Of 1 essay, 1 psychometric analysis and 3 interviews
Just 3 days ago, I was walking around Singapore, wondering when I would receive a reply from ANY of the 2 local universities I applied to.
3 days later, I'm staring at a possible "1 essay test, 1 psychometric assessment and 3 interviews", all life-altering events.
Sunday morning, I woke up to find a letter from the National University of Singapore (NUS) on my bed. My family members aren't exactly equipped with social grace, them having ripped the envelope apart before I even woke up. I appreciate the customary envelope-opening process but what the heck, a reply. Lol. NUS was basically telling me that they thought I was good enough to be shortlisted for their medicine course (together with a possible 700 or so people among a cohort of 12,000 , if I should believe the news when they claim that 12,000 people sat for the GCE 'A' Levels last year). So the letter tells me to get my sorry butt off the bed and prepare a portfolio that has to reach them in 5 days (Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, so 5 days!). Other than that, I have to get my very sorry butt into the university this coming Sunday for an essay test and a psychometric assessment (the results of which will be used for research, not admission, but the essay counts) and next Thursday for TWO interviews. Ok, my butt may not my that sorry after all, but I admit that the thought of it rather intimidating. What have I got to lose anyway? Other than a bruised ego.
And so I went about preparing the portfolio. Squeezed out a personal statement and a CV, before proceeding to make 5 more copies of my personal statement, the CV and both letters of recommendation which came courtesy of my junior college tutors when I asked them for the same for the scholarship application. Tomorrow the portfolio will be sent to the university by local despatch because I have too little faith in our local postal system. Lol. Now, the question is, what should I expect for the essay test and interviews? I've heard about past applicants being asked questions that were EXTREMELY medical in nature, or being faced with questions that were NON-MEDICAL in nature AT all, right down to questions that were simply WEIRD. Now, will someone please enlighten me? It's not as if I can simply call the family doctor (who's been practicing longer than I have been breathing air I reckon) what to expect.
I'm in a group where I don't know ANYONE, the one person I do know who's also been shortlisted is in the adjacent group. ACK. Now I have to prepare myself for the possibility of being GRILLED for an hour. And that of having to crack my head for 45mins thinking what to write for an essay, taking into account the fact that I haven't exactly written an essay in 5 months. The only possible thing left for me to do is to throw myself into the Singapore River and see if I drown. Lol.
Just joking =P
So that explains the essay test, psychometric test (2nd one I'm taking. Remember the government made me sit for one last year?) and 2 interviews.
The 3rd interview came today, first via SMS. Regular readers would remember I actually had to guts to apply for the A*STAR (that's the Agency for Science, Technology And Research for the uninitiated) with my sub-standard results (4 As, A1 for GP, U for Economics 'S' Paper and Merit for Biology 'S' Paper) when the average A*STAR scholar has (4 As, A1 for GP and 2 'S' Paper distinctions). On my way home, while I was on a bus that would take 40mins to reach my stop (a journey that normally took 15mins), I received a message from the above-mentioned stat board telling me that by some freak stroke of luck, I'd been shortlisted.
Did people suddenly shun A*STAR this year? Or has A*STAR been looking at the wrong name and number when they sent the message?
So yes, I am down for a 3rd interview this coming Monday. I need all the luck in the world now. I am going to go for everything with nothing but hope. Hopefully I'll be able to deal with everything thrown my way.
My boss should expect lots of people to be absent since everyone seems to be running off for interviews. Lol.
Now it's time for me to start planning for the interviews. Interview outfits, a haircut.... Ah...
I'm a 3rd year student in what is probably the largest autonomous university in Singapore majoring in a Science-related subject (well it sorta IS SCIENCE). I'm known to be introverted, sarcastic (at times), funny when I rant (which isn't a good thing lol) and somewhat of a loner. I miss LA and would move there in a heartbeat :(
