Singapore Management University
       
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  The SMU Passport to a Different Continent
  
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Alumni
 
The SMU Passport to a Different Continent
 
   
Charles Li
Graduate, Class of 2006
    
   
 
It all began with this email from London.

 From

 xxx@kpmg.co.uk

 To

 charles.li.2002@accountancy.smu.edu.sg

 Sent

 15 March 2006

 Subject

 Your Application to KPMG

Dear Charles

Congratulations on your recent success at passing our assessment centre. We know how difficult and demanding the day can be  and are delighted that you did so well. I am therefore pleased to confirm that we will shortly be posting you a formal offer of  employment...


These are the reflections on a job chase that saw me leave home for the experience of a lifetime.

12 January 2006

My application was completed online today. There was no career talk, no recruitment booth, and no newspaper adverts - only a company website that I explored. It has become so easy for me (or anyone else) to apply for a job thousands of miles away.

The driving force was my desire to try a new environment and an unwillingness to wait for an expatriate package. Also, I wanted to find out how receptive the world would be to a qualification that was only a few years old. "Would my SMU degree be recognised overseas?" That was the key question I asked Prof Gan, Prof Leong and Mr Tan Lee Chuan at my admission interview in January 2000. The reply was: "It does not matter. What matters is how good you are." Shockingly, they swept aside the point of my question. It was clear that global recognition of the SMU degree was highly uncertain then. Nonetheless, I mustered enough confidence to sign my acceptance. The test of that confidence would come later.

 

14 March 2006

I had done it! The job offer had not come yet, but I had the chance to explore London during the crucial Week 11. The past 2 months had been tiring. First up was the barrage of online test questions – verbal and numerical. Then I had the telephone interview. Finally, it was the Assessment Day. That was rigorous even before the actual day itself because I had to prepare a 10-minute business analysis to present to a partner. The assessment took one whole day and it involved computer-based tests, a group discussion, the presentation and a final interview with the partner.

       


This was conducted in London and the cost of the trip came mainly from my own pocket. But it was a good investment. Even if I did not get the job, I would have had a holiday to comfort me.

The key concern always at the back of my mind was who would believe in SMU?

I believe in SMU. My confidence in getting the job stemmed from the fact that I had gained the substance to supplement my less known qualification. Strong participation in student activities, an overseas exchange and my internship performance made it hard for anyone to justify rejecting my application at the shortlist. The online verbal and mathematical test questions - doesn't that sound familiar to those who were ‘persuaded' to take the SATs? The interviews - all of us had at least one interview from the time of admission. Many of us would have gone through more with the unlimited number of internships available.

Next, how many of us can remember the hours spent on research and preparation for our project reports and presentations? It was entirely similar to the presentation I had to prepare! Also, overseas employers want to know if we can adapt easily into a new culture. Clearly, an exchange experience is advantageous and SMU keeps making it easier for everyone to go for one if they really want to. Finally, the group discussion assessment - need I say more about the hours spent debating with friends in the Group Study Room every term?
 
My Conclusion

SMU has prepared us for something beyond studying, creating a substance universal enough for us to succeed in other parts of the world. This substance, however, is revealed only during the actual assessment process. As such, the danger lies at the shortlist stage if our degree is perceived to be a mere slip of paper, giving us no additional advantage whatsoever. I physically entered another continent using my Singapore passport, a truly wonderful document if you have seen other nationals burdened with the constant need for visas and the stern interrogation some of them face at immigration. The same goes for the SMU degree. As innovative as its education is, it still needs to build its reputation. That is what helps you get through the gate before you are allowed to demonstrate your worth. Our role as alumni is essential. We have to promote this SMU Passport through our exemplary difference and personal marketing of our alma mater. I'm working on the SMU Passport here in London. Who else wants to join me or do the same back home or somewhere else in the world?


 
Last updated on 21 May, 2007 by School of Accountancy.