OT interview

3 june was the fateful day, the day upon which my whole future depends on, the day which i had been waiting for since the last 2 months...

i took the whole day off from work, just so that i could prepare myself physically and mentally for what was to come. i knew that i should have been feeling nervous, but the night before, there was a sort of quiet calm which left me, well, rather unemotional. as how shafur put it, its the calm before the storm. i could not agree more.

i woke up feeling very unsure of how the interview would be. i dressed myself in a two-tone long-sleeved shirt with brown pants, and packed my bag, so as to give a professional look. gelled my short hair up as much as i could, to give an impression of youthful zest and set off, not before asking for my mother's blessings and prayers. i took a cab to nanyang poly and gave the admissions personnel a call.

then i was invited into the interview room.

there were 3 on the panel, though only 2 were interviewers. mr yap from PT, mr lee from OT and miss teng from admissions office. i was introduced to them, and i shook their hands and seated myself across the table.

mr lee began by asking about my friends in OT, namely siddiq and melissa. so i told them my relations. they then went on to ask about my university education, and since i already pre-empted the "why the change from engine to OT, why the change from uni to poly, what do you see yourself doing in OT, how are you doing in uni" questions, i shall not delve too deeply, apart from saying that these questions have had their answers prepared and so can be considered well answered.

we then went on to my background and family support to the change in course of study. i told them my role in the army, and my position as a leader and overall in charge of the management of casualties. i told them about my hospital attachment which was the primary motivating factor to entering the healthcare industry. i told them about my social nature and the need to interact with people rather than machines and technical work. i told them about the change in mindset that i effected in my parents with respect to poly education.

there were of course some interesting questions that they posed.

Q: How many years were you in University?
A: Just a year, I have just completed my first year.
Further response from them: Oh, then no problem with the tuition grant, you are still eligible. (is this a positive response or what?)

Q: Why OT and not PT?
A: As I understand it, PT involves a lot more physical handling of injuries and rehabilitation of these injuries. OT on the other hand, involves other aspects such as mental health, environmental and social factors in the rehabilitation process. I want to engage myself in a wider range of human activities. I believe that OT can provide me with a course of study that fits my interests better.

Q: As you know there are many people who are applying for OT. It is very competitive. So why should we choose you?
A: You should choose me because you yourself agreed that my decision to change from Uni to Poly is indeed a big sacrifice and it shows a great deal of determination from me. I hope that that fact will bear some weight in your decision-making. But apart from that, you should definitely choose me because of my background in the medical and healthcare industry, as well as the experience that I have had in handling patients. My experience in leading a group towards a common goal would also be valuable in projects. All in all, I am sure that you will definitely find me an asset for OT.

Q: If there were a stroke patient, who is now totally unmotivated to carry on with life, and feels that rehab is utterly useless, what will you do to help him/her?
A: The approach towards such a patient has to be a very integrated one. There may be many ways which we can actually help the patient, but what matters is that the approach is a multi-faceted one. We can perhaps effect small changes in the rehab methods that we use, we can change the environment that the patient is exposed to, we can work towards a greater family support. All of these changes must be monitored and the patient's responses duly observed. If the patient's response is positive, then the modifications should be made permanent and improved upon. Otherwise, trial and error would eventually come up with a suitable solution towards the problem. Once again, most importantly, you have to approach the patient from many ways and styles.

Q: Apart from Bahasa and English, what other languages can you speak?
A: I can speak a bit of Mandarin (this sentence was spoken in Mandarin to prove a point)

That was among some of the more interesting questions that were posed to me.

after the interview, i gave siddiq a call, and related to him the interview. and he said the question on the stroke patient was exceptionally well-answered. apparently, i used proper OT terms which scored points, seeing that i was new to it.

just now, melissa said that she met up with mr lee, and mr lee actually asked her about me. and he REMEMBERED MY NAME. melissa said that there was a positive undertone to the conversation she had with mr lee about me.

so that's the interview. although i really did not feel any tingling feeling, at least i did not leave the place feeling bad at all. when i think back about it, i actually feel pretty good. but i guess this is just me taking my precautions, and having done all i can, i am leaving it all now to God.

friends, please pray for me. i really want to go into this course and i feel i can really perform and succeed here. so please pray for my successful entry, and God bless you all for your prayers.

Ilahi anta maqsudi wa ridhaka matlubi mahabbataka wa ma'rifataka...
Bismillahi tawakkaltu 'ala Allah, la hawla wa la quwwata illa billah...