BIZ002 - JX in SIM-RMIT Bachelor of Business Management and Marketing

Today, we have a contribution from JX, recent graduate from SIM-RMIT Bachelor of Business Management and Marketing Programme.

1) Tell us a little bit about yourself

Hi y’all, I am a business degree graduate whom has been thrown into the crazy working life for close to a year.

2) What course, school and year are you from?

I am a graduate from the SIM-RMIT Bachelor of Business Management and Marketing programme of year 2012.

3) What subjects did you enjoy the most back in JC?

The subject I enjoyed most back in JC was project work. The one subject that many abhor but to me, it was actually the highlight of my JC days.

4) What inspired you to study Business management and marketing?

My interest stemmed from a nationwide entrepreneurship competition back in my secondary school days. I fell in love with the entire process, from the generation of an idea to the nurturing of the idea into a concrete and sellable one and finally the proud presentation of the final concept. That was my first exposure to business and projects in general and it was a very exciting and fulfilling process. Then came project work in JC and that experience pretty much sealed the deal for me.

5) Tell us a little bit of your character traits that you feel align you with your course of study?

I am more observant and analytical in nature. I love analysing new information and then moulding them into applicable and beneficial knowledge. Business especially marketing is a very dynamic subject. There is so much data out there but data will only remain as data unless one can make use of it and convert it into knowledge that you can use to your advantage. 

6) What are the challenges in pursuing a degree in SIM-RMIT Business management and marketing? Despite all these challenges, why did you choose to study it anyway?

One of the greatest challenge was the uncertainty. There were times when I was uncertain if my choice was the right one and whether it suits me, uncertain about the future career prospects especially when the graduation date looms all the more closer and with so many more seemingly more qualified people out there. And there is also that stigma about students from private universities. I have passion and interest in marketing, but those can only push you so far throughout the course and in the real working life. Now, I am a stubborn person. I want to do something I love and have passion in. Life would be too sad otherwise. The thought of being stuck in a course that suits me or have better career prospects but which I have no interest in simply horrifies me. Luckily, I am pretty short-sighted person as well. I would just take things one step at a time and try to gain as much out of each step. I have never regretted taking up the course. From it, I have gained life-long friends, greater belief and confidence in myself as well as even more interest and passion in marketing. 

7) What is a typical day in SIM-RMIT Business management and marketing like and what is the nature of the course work (Content-heavy? Practical skills? Group work? Self-reading?)

There are typically four mods per semester and a three hour lecture is held once weekly for each mod. Thereafter, its up to you on how you would use the remaining time to juggle the individual and group projects as well as studying for assessments. For RMIT, the nature of the course work is more project-centric, with individual projects for the management mods and group projects for the marketing mods. There would be a final exam at the end of the semester for all mods as well. 
Projects take up a lot of time and energy as especially when one is dealing with more than four at once. Typical days are usually spend researching, editing, discussion and all of that is repeated until all projects are submitted. For students who are planning to enter the course because ‘it is an easy degree’, I would advice you to reconsider that. And the onus is on you to maximise your learning and benefits that you would gain in the process of attaining the degree and not just the degree itself which is pretty much as useless as a blank piece of paper if you do not have the skills to substantiate it.

8) Is this your first choice? If not, what were your other choices and why?

This was my first choice. I really do love marketing even if it may not have been the most suitable choice for me.

9) What do you plan to do with your degree? What are the career prospects with the degree?

Haha, I am already in the working world. Well..career prospects..the cold hard truth is that the job market is saturated with such degree holders. Unless you have a very substantial advantage above the rest of the jobseekers, my advice is that don't reject the idea of starting small. The key is gaining knowledge and experience. I have learnt through that hard way that even with a marketing degree, you may not get to do marketing right away. Several of my friends have met with such experiences as well. It is through much toiling and perhaps a dash of luck that you may finally get to do what you love. Hence, do not lose hope if you experience such a phase in the future, many out there have or are experiencing the same problem as you. Just try to keep the end in mind, and gain as much as you can out of whatever you are doing, be it part-time jobs, internships, or contractual jobs etc. 

Thank you very much JX!

Hope that the contribution from JX will help you in deciding your university courses! 

BIZ001 - SR in Business, SMU

Here we have a sharing from a SR, a recent graduate from SMU Business. Hope you'll find it useful! :)

Which course did you pursue?

Business (Majored in Marketing and Corporate Communications), SMU class of 2016. 

Tell us a little bit of your character traits that you feel align you with your course of study?

I don't like rote learning and enjoy projects, I was also interested in the creativity and strategic thinking needed for marketing. These all contributed to my decision to take Business in SMU.

What subjects did you enjoy the most back in JC?

Wow, good question. As a business student, you'd expect me to enjoy Econs and Math, but those were my two worst and most dreaded subjects. On the other hand, I really enjoyed History and to a certain extent Literature. 

What inspired you to study <Business/Marketing/Corp Comms> ?

I was interested in Business along the lines of Marketing since Secondary School when I took part in an entrepreneurship competition hosted by Singapore Poly. From there, I continued to grow my interest by taking up a short module on Entrepreneurial Marketing offered during my Junior College Days.
Before entering Uni, I was set on the idea of studying Marketing because it required a level of psychology that was also practical in the sense of day to day decisions that I saw as potential for a career. I guess it also seemed like a field that might send me overseas to work, and I really wanted that.

What are the challenges in pursuing a degree in <Business/Marketing/Corp Comms>? 

The biggest challenge to me would be not so much the curriculum, but the rat race. So many people end up doing Business because they don't know what else to take, and then add on to the typical Singaporean mentality of exam smart but not learning for passion, it can get very disillusioning and tiring. People are also constantly seeking the most beneficial or profiting path, and sometimes it's easy to doubt yourself and your interests.
For Marketing specifically though, would be the outsider's mindset that it's all fluff and no stuff. It tends to be a field where people who don't take it feel like it doesn't take much to do. 
For Marketing and Comms in general, it would be that Singapore is not a very creative country. This means not everyone will understand or support you if you try to think differently. Which is really sad for the subject matter and industry you're studying. The practical reflection of this comes down to assignments where you end up trying to bend to your Profs' interests rather than push yourself to learn.

Even though all these hurdles stand in your way, why did you choose to study it anyway?

I think most of the challenges are more on culture, and if I don't let that get to me and stay true to my own interests and passions, the learning experience in the lessons and the 4 years of interacting with others is worth it. 
Also, for the record, I really don't think marketing is a fluff course because there's so much research and strategy that backs whatever nice-sounding fluff is in front, and the magic happens when both the "fluff" and "stuff" come together. I guess that's why I love Marketing.

What is a typical day in SMU Business like?

Lots of project meetings (more than class), getting irritated by irresponsible group mates and second-guessing yourself as you class part. 
But also bonding over exciting events, studying with friends in school and finding time to chill in town.
What is the nature of module/course/work? Content-heavy? Practical skills? Group work? Self-reading?
Definitely group work heavy. Practical skills-wise, at the end of your 4 years you should be an expert at presentations and speaking in front of others. The compulsory internships also help prepare you for the working world and understand better what field you want to enter.
Depending on the modules, there will be readings to prepare beforehand. Some modules have no exams (yay!) but others have quite a bit of content to cover.
One thing I really appreciated in SMU classes were the external speakers. Quite a few Profs are well-connected to the industry and bring in many industry-relevant speakers over the course of the module. There have even been visits to relevant offices. All these really gave me a great insight into various companies and industries.

What are the career prospects with the degree?

I think most would know about the graduate employment survey that SMU publishes. It's relatively accurate.
Specific to Marketing/Communications or the Advertising/Marketing industry - the industry is always hiring, but the pay is terrible. Although the work can be fulfilling, hours are likely to be long. I think it's a largely passion-filled industry where you learn as much as you can in the first 2 years.
Unless of course you are driven and apply for Management Trainee Programmes with huge reputable companies (SMU is good that it trains you for interviews and Assessment Centres, the resources are all there for your picking). 

What you should know before embarking on a degree in <Business/Marketing/Corp Comms>?

It's okay to not know your direction in general, because you have 4 years to figure out. The only thing is to know where your own interests lie and not sell yourself out to what others may be saying or advising

IND001 - HZ in Interior Design in SIT

Let's start by getting to know you a little. Tell us a bit about yourself!

I'm a graduate from Temasek Polytechnic's Interior Architecture & Design course, currently pursuing a degree in Interior Design at SIT. This is a two year degree that is affiliated to the Glasgow School of Art. 

Why did you choose to pursue further studies in Interior Design?

I decided to pursue further studies in Interior Design because design in general is a platform that allows for individual expression. You get to consider and appreciate different perspectives because there is no clear cut right or wrong answer. You are judged on creative application of your ideas rather than textbook knowledge. 

Were there any particular moments in your life you would attribute to your eventual decision to study Interior Design?

I disliked the education system at secondary school level which forces everyone to go through the same educational path regardless of individual interests. You are forced to struggle through subjects you dislike rather than have the option of choosing to learn about something else that you are genuinely interested in. Rather than become a well-rounded individual that these schools claim to strive for, you just become another generic product off the educational production line. After that phase of my life, I wanted to study something that I was fascinated by and which would also allow me to break free of the shackles imposed by the education system in Singapore. 

What were your favourite subjects back in school before you started university?

History.

What were your considerations before you decided to study Interior Design?

The most important consideration was the type of work I would be doing: projects one after another with little to no turnaround time. It is a different type of pressure compared to the tests and exams that dominate many other education paths. Would I be able to handle this sort of pressure?

What a day would be like in the life of a Interior Design student?

A typical day is spent in the studio, which is our classroom where we spend the majority of our time in, working on our projects. Sometimes this involves hands-on work such as model making or sketching, other times we would be on our laptops doing research on topics related to our current work. During this time we can have casual conversations with our lecturers about our work and our progress, and we can also walk around to look at and comment on our classmates' works. Peer-to-peer feedback and the open sharing of ideas is an important part of the studio culture embedded in design students. 

Looking back, what are some of the challenges you've experienced studying Interior Design so far?

The biggest challenge is the mental block you sometimes get where you find yourselves completely out of ideas on how to continue developing a particular project. You struggle on and complete the required deliverables for submission, but there is dissatisfaction because you are unconvinced with whatever you have produced. If you cannot convince yourself that your ideas and schemes will work, it will be even harder to convince the lecturers who will be grading your project. 

Despite all that, what drives you?

The completely opposite scenario, where you have a great idea for a project and manage to work out the problems and successfully translate it into a design that is an eye-opener and has a 'wow' factor for both peers and lecturers alike. These types of projects don't always happen but always gives great satisfaction as a designer, knowing that all the effort you put into the project has paid off.

What is the nature of your classes? Are there a lot of didactic lecture?

We spend most of our time in the studio, but there are also lectures aimed at broadening our design thinking and perspectives. The lectures encourage us to think beyond just interior design: we also consider the theories and trends that have shaped other aspects of design, such as graphic design. These lectures help to prepare us for a dissertation that we are expected to write and submit in our senior year. 

Was this your first choice? What were your other courses? Why did you end up choosing Interior Design as your first choice?

Not sure how to answer, didn't really have other choices that I was interested in

What are the career prospects for a Interior Design graduate? What are your own plans?

You could join or start a firm that does interior design, exhibition design or architecture. You could choose to focus on one particular practice, such as a firm that primarily works on residential design projects. Or you could also choose to be a consultant for a particular specialization in interior design, for example being a lighting designer, where clients would approach you to discuss the best way of achieving an intended lighting effect for their project. 

I intend to gain experience in the industry and hopefully be able to start my own practice one day. 

Are there any words of advice or caution you may have for someone who is considering studying Interior Design?

There is never a finished or finalised design, you are constantly updating and refining your work even one day before submission. You don't finish a project, you just stop working on it as dictated by submission deadlines. Otherwise you would still be working on the same project for years!

If you have any questions regarding HZ's sharing, feel free to ask your questions at the Contact Us tab and we'll contact HZ to answer those questions for you! :)