19 – 23 July – Tenby International School made it compulsory for Year Ten students to go out into the workforce for a week to gain work experience. One of its Year Ten students, Erin Thompson, selected International Medical University (IMU) because she wanted to do something which would be useful in the future, in this case to seek and gain better clarity on the courses she was interested in pursuing. Erin relates her experience at IMU. “To be rather frank I did little work, but rather gained much experience from the students, lecturers and members of staff at IMU. 
The staff here at IMU, May Kuan arranged for me various activities including the forensic analysis of my own hair with Dr Kok Yih Yih (IMU’s medical biotechnology lecturer); a completion of the Behavioural Style Assessment provided by their counsellors; and a tour of the University’s own medical museum with Felicity (a student studying medicine at IMU) who explained how helpful it was for the students in learning anatomy, all of which is a good addition to speaking with the lecturers and students. I personally found this experience especially helpful as the lecturers and students here gave me detailed insight on their courses and university experience. It also amazed me how compliant and enthusiastic they were, willing to give up their time to speak to me and give me their sincere advice.
What especially impressed me was the emphasis the students, lecturers and staff placed on the importance of deciding on a course that suited you. It is critical for students to understand that while their interest in the course is apparent, their interest in the career that follows is crucial, encouraging me to reflect deeply on the beginning with an end in mind as it is far more beneficial to have a degree in a career field of relevance.
Among the various programmes I explored one which especially appealed to me was Medical Biotechnology, a course which I had never even considered before. It appealed to me because research was a key aspect of the course and the career itself, furthermore the contribution that it makes to society I think is one which is fundamental as it focuses on the innovation of medicinal drugs to develop preventive or curative drugs against thousands of diseases. 
Additionally, the individual modules in the course such as toxicology, molecular biology and forensics are ones which I find fascinating which draws my overall interest towards biotechnology. Another course which I found myself more drawn towards than before was in fact psychology. I had considered it as a subject I found very interesting but not as one I would pursue; however, I was told that it is a widely accepted course due to its ability to be applied in virtually any field that deals with people ranging from counselling to corporate industries.
In addition, it was explained to me the significance of having a good university experience, Felicity who not only studied medicine was also the president of the Student Representative Council here at IMU. She advised me to grab at opportunities to get involved with whatever university or school I join. Despite its difficulties, she assured me that I would find it worthwhile to gain the experience as she had found hers to be challenging but extremely rewarding. May Kuan also elaborated on the values IMU had for assisting the community and the various funds and projects organised by the university and the impacts it had on the students as future healthcare professionals.
Overall, I found my time here at IMU very productive and extremely helpful as it has given me an enormous amount of experience which I will find myself drawn to when I eventually pursue my tertiary education. I am grateful to the people at IMU to be given the opportunity to explore and consider my future now with greater clarity and understanding. I thank all of them for their time.”
