Stage 1
Step 1:
The application portal for the prestigious Kijang Scholarship opened 2 weeks after receiving my SPM results.
(Check the requirements for the application)
Step 2:
Fill up personal details. (eg. Family members, parents’ salary, etc)
The last section of the first stage of the application is to write a 500 word essay about yourself, why you deserve the scholarship, your chosen course of study and how it would benefit the bank.
Tips: It is likely that there will be a timer for the essay, you could log out of the portal, type the essay on a different platform and paste it onto the original website.
Be sure of the courses of study provided by BNM
Step 3:
You wait!! (I waited for 3 months!! I’m sure they were as confused as I was due to Covid-19) Be sure to check your emails because they can contact you anytime.
This year, they screened through the applicants from stage 1; only around 150 were eligible for Stage 2 and Stage 3.
Step 4:
They contacted the remaining candidates and the tasks for Stage 2 and Stage 3 were made clear to us.
Stage 2
We had to do a psychometric test (pretty standard, nothing to fret about)
We also had to prepare a 3 minute video in a week’s time.
The possible topics to be chosen from this year are the following:
- My Personal Strength vs Weaknesses
- Hard work vs Talents
- Financial Literacy
This process is new to the application process as they used this method to “Get to know the candidates” as they can’t do so physically.
Be yourself, put in as much effort as you can!
(This process isn’t included in the selection process)
Stage 3
This stage is split into 2, a group and individual interview on Zoom
The group activity is to assess your ability to communicate with a group of peers.
First, the members of the team were given 1 different photo each. The combination of all the photos would tell a chain of events. We were to describe our respective photos and come up with a theory of the events that took place.
Then, we were given a (hypothetical) case study which would assess our decision making and communication skills.
The individual interview was done after the group activity.
Common questions that were asked:
- What are some tough past experiences you went through and how did you overcome them?
- Why do you want to study the course of study chosen?
- Why did you apply for the BNM scholarship?
- What are the policies that are suitable during this period of time? (The covid-19 pandemic)
- What do you think of increasing the minimum wage?
Tips:
- Just be yourself!
- Just like a job interview, you should prepare because they are choosing their future employees.
- Read up to have some basic knowledge.
- Practice if you want to.
- Be polite, dress well, follow the appropriate etiquette even though the interview is conducted online.
- Breathe and relax!
Step 5:
Wait again! But luckily this time, they’ll take a shorter time, around 2 weeks.
Good luck with your applications!
I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it. ~ Thomas Jefferson, former President of the United States
Walter Tay is currently a Bank Negara Malaysia Kijang scholarship recipient. He completed his SPM in SMK Tinggi St David Melaka and is currently pursuing his A Levels in Kolej Tuanku Ja’afar (KTJ). If you intend to contact the author, feel free to contact the CollegeLAH Team at contactus@collegelah.com.