Alumna excels in Bloomberg Aptitude Test

Pride of the alma mater: Tou posing with an electronic copy of her results in the BAT

Tou Hui Ling, a UTAR Faculty of Business and Finance alumna, beat thousands of candidates to emerge fourth in the January 2014 Bloomberg Aptitude Test (BAT) in the Asia and Pacific Category.

“I was a little nervous at first because I did not do any reading or preparation prior to the test. When I received my final score of 640/800, I was satisfied as it was a rather good score, and it met my personal expectation,” said Tou. She graduated in the September 2011 Convocation with a Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) Accounting.

About a month later, Bloomberg Institute informed Tou about her ranking in the Asia and Pacific region. “I was overjoyed as I did not expect to gain any ranking at all when I took the test. What surprised me even more was that I am the first and only Malaysian who has ever made it into the BAT Hall of Fame,” beamed Tou. 

Tou found out about the test when she was assigned to shortlist candidates for her department’s recruitment exercise. “One of the applicants listed the test as his achievement. It attracted my attention as I work in the Bloomberg L.P. Terminal on a daily basis, yet I did not know about the existence of the test,” said Tou, who is currently working as a senior research analyst with a securities company in Shah Alam.

When asked what inspired her to take the test, Tou said, “I want to evaluate my knowledge and performance in business finance. It is also crucial for me to have knowledge of what the test is about since it is closely related to my career.”

The test has provided Tou with insights into her strength and areas that need improvement. “Since the test evaluates key areas in finance that are expected from a finance professional, it serves as a guide for my lifelong learning process to become an all-rounder in the financial industry. Since taking the test, I took up some online lectures and classes, and it has helped me to improve my proficiency in economics and news analysis,” said Tou.

Tou credited the education she received in UTAR for helping her to excel in the test. “The highly demanding tests and exams in UTAR have increased my self-expectation when learning a new subject. I always make an effort to explore deeper and fully understand what I am studying, not just memorising points and facts. It improves my ability to retain knowledge and this is reflected in the test result,” explained Tou. 

Tou also expressed gratitude to UTAR lecturers and tutors for nurturing her into a competent and versatile graduate. She also thanked Department of Student Affairs’ officer, Ms Alice Lim, for instilling the right attitude in her especially when facing challenges in life.  

“The person I admire the most is my Strategic Finance Management and International Finance lecturer, Mr Chong Tun Pin. He is a very dedicated and enthusiastic lecturer, and his lectures had always been fun and interesting. He had always been patient in answering all my questions, and is open to opposing views and interpretations,” said Tou. She added that Chong was the one who sparked her interest in finance, which later led her to joining the finance industry.

As for her juniors who wish to emulate or even better her feat, Tou’s advice to them is simple. “They should do a lot of reading on financial-related topics, and always be hungry for more knowledge and do not rely on last minute preparation. Having related work experience also helps in test like this,” revealed Tou.

The BAT is a global, standardised test designed to uncover strengths across a range of finance, business, career and personal competencies, and to gain insights into a person’s suitability for careers in business and finance. The two-hour test is conducted online on a monthly basis. It contains 100 multiple choice questions that test on eight key areas, namely, News Analysis, Economics, Math Skills, Analytical Reasoning, Financial Statements Analysis, Investment Banking, Global Markets, and Chart and Graph Analysis.