Haha, Oops I Did It Again!

Hello everyone! Yes, it's me, the self acclaimed blogger back at your service. Gosh, I've been away for too long really to the point that I had trouble even to log in to my own blog for that matter, haha. Intolerable really! Personally, it's been at the back of my head for quite a while but everytime I thought of scribbling again, I got lost in the middle of the thought process and hey presto...interest died down. AGAIN. Sad yes, and to my faithful blog followers (the 8 people strong army), I am truly sorry for my period of hiatus.

What changed you say? Well for one, my time in the UK for my degree has finally come to and truth be told, it is one of my deepest regret that I was too lazy to write more on my blog about my experiences there, for stories were a plenty and interesting ones they were too. God willing, I'll be glad to share them sometime soon. With the end of my tertiary education, comes the phase that very few of overseas graduate experience. UNEMPLOYMENT....

So, here I am. Back in Malaysia, with a degree in Biotechnology from the recently acclaimed top 5 universities in the world (in your face Imperial College, haha! :P). Ignoring the fact that I did not get a first class grade, it is still a common perception that such a degree would be able to secure a decent job in my beloved home. Alas, while the degree may be sufficient, the nature of what I studied however have proven to be the main hindrance in this case. Little did I realize this until the moment I started looking for a job related to my field...As it turns out, all (at least the ones I've identified so far) of the companies involved necessitated a minimum of one year in the industry. Needless to say, I was quite despondent by all this, and so it proved to be for the next three months upon completion of my studies. Until I got a call...

JPA wanted all of their overseas graduates to enrol for a camp in Pangkor, in an attempt to asses us for our suitability to potentially work as a civil servant under the wings of the government. In general, there were a number of positives to sum up (the Flying Fox was certainly new) but the main one for me personally was the realization that I was not alone. My friend Faiz from Nottingham also had the same dilemma, with both of us graduating with a Life Sciences degree. Though we were both rocking on the same boat, he differentiated himself from me with the knowledge of what is already lying across the horizon. On his words, I was introduced to the fact that the biotechnology climate in Malaysia centered on the study of homeopathy and agriculture, the study of how we can make the most of its diversity of plants. In other words, so far and away from my interest in the study of biofuels. Knockout!!

But despair not he said, for this is where we can still be productive. Masters in Bioinformatics was a suggestion from his lecturer to him and what he passed on to me. Part time, while getting tutor jobs at universities nearby (UUM coming to mind due to it being close to both our homes). Sounds appealing and definitely way better than what I'm doing now, definitely a plan worthy to fall back on. But for now, the search must continue. Any job would do, though preference would obviously be on the Biosciences. And this with a little side note to add...

For those close to me, I have definitely never hidden my desire to continue my education and with the current situation existing, my hands are actually tied up more that I can imagine. At the very least, doing so would enhance my prospects in getting such a job (and yes, the increase in salary also comes to mind) while more importantly making me feel good about myself again in one way or another. JPA has certainly convinced me that the best option to do so would be via their Excellent Scholars Scheme, one that I'd be very happy to grab with both hands.

Now, I'm a part time fence builder for the cattle rearing project Abah and Mak had in mind, and it's been a good way to burn off the excess fat I'm building up since returning. Man, I seriously need to lose weight! On that note, I'll keep you updated if anything comes up and glad to hear from you guys again too! :D