Discover Careers in Health Sciences

s e c n e i c S l t h a e H n i s r e e ar C g i n e r c o v s i D

H E A L T H S C I E N C E S

W O R D S B Y H U A C H A I X I A N

“When something is important enough, you do

it even if the odds are not in your favor ”

– Elon Musk

his is especially relevant during the current Covid-19

Tpandemic, where movements and face-to-face interactions are restricted. It is undeniably an enormous obstacle as PharmNotts is unable to hold any physical event on campus. However, with a will to conduct an event that would be beneficial to all students from the School of Pharmacy, a virtual career talk was organised. Our ‘Discovering Careers in Health Sciences’ event was a great success. PharmNotts was honoured to have the opportunity to take the lead in organising this annual Discovering Careers series. We had the opportunity to collaborate with BMed (Biomedical Sciences) Society, who helped to connect all the Biomedical Sciences students, and also Careers Advisory Service (CAS), who provided professional guidance and assistance at all stages – from planning, organising to implementation. With great effort from all parties, we had successfully achieved a much greater participation rate from our initial target.

Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible to visible. Our Discovering Careers in Health Sciences event aimed to explore and gather information for internships and future careers for students. We also hoped it could help to develop better understanding of the requirements and expectations of employers in the health sciences industry in students, and that information gained from this talk would prepare our students for the transition from university to a new working environment. To accomplish these goals we had in mind, a few invitations were sent out to experts in the related fields as guest speakers.

Professor Ting Kang Nee, the head of School of Pharmacy, was invited to give a welcoming speech to all participants at the beginning of the event. Not only did it serve as an introduction to our fellow Nottingham students, but also as a token of respect to the guest speakers, and a warm welcome to the Nottingham alumni.

Mr Asher Goh Chen Hau, our very own Nottingham alumnus with a BSc (Hons) Pharmaceutical and Health Sciences degree, was the first speaker to share his experiences in several different companies which a lot of students had their eyes on. He ended his speech with a piece of wise advice to all students: “be an empty cup – willing to learn everything; be formless – willing to adapt to anything” .

Next, Ms Vanessa Koh, who is the youngest yet knowledgeable alumnus among the speakers, gave a speech on her experience of being a medical specialist at DKSH Healthcare. Throughout her speech, she could easily build bridges with the participants with her unique charisma. Her professional sharing undoubtedly helped the students understand more about the transition from university to the working environment.

After that, Mr Rakesh Kumar Omre, an industry expert with more than 10 years in quality assurance, shared his in-depth thoughts on his industry experiences. Mr Rakesh emphasised on the importance of soft skills in a working environment – good communication skills, initiative, punctuality, emotional intelligence and great time management were the key skillsets in which a company looks for.

Last but not least, Mr Tye Kean Hong, another Nottingham alumnus who graduated with BSc (Hons) Biomedical Sciences degree, shared his role as a product specialist at Medtronic. He had briefly talked about the ventilators that were used to provide respiratory solutions to patients in ICU. Most importantly, he reassured that biomedical sciences graduates could have the opportunity to have a hands-on experience in hospitals and clinics as well.

A panel discussion and a Q&A session were carried out to clear any doubts that the participants had after all the wonderful presentations from the guest speakers. The event ended with a photo session. Things end, but memories last forever. We were glad that this event went smoothly and provided the necessary guidance to the participants regarding some qualities employers look for, as well as the insightful sharing from the speakers’ own experiences.