The application process to study pharmacy course (MPharm) at University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus (UNMC) includes a personal statement and a reference letter from your referee. An interview will also be held before they give you a conditional/unconditional offer.
I believe that the personal statement is what applicants are always worried about. It is always a devil in the job since it does not only require academic-related content but also non-academic-related content such as what inspires you, why you are interested in pharmacy, and so on. But don’t worry, UNMC’s personal statement only requires applicants to tell them why you have chosen to study the course that you have applied for, what made you choose UNMC and what your future plans are. You only have to answer their questions in essay form with not more than 4000 characters. The personal statement is actually a reflection of yourself, so a simple essay with short, brief sentences will do! The most important thing is for the reader to understand the messages you are trying to convey!
On the other hand, do not worry about your reference letter. All you need to do is give one of your lecturers the reference form, which can be found on the UNMC website, and they’ll do the rest for you. (: Do also take note that your lecturer might need your CV or any relevant documents in order to write the reference letter.
I was notified to attend the interview session 2 months later. They have introduced a new interview system this year. We were given some short briefings regarding the MPharm course and given a campus tour. The 12 of us were then divided equally into 2 groups and were assigned to different sections of the interview. My first session was actually a group activity where we were each given several cards with different information, and all we needed to do was solve a mystery together. It turned out pretty fun and it actually calmed me down. Though they informed us that it’s just a group activity, in my opinion it was to evaluate our soft skills. Thus, do your very best, and that will do!
My next interview session was divided into 6 stations. In the beginning, we were all assigned to different stations. Each station had a time limit of 5 minutes, and we had to move to our next stations when the whistle was blown. The questions asked were not the typical questions such as why you want to study pharmacy, etc. Instead, the questions all revolved around Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology and general knowledge regarding the pharmaceutical field. Though what I had prepared for my interview was about the soft skills I had that make me eligible to be a pharmacist, this actually helped me in answering certain questions. The interviewer will eventually lead you to get the answer so always keep calm so that you are able to think well.
Overall, that’s it for you to get a place in UNMC to take up MPharm. I would like to say that the early bird catches the worm, so apply earlier if you are interested! Also, utilize your free time to plan your personal statement well. Do believe in yourself, and all the best!
Chong Kai Qian is a JPA scholar currently pursuing her pharmacy degree at University of Manchester although she also received an offer from University of Nottingham Malaysia.
