and people for my liking.

3. FAR AWAY FROM PEOPLE THAT MATTERS

I'm not really 'anak emas mak' that can't stand to be away from home.

In fact, my second home is in a different state- Lendu is where I'm studying.

I can handle distance from family and friends.

But to be on different continents, it's a different story.

Yes, there's Skype, Facebook etc to keep in touch.

While my families aren't really the most active social networkers [You don't expect my grandparents to often be on Skype, right?],

NOTHING can beat a simple lunch with family-friends face-to-face.

Being too far from people that matters,

I might have the risk of inventing 78970742047291243 imaginary friends for my own comfort,

or any additional psychological illnesses.

I might even get multiple personality disorders and re-enact myself as my mother, sister, brother, cousin, friends, grandparents etc just to keep me company.

Finally, the most important factor of all...!

4. FOOD COMPLICATIONS

The whole halal/ non-halal issue can really freak me out.

It could be a chicken, but not slaughtered in the way of Islam.

It could be tantalizing fish, but mixed with a slight hint of alcohol.

I cannot imagine the torture of passing by McDonalds,

staring longingly the whole day at people eating juicy burgers-

AND I CAN'T EAT IT BECAUSE I'M TOO SCARED.

I can imagine myself running like a mad woman from McDonalds,

dropped out of college and give up on life,

fly back to Malaysia just to chow down on McD's Double Cheeseburger with no pickles.

Yes, I would give up on life if I don't get regular burgers in my diet.

Most would advice to study overseas because it would be a great journey with larger-than-life experience.
And it leads to a brighter future.

But I'm not strong enough to make these sacrifices.
I may be able to achieve more overseas, but I don't think I'd be as happy.


CONCLUSION:

Overseas = Bright Future!

Malaysia = ... Dim Future?

Haha.
I'm contented enough to settle with the 'dim future'.
Malaysia's 'dim future' is bright enough for me anyway. Lol.

Papers

Emergence

Doesn't it look like they are emerging from the walls?
Fitted with its name- Emergence.

Simply a great piece of art!

taken via http://www.notcot.org/post/28452/

Whose rights are more important?

You know how some people are strongly against gays?
Well, wouldn't it actually make them think for awhile to consider what's the right thing to do if they see this button.

"If the fetus you save is gay, will you still fight for its rights?"

So what would you do?

taken via http://www.queerty.com/whats-more-important-the-rights-of-an-unborn-fetus-or-the-rights-of-a-living-homosexual-20100217/

Makan Hati?

Iris, Sumarni, Susi and I were having lunch at e-point.
Nasi, ayam, lauk etc.

And so Sumarni was ranting about someone.

"Aku makan hati kau tahu tak!" 

*ngap, makan satu suap*

"Aku makan hati!"

And the three of us were like,

"Wow, kau makan hati!"
"Emosi nya!"

*pointing to her chicken on the plate*

"... Tapi ayam kau bukan hati. Kau tak makan hati. Kau makan kepak!"

That's what happen when you take things literally.

No Rush

Mak Su, Uncle Azim, Jazmeen, and I was in the same car on our way to the Gardens.






Uncle Azim drove the car.
And he usually drives fast.

MAK SU:

You don't need to rush.

UNC AZIM:

I'm not rushing.

*potong kereta sebelah*

MAK SU:

Kan saya dah kata!

You don't need to rush!

UNC AZIM:

I'm not rushing!!!

*smiles sneakily*

*tekan minyak sampai 100-120 mph*

How your words and your actions are contradicting...

Yo Momma Jokes

This was Atul's status message on facebook:

yo momma's so old, when i told her to act her age, SHE DIED. hahaha

Hi. Larious!

Paintball?

This is the current display picture in my Facebook:

Yes, it shows me in a protective suit.
And people would also know that it's a protective suit for the sport- Paintball.

10 minutes ago, I found this posted by a coursemate:

SEE HOW TERRIFIED I AM?!

Honestly, don't believe everything the Facebook display picture tells you.

It's misleading.

Who knows, the next time, I'd be offered to be an ambassador for paintball.