Aimed to provide an overview of the positive and realistic expectations in the working world, UTAR Department of Banking and Risk Management parked under the Faculty of Business and Finance (FBF) organised a webinar titled “Positive and Realistic Expectations in the Working World” on 19 March 2021 via Microsoft Teams. The webinar saw a total of 144 participants.

The invited speaker for the webinar was Al Rajhi Banking and Investment Corporation (Malaysia) Risk Management Division Senior Vice President Dr Angeline Ng Siew Huan. Dr Ng is also the Industrial Advisor for UTAR FBF.

Also present at the webinar were FBF Dean Assoc Prof Dr Au Yong Hui Nee and FBF Department of Banking and Risk Management Head Chong Tun Pin. The webinar was moderated by FBF Department of Banking and Risk Management lecturer Zainon binti Md. Yunus. It was coordinated by FBF Department of Banking and Risk Management lecturers Muhammad Ashraf bin Anuar and Nik Nuraisyah binti Nik Azmi.

Dr Ng kick-started the webinar by highlighting why the first job matters for fresh graduates. She said, “The first job matters because it will give you a taste of the real working experience. Your first job will also let you know how stressful the actual working life could be. So, before you graduate, try to engage more with your lecturers to gain more skills and knowledge before you enter the real working world.”

Apart from that, Dr Ng talked about the dilemma usually faced by fresh graduates while waiting or searching for the right job. “It depends on your objectives. If you are positive while waiting for the right job to come, you could take any job as every job is a stepping stone to your dreams. It may take a while for you to get into the job you really like, so better gain some working experience before you choose to become an expert in any specific field,” she advised.

According to a statistic, despite 58% of the fresh graduates believing that first job is highly important to pave the way for their future careers, they still end up quitting their first job in less than a year. Dr Ng told the participants that there are three main reasons why young Malaysians quit their first job: the desire to earn more money, the need for quicker growth opportunities and overwhelmed by too many works.

“In the real world, when we employ internship students or young graduates, we do not expect the students or young graduates to know everything. They will surely make some mistakes. However, it is important for every intern or young graduate to learn from the mistake. Furthermore, attitude matters. The abilities of critical thinking, problem-solving, oral and written communication are essential in real working life,” she explained.

She also encouraged young graduates to ask more questions in order to learn. According to her, communication skill is the key to be successful in one’s working life. One should try to avoid using short-form when passing information especially in replying to an email. Messages or emails must be precise and concise. Besides that, body language is also very essential in all forms of communication as it could help to break barriers of unfamiliarity.

Before ending the webinar, Dr Ng advised participants to dress well as appearance always give people the first impression. She said, “The dressing actually shapes one’s personality. People will take you seriously if you dress sensibly.”

The interactive webinar ended with a Q&A session and a group photography session.