When I start my 4th semester aroung the end of August 2014, my university had arranged some talks regarding on how to choose the company which we want to work for as a intenee. Hence, I had search through some websites such as JobStreet, Recruit.net, Jobscrib Malaysia, Incruit Malaysia to look for the company who wants to hire intern in the Accounting and Finance department. I went through those online job agencies and knew that we can apply for the job through the online job agencies and my resume will be automatically by the online job agencies. However, some companies will set their requirements such as the internship period must be for example, 3 months or 4 months, and sometimes 6 months. Moreover, some companies also had set a requirement of students with a minumum of CGPA of 3.0 and above or equivalent will only be shortlisted. 

 

At first, the first company who approach me through phone call is "Gloco Malaysia Sdn. Bhd". which is located in Jalan Tropicana Selatan 1. Hence, I had make some research on Gloco Malaysia through the internet to understand more about the company history what does this comany does. As a result, Gloco Malaysia is a company which utilizes the latest Microsoft Dot Net Technology and their range covers medical imaging storage to complete clinic management systems by speeding up and enhance patient care, track inventory and manage accounts using computers. They had gave me a call to ask for a time for an interview session. Hence, I had done some preparation by searching through the internet on "How to perform well in an job interview and What are the common question that will be asked in an job interview. On that day of interview, the Human Resource Manager had asked me some question such as to introduce myself, and asked me to write down the bank reconcilation format and also How do you name the account for electrcity and water bills. At last, the manager said will give me the result of the interview on next week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then, the second company who approach me through email is "DSYR Blugroupe Digital Sdn. Bhd." which is located in Damansara Utama. Hence, I had make some research on Blugroupe Digital through the internet to understand more about the company history what does this comany does. As a result,  Blugroupe Digital is a company which has four successful wholly-owned subsidiaries under its umbrella with more than 8 years of expertise in technology, retail, distribution, food &beverages and real estate. On that day of interview, the interviewer also ask me to introduce myself and she also asked me about their company products. She also told me that their company is expanding and they will keep on creating a new product. Furthermore, she also asked me to prepare that when I come in to work as an intern, their product range will be different again. Moreover, she told me that sometimes I will do other work such as sales, creating ideas, or answer phone calls other than just doing accounting work. At last, this company has accepted and confirmed me as an intern to work in their company for 3 months. However, this company had suddenly told me that their company does not need this position anymore. Therefore, I need to search for another company. 

 

The third company which I approach is "Symphony Manufacturing and Services Sdn. Bhd." Hence, I had make some research on Panasonic through the internet to understand more about the company history and what does the company does. As a result, Symphony has a 15 years of experience in engineering, maufacturing, and maintainance. Their traditional business is specialized in manufacturing aluminium fuel tankers for major petroleum company dedicated to Malaysian, ASEAN and Australiasia OEM (original equipment manufacturer) markets. On that day of interview, the interviewer had also asked me to introduce myself, what value I am expected to have as an accountant in the future, what I am expected to learn from this internship period. Furthermore, the interviewer also told me that what I am expected to perform such as to do some checking, stock take, analyze annual report, key in the data into the computer, prepare the slides. At last, the interviewer had accepted me and confirmed me as an internee in their company for 3 month.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When my 4th semester starts, my university had arranged a few workshops for us to attend. The university had invited a few companies to gave us some workshops regarding about internship in a corporate world. There are total of 6 workshops for the students to participate and will be held at the lecture halls in the university. Furthermore, these workshiops will all carrys a 5% mark on our overall internship module. The objective of participating these workshops are to let the students to understand more on what is internship actually means, the process and the eligibility.

 

On the first day, there are two sessions of workshops. The first session was held at 9am to 11am which talks about "how to write an effective cover letter and resumes" by GE Malaysia. Hence, it is important for us to write an effective cover letter because it allows us to target the job and the employer in a very specific way, leaving the resume to market our skills, qualities and experience as a part of the bigger picture. I had learned that a good Curriculum Vitae (CV) must not be more than 2 pages. It is because most of the employers will receive dozens of CVs all the time so it's unlikely they'll read each one cover to cover. Furthermore, it is important for us to prepare a good resume because a well-written resume is a proof that we understand how our tasks and responsibilities fit into the overall goals of the organization for which we work. Moreover, I had learned that it is important for us to write a broad and clear career objective because it will show that we are open to a variety of opportunities and this particular position is something that fits within our long-term goals. 

 

The second session of workshop was held at 2 to 4pm which talks about "Internship 101" by Career Service Centre. The objective of this workshop is to let the us know the benefits, the criterias and the timeline for submitting the company name that we get employed and the criterias. Therefore, I had get a lot of information through this workshop. Firstly, one of the benefits of doing an internship is we can gain a competitive advantage in the job market. It is because many employers prefer or require applicants who have completed an internship or possess relevant work experience. Besides, the workshop had informed us that the internship period is 3 month which will start from 29th December 2014 to 20 March 2015. During this 3 months, we must be punctual and maintain regular attendance for work, maintain professionalism at all times and conduct ethically at the workplace. Furthermore, there are also some criterias for us to meet in order we can proceed to do this internship module. Hence, we will need to have completed and passed a minimum of 60 credit hours. 

 

The third session of the workshop is held at 11am to 1pm on the next day which talks about "The Interview Skills: Get Hired! by Saville Consulting. Furthermore, the presenter had share with us their personal experience and also some important skills to enhance the chance of us to get hired. It is important for us to have a good interview skills because nowadays the college graduation rates are increasing and we will be leaving the university with more competition. Therefore, we must get ourself well prepared for a job interview by following these few steps so that our chance for getting a job is higher. Firstly, in the process before the interview, we need to do some reseach on that particular company.  A company's website is an excellent place to begin because it usually gives us the detail information of the company. Secondly, in the process during the interview, we need to speak clearly because if we did not speak clearly, it looks like we are mumbling and it will reflects that we lack of confidence. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The forth session of the workshop is held at 4pm to 6pm which talks about "The Professional Image and Executive Presence" by Ernst and Young. Professional image is a set of qualities and characteristics that represent perceptions of our competence and character as judged by our colleagues and managers. Firstly, we need to dressed a proper business attire to develop a positive professional image by giving people a good impression at the first time. It is because the people will form their first impressions in three seconds and once that impression is formed, it is very difficult to change.

herefore, It is important for us to have a professional image because these reputation will determines our success and achievements at work. Executive presence is a person's ability to win the confidence of those around them. These people are admired for exemplary leadership and respected as an authority. We can develop executive presence if we constantly seek to improve ourself. It is because we can find personal fullfillment and professional success by capitalizing on our strengths and minimizing our mistakes. Hence, it is important for us to have an executive presence because we will transform our self-doubt and uncertainty into self-assurance, energy and the conviction.

 

The fifth session of the workshop is held at 2pm to 4pm on 13th November 2014 which talks about "The Ethics and Etiquette at Work" by Deloitte Malaysia. Workplace ethics is used by companies to govern the employee behavior, regulate management’s moral decisions and keep companies out of legal trouble. It is important for the company to have a good ethics because it will improve the company's public image at the same time. For example, business meetings are regular occurrences in the corporate world, and by following meeting etiquette we can improve our professional image. We must always be prepared to contribute to the meeting by reviewing the agenda in advance and arrive on time.  However, workplace etiquette is a system of behavioral guidelines that help us to get along with our colleagues together so that we can all do the best at our jobs. It is important for the company to have a good etiquette because a good etiquette is vital for the company to build and maintain a team of workers that trusts, likes and respects one another.

Therefore, we need to be be respectful when we interact with our coworkers and superiors. The incidence of workplace conflict may increase if we did not respect among employees in a diverse workforce.

 

The sixth session of the workshop is held at 4pm to 5:30pm on 20th November 2014 which talks about "Ace your internship" by BDO Malaysia. Internships provide real world experience to those looking to explore or gain the relevant knowledge and skills required to enter into a particular career field. One of the advantages for an undergradurate students to do an internship is it provides the opportunity to gain hands on work experience that we can’t get in the classroom. Therefore, we must prepare stories that demonstrate our skills and highlight any transferable skills we had gained as part of our studies, part-time work or extra-curricular activities. For instance, we can start with what the problem was then explain what actions we took and the eventual result of our actions. Furthermore, we must also show that we are willing to learn new things within this three months of internship. The company would want to see that we are willing to gain experience and are genuinely interested in the company and what they can offer us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are a few goals that I would like to achieve during this internship period. Firstly, I would like to gain some working experience by applying the knowledge that I had learned in the classroom. For example, I had learned corporate finance, malaysian taxation and management accounting in the university. However, I can only do the tutorial exercise based on the case studies in the text book. Therefore, I hope that I can make use of my knowledge to apply to the real-world situations so that I can understand more on the accounting concepts and will also help the company to manage the account and finance department more efficiently.

 

Secondly, I also would like to make use of this internship job opportunity to know specifically what type of accountant I want to be in the future although I am interested and studying a degree now in this field. There are different departments in an accounting firm such as audit, tax services and financial advisory. By doing this internship, it will help me to narrow down my job search after graduation instead of making the wrong decision on getting into a department which I am not interested at.

 

Thirdly, I would also like to meet and connect with as many accountants and seasoned professionals in the field as possible during this internship period. Hence, it is important for me to keep their business cards because there will be a chance that they can help me to find a job in the future. In addition, I can also request a reference letter from the company that hired me as an intern it will helps to convince my potential employer in the future that I left the company under good terms and were an important contributor at the previous company. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Besides, I would also like to gain some working experience by developing some additional skills. It is because that nowadays the employer will normally assign the accountants who just started their career as a bookkeeper because they do not have any working experience before that. Therefore, by doing this internship, I hope that I will gain some working experience by learning different type of skills such as preparing bank reconciliation statements, financial reports and reconciling payments to the suppliers and the customers. By including these working experience into my resumes, my chance of getting a job in the furture is higher because my resume will show that I am well prepared for the job. 

 

 

 

 

 

Moreover, I would also like to learn how to use the accounting software. There are a few accounting software in Malaysia such as SQL accounting software, OBM accounting software and UBS accounting software. An accounting software is used by a company to track their financial transactions and receive instantaneous reporting and analysis. All the accounting transactions had to be performed by hand before the accounting software was introduced. Therefore, an accounting software will reduce the cost of accounting by automating these tasks and also monitor the financial health of the business.