MSSA

FREE SEMINAR â€“ MR. LIM EU SHAWN, SEMINAR ON GENERATION Y AND THE INDUSTRY

Mr Lim Eu Shawn, an engineer with the UTP Offshore Engineering Centre and Civil Engineering Department, has been a Council Member with MSSA for the past four years. Involved in various initiatives including the development of oil and gas areas, Shawn also serves on the Malaysian Oil & Gas Service Council in developing national offshore standards. In addition, he also supports the university’s research, involved in consultancy activities on the incubation of new technologies.

This workshop he conducts after the Awards Ceremony is well-timed as it is highly relevant to the final year university students who are about to embark and enter the work market. Shawn is concerned to highlight to the soon-to-be graduates the trends of Generation Y and their relationship with the Industry.

Possessing a vibrant and dynamic personality, Shawn is keen to facilitate Generation Y to confront the position they would be facing: possible unemployment upon graduation. High on the list for such an occurrence is Generation Y’s unrealistic salary or fringe benefit demands. A second compounding factor is their poor command of the English Language, which as a common medium in the business world, very much limits their ability to communicate well. Being choosy about the nature of their job, and coupled with poor character, attitude and personality, are also seen as further obstacles that decrease their value in the eyes of possible future employers.

Further, Shawn also draws attention on the competency gaps displayed by graduates on project management and on general knowledge of the industry, as well as possessing poor soft skills. According to Shawn when prospective employers look at job resumes, their criteria is for leadership posts held and involvements in extracurricular activities rather than extremely high academic scores.

To ensure optimum employability, Shawn strongly urges new graduates to pursue cross discipline training and to invest in obtaining professional educational certifications or vocational certifications to ensure they possess transferable skills. In addition, he recommends graduates should seriously look into cultivating their soft skills.