Story #32
Q: How did you decide on your undergraduate course of study?
A: It was between business and accountancy, and the latter was perceived to be more specialised with it being one of the prerequisites for the CA Singapore professional accreditation.
Q: In retrospect, what did you think were the most useful lessons/ skills/ knowledge you'd gained from your undergraduate education?
A: Rather than the technical knowledge, the soft skills came in most useful (e.g. learning to speak up with ease, presenting in front of a large audience, working in a team, networking). One can brush up on the technical aspects by reading up anytime anywhere. However, soft skills can only be honed over time with experience, and such opportunities do not come by every time.
Q: How has your undergraduate education influenced your career choice?
A: Graduating with an accounting degree without an idea of what to do, audit was somewhat the default career choice.
Q: Briefly describe your current job scope.
A: Planning and executing audits, performing financial analysis, understanding clients' key business processes, advising clients on accounting and industry developments, recommending improvements to the presentation of financial statements, proposing enhancements to internal controls etc.
Q: To what extent is your current job related to your undergraduate course of study?
A: Totally related - I acquired the skills required to perform the job through my undergraduate education/ The course was a pre-requisite for my job.
Q: What are some additional areas you wish your undergraduate education could have covered?
A: N.A.