Maybank Scholarship

Assalamualaikum wbt and hi! So, you must be curious on how the journey to acquire a scholarship from Malaysia’s number 1 bank will be. Well, not to worry. Here’s a draft of my own experience 🙂

This scholarship requires you to go through three stages. Each of the stages has their own unique way of challenging you whether you are worthy of the scholarship or not. Before applying, mind you that the scholarship has two categories. In my experience, it is best to consider first the course you would like to pursue and your total household income before choosing the best category to apply as both of them have different features. You can check afterschool.my for more details.

Stage 1

After sending the application, I had to wait for 2-3 weeks before receiving an invitation to an online assessment tests via email. The online assessment contained numerical and verbal component. Don’t worry if you are not confident to answer the test. You can always search and practice on example questions of numerical and verbal tests on the internet. The main challenge in this stage was to be able to answer the questions in a short time limit. Nevertheless, the accuracy of the answers were as important. Before you start, make sure you are relax and in a calm surrounding.

Stage 2

I received an unexpected call from Maybank on the same day I did my online assessment. Every inch of my body shook as I had not prepared (take note) anything for the interview on the second stage. So, everything was a bit stressful but luckily I managed to gear up with some information on how to answer interview questions through the internet. Phew. I was informed that my interview session was at 11 o’clock at the Talent Acquisition Centre on the 44th floor of the Maybank Tower in KL and the dress code was formal.

The next day, I arrived at the tower 30 minutes earlier. I registered at a counter to get a visitor’s pass before taking a lift to the 44th floor. They actually have different lifts for different floors! Cool. Anyway, upon reaching the centre, the receptionist registered my name and asked me to wait in the lobby. While waiting, I chatted with a friendly girl who did not looked as nervous as I was. Haha. The lobby had a few rooms with different interviewers. Finally, my name was called. To be honest, the interview was fun and not at all like what people were saying. I guess I was lucky to be interviewed by two very friendly personnel from the Talent Management division. My advice is to be confident in what you intend to pursue and also just be yourself. Don’t forget your manners and also prepare questions for the interviewers at the end of the session.

Stage 3

Three weeks later, I received an email regarding an invitation to the second interview. The second interview comprised of several activities. I was told to expect a presentation scenario and be prepared to provide a strategy analysis for a sample case. Thank goodness I had time to prepare myself as the interview was four days away. I read on economic and business terms as I was not familiar with the subject because I was a science student in school. On D-day, there were eight applicants (including me) attending the second interview. We had an ice-breaking session and were divided into two groups. Then, we were given each a sample case of a fictitious company and a few minutes to study the sample. After a while, we had to write our strategy analysis on a mahjong paper and present it individually to an evaluator. During the presentation, my evaluator asked a lot of questions on my analysis which forced me to think quick and answer spontaneously. It is important to cover your sample case precisely in order to prepare a good strategy analysis.

The next activity was to debate and determine on the best strategy for the company. Each of us took turns to state the pros and cons of our chosen strategy. The key in this activity is to be able to communicate with your teammates and being responsive in a group discussion. Fluency when speaking in English can also be a major advantage.

All in all, the experience had taught me to not give up whenever an obstacle stands in my way. I had to admit that reading the older overviews of the interview had frightened me a bit but if I never try, I will never know. Alhamdulillah, attending all three stages of the interview had given me more than an experience. Good luck to those who are about to go through the same journey as I had been. Always remember to embrace the beauty of ups and downs in life as they will gradually shape us into who we become.