Career Talk: “The Path Ahead” by University of Malaya Student Chapter

American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) Student Chapter University of Malaya organized a career talk on the 6th of October 2007 from 2.00pm to 6.30pm, followed by a small fast-breaking gathering, in conjunction with the fasting month for the Muslims. Speakers from PETRONAS (Mr. Syed Mohd Muhafiz), Schlumberger (Ms Nora Abu Zarin), Baker Hughes (Mr. Cormac Parsons), and two alumni from this department (Ms. Intan Suhaila Mustafa and Mr. Hairul Hafiz) were invited to the event.

The primary objective of this talk is to enhance the knowledge of students in the working environments of oil and gas industry as well as to provide opportunity for them to submit their resume for job or internship. This event also aspires to construct a platform for students to socialize with their potential employer, subsequently obtain better understandings on these companies and their entry requirements.

The talk started at 2.00pm as planned in the tentative program. President of AAPG Student Chapter University of Malaya, Mr. Ong Hock Kim gave a warm welcoming speech to all the speakers, guest and students who attended the talk. He welcomed the speakers to the department, extended his gratitude to the organizing committee, and briefly introduces the student chapter’s history and activities.

Assistant Dean of Science Faculty, Prof. Dr. Lee Chai Peng, then officiate the event. In his speech, he thanked the speakers for their enthusiasm to participate in the talk, despite the ongoing fasting month for the Muslims. He also congratulated the entire student chapter for their initiative to conduct this beneficial activity. The director of the event, Ms. Loh Poh Yee then presented Prof. Lee with a souvenir as token of appreciation.

The first speaker of the day, Ms Nora Abu Zarin (recruiting manager of Schlumberger) started of her speech by introducing the history of Schlumberger, the values of the company, the type of employees they are seeking for, and the benefits the company provides. She mentioned that the company is constantly recruiting graduates that are competent in handling computer software and IT. Applicant also are preferably active in extra-curricular activities, have excellent communication proficiency, and adept in sales and customer service. The advantages of joining Schlumberger is then clearly delineated, such as conducive working environment, training and professional development, safe and secure working environment, world class technology and equipments, and access to international group of recognized expert. She then briefly shared a few interesting story of her being one of the few women working of the oil rig. After the speech, question and answer session took place and subsequently, Mr. Ong Hock Kim presented her with a token of appreciation. Resume of interested students were also collected.

Mr. Syed Mohd Muhafiz, from PETRONAS is the second speaker and he started his presentation in a rather relax manner by introducing the background of PETRONAS. The vision of PETRONAS is to be the leading oil and Gas Company locally and internationally. The mission of the company is to have a business entity where Malaysian government will be able to benefit 100% from the profit of the company. The primary responsibility of the company is to develop and add value to the national resource and the objective of this company is to contribute to the well-being especially to all Malaysian citizens. The core business of PETRONAS is petroleum, but they are also actively involved in F1 and education (UTP). According to Mr., Syed, priority is always given to the graduates with excellent extra-curricular background, fine leadership ability and good in communication skills, apart from being excellent in academics alone. He also personally encourages students to work with the national company, both for good career prospects and serving to the country. Continuous training will be given to every staff in PETRONAS. He also mentioned that interviews will be held annually in University Malaya and he hope that students will make good use of the interview opportunity. After the speech, the speaker received a souvenir from Ms. Loh Poh Yee, and resume of interested students are collected. Question and answer slot was carried out simultaneously.

The third speaker of the day, Mr. Cormac Parsons, a senior Geologist in Baker Hughes, explained about the background of Baker Hughes Company. Baker Hughes Geosciences is the heart beat of real time drilling and evaluation applications for Baker Hughes. Created through a partnership between Baker Atlas and INTEQ, two of the company’s eight divisions, Baker Hughes Geosciences is built on a foundation of motivated geologist, geological engineers, petrophysicists, formation evaluation specialist, and reservoir and petroleum engineers. They help their customers such as ExxonMobil, BP, Anadarko and Shell as well as national oil company such as Petrobras and Saudi Aramco in the exploration, production and processing of oil and gas. According to him, in terms of employment, this company hires primarily master’s degree holder. However, Baker Hughes also do hire bachelor’s degree holder under certain condition. Similar to those mentioned by the two previous speakers, the criteria that this company seeks in employees is not only academic achievements but also other related soft skills. After the speech, question and answer session was conducted and the speaker then received a small token of appreciation from Mr. Ong Hock Kim. Resume of interested students were collected later.

After all the guest speakers from the three companies finish their presentations, alumni from the department then share their working experiences with students in a semi-formal manner. Mrs. Intan Suhaila and Mr. Hairul Hafiz conversed about their education background, experiences as students and employees, and also some insider on preparing for an interview. According to them, substantial homework should be done before attending an interview, such as understanding the company background, its organizational culture and so on. Being presentable, confident, punctual, and always be prepared for any type of question are also musts for every interview. They end their talk by wishing all students best of luck in their working life ahead.

The talk ended sharp at 6.30pm. While waiting for fast-breaking, a short bonding session with all the speakers and alumni took place. More detailed questions from students are answered by the speakers during this session.

At 7.15pm, foods were served after a short prayer from all Muslim speakers and students. This program was another achievement for the AAPG Student Chapter University of Malaya. Highest appreciation is extended to all members, non-members, participants, staff and lecturers, especially Professor Denis Tan Ngoh Kiat and Professor Dr Lee Chai Peng for their assistance and guidance. Gratitude is also expressed to Schlumberger, PETRONAS, Baker Hughes and the alumni of the department for their support and cooperation.

LOH POH YEE
Secretary
American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG)
Student Chapter University of Malaya