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| 'I finished uni!' |
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| Title: The Ups and Downs of Final Year |
I've made it, to the end of my degree. It has been a roller coaster ride filled with emotions, triumphs and downfalls. Most of you have been with me for parts of the ride, cheering me on and sharing your stories as well. For that, I am so blessed to be supported by each and every one of you.
I would also like to address a few typical post-grad questions here so (hopefully) I won't have to repeat myself so much when people ask me, I could just direct them to this post or maybe, you've read this and know better than to ask.
Q1: So what's your plan?
Okay, I know it is only natural to ask a soon-to-be graduate this but boy, it can get frustrating trying to answer this repeatedly. So here's a short answer: I don't know.
I have a few ideas but I'm still waiting to hear back from a few people so I don't want to confirm what my actual plans are.
In the long term, I would like to be a consulting psychologist. Psychology, mental health and performance (sport, music, business, military etc) is where I'd like to be involved in so anything I'll do in the future would include a few aspects of these 3 areas.
Another, perhaps slightly different area I'd like to be a part of is in saving the earth (or rather the human race) from climate change. Sometimes, I have this existential crisis where I'd ask myself "Nature is being destroyed by human activity and all I can think of is earning money?" and feel helpless in not knowing what I can do. Sure, I'm trying my best as an individual to be more green but I've realised that trying to convince people to change their deep-rooted habits (using plastic, eating meat) is an extremely challenging task and getting society to change (infrastructure, legislation etc) is a whole other mountain to climb. Again, I don't know. If anyone has any ideas or people I can talk to, let me know.
Q2: Are you planning to work in Malaysia or somewhere else?
Currently, I would like to return home and work for the time being. I miss my family so much and after spending majority of the past 5 years in the UK, I think it's time I head home. I want to spend time with my parents, my long-time friends and most importantly, spoil my cousin's children. I also miss good Malaysian food (duh).
I would not rule out moving abroad for work or even to do my masters but that's still up in the air. So for now, I'm heading home.
Q3: You couldn't get a job in the UK?
It's not that jobs are difficult to find, it's just so much more of a hassle. I wouldn't say that UK employers are making it hard for international students to find a job because of the Tier 2 visa (i.e. UK's working permit for non-EU/UK). In all honesty, I just didn't want to put in the effort because I knew it wasn't worth it for me. The jobs that are able to sponsor Tier 2 visas are not what I want to do and if it is something I'd love to do, chances are, they don't sponsor Tier 2 visa. I know I can dig deeper and something will pop out but I also want to go home. Yes, 'earning in pounds' is much better economically, but if I commit to a job that I don't like doing, what's the point?
Also, if I were to get a Tier 2 sponsored job that I love, I would most likely move to another town. It's just another round of settling down but this time, there might not even be a community of Malaysians that I could be part of or a family friend close by. That, is very important to me. Moving to Bath, I knew I could visit my family and friends in Oxford easily and there is a Malaysian society at university. People will say that I can always make new friends and make home out of a unfamiliar place but mentally, I don't think I am ready for that. Like I said before, I'm ready to go home.
Q4: Would you go into politics?
No. There are many reasons why I don't want to but to save time, I just don't think it is for me. My calling in life is to help people and I don't think being involved in politics is the way to go. For me, there's too much people pleasing, bureaucracy and arguing involved. Not my cup of tea. I mean I'm happy to work with politicians because they make the rules but to be one, I'd rather leave that post for someone more competent.
Q5: So, can you give me counselling sessions (for free)?
No, graduating with a BSc in Psychology does not make me a counsellor. I'm not trained to provide professional advice and its unethical for me to do so. I'd like to undergo training for basic counselling soon so maybe ask me after that? Also, please don't ask for free sessions (I know most people who ask, can afford it). Like any other service, people spend money and time becoming qualified so its only right that there should be a form of payment. Only in special circumstance will I even consider giving out free sessions but again, I'm not qualified yet so I can't say much on this.
End of FAQs!
These are just some of the questions I'm already getting regarding my post-grad plans. I had time to think about the answers so I hope they're satisfactory.
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| Posing like how I danced around those questions |
I've thought about why the title is 'Bachelor of Science' because in the context of job market, one becomes an eligible bachelor waiting to commit to a job. Like any relationship, to be successful, one should be believe and be comfortable in doing that job while at the same time be challenging for potential self-growth. Ha, funny that.
Again, I would like to thank all my family, friends, housemates, coursemates and everyone in between for their support during my university years. I hope I continue to still have this love as I go into the next phase of my life.
Love,
Liza x