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Education is the fundamental necessity of life. The achievement of higher education is not possible without studying in college or university. University is a hub of knowledge where learners can gain vast knowledge and experience with the exposure to the right courses. Choosing the right course that fits you and your future goal can be one of the important factors for life survival although it sometimes can be confusing.
Planning for the higher education, understanding your interest and personality and finding out what you are good at and what you are value most in your life is the first step towards choosing a right course to study.
Choosing a course is not a science, it is a process in finding out who you are and what you are good at. An experience education advisor would be invaluable in assisting them to choose the right course or they can talk to the right counselors who are knowledgeable and experienced so that they get the right information to help them choosing the important course that they should take in university to prepare them in making the life changing decision.
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2. OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH
Did you know that there were over 3,600 work-related accidents reported in Malaysia in 2017, of which 267 were deaths? This puts our national occupational fatality rate at a staggering 4.90, a number that’s shows slightly increasing compare from the year 2015 and 2016 which is only 4.84.
And these are just the cases that were investigated by the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH). What about those that were not investigated?
This is exactly why Occupational Safety and Health plays such a pivotal role in the workplace – ensuring that relevant safety and health standards, as well as procedures, are carefully observed to reduce potential occupational hazards.
If you’re passionate about playing your part in protecting the lives of hardworking workers and combating the rising rate of occupational accidents, then make further inspections on why Occupational Safety & Health may be the right course for you.
Occupational Safety & Health (OSH) is responsible for making sure that working environments are safe and healthy.
Some of the major responsibilities of OSH officers include designing safe working procedures, performing working site inspections as well as providing necessary training on various workplace safety, health and risk-related issues.
A simple case in point is that workers at a construction site are required to don all the necessary safety gear and equipment, such as safety glasses, gloves, hard hats and safety vests, not to mention checking off a set of long safety checklists before they are allowed to commence work.
Occupational Safety & Health doesn’t just cover physical safety conditions. It also takes into consideration other sneaky hazards like psychological (stress and strain), biological (infestations, bacteria and viruses), chemical (dusts, fumes and gases) and ergonomic (badly-designed machinery and workstations) risks, all which are crucial to the overall physical, mental and social wellbeing of employees at the workplace.
In order to pursue an Occupational Safety ; Health course, you will need to meet the minimum requirements set by colleges and universities. A typical Occupational Safety ; Health Diploma will take around 3 years to complete. Not only you will be taught how to assess and measure the safety and health of various workplaces, you will also learn how to set up necessary safety and health conditions to ensure the wellbeing of workers. Upon completion of your diploma, you will be able to demonstrate an understanding of safety and health in the workplace and apply your knowledge and skills to prevent accidents and workplace injuries.
After completing your Diploma in Occupational Safety ; Health, you can look for suitable employment opportunities to put your newly acquired knowledge to practice. In case you feel you need a more comprehensive understanding of the field, you can choose to pursue a Degree in Occupational Safety ; Health.
To pursue a Degree in Occupational Safety ; Health, you will need to complete your SPM (or an equivalent qualification) and a Pre-University qualification first. Of course, you’ll need to meet the minimum entry requirements set by your desired university or college as well. A Degree in Occupational Safety & Health is generally 3 to 4 years long. Upon completion of an Occupational Safety & Health Degree, you will gain a stronger grasp on fundamental and professional occupational safety and health topics. You will also be able to make more comprehensive interpretations and analyses to recommend suitable preventive measures in the workplace.
More importantly, with a Degree in Occupational Safety & Health in hand, you can also advise, educate and train employees, employers and even the community on various issues related to workplace safety and health. As part of your degree, you will also need to commit to a final year project and industrial training to complement your learning in classes.
In general, most people pursuing an Occupational Safety & Health course will go on to become Safety and Health Officers (SHO). In order to be a registered competent Safety and Health Officer that is licensed by the Department of Occupational Safety & Health (DOSH), there are several pathways you can consider.
In Occupational Health and Safety, you will be exposed to fundamental science subjects such as human anatomy, microbiology, basic psychology and physics. These will serve as your foundation before taking up specific occupational safety and health-related subjects, which include; Occupational Safety and Health Laws, OSH Risk Management, Emergency Response and Planning, Hazardous Substances, Fire, Chemical and Machinery Safety, Occupational Epidemiology, Ergonomics and Human Factor, Accident Investigation and also Business Operations Management.
With so many popular courses like Medicine, Engineering, Law, Psychology and Business, why should you consider taking up an Occupational Safety & Health course?
Here are some reasons to give this course a good thought.
The first reason is flexibility to explore multiple industries. Occupational safety and health professionals can find employment opportunities in a wide variety of settings, such as construction, factories, petrochemical, mining and offices. As long as there is a risk in the safety and health of employees, tenants or guests, your expertise in this field will be needed. After all, not only do workplace accidents cost businesses money via compensation and fines, they are also a source of bad publicity and low staff morale.
So if you’re looking for a relatively flexible career that’s sought after by multiple industries, then you should give this field due consideration.
Secondly, be a part of the health frontline. While you may not be directly involved in saving lives, you will be part of the health heroes toiling tirelessly to prevent workplace accidents from occurring, thus reducing fatalities and the need for people to seek medical aid. So if you fancy being part of the health frontline but prefer a career that’s a little less mainstream, Occupational Safety ; Health can be a great choice for you!
Thirdly, ensure safe and healthy working conditions for all. Every year, thousands of workplace accidents are recorded, with many resulting in injury, permanent disability, or worse, death. Many of these could have been avoided had there been proper occupational safety and health information, training and processes in place. If you feel strongly about these numbers and would like to do your part in helping people avoid mishaps at work, then studying Occupational Safety ; Health is a great place to start.
As a profession that upholds the safety and health of those around you, you will need to maintain a high level of professionalism and work ethic, on top of having a specific set of skills to perform well in your course as well as at work. You will need a strong critical thinking skills. Every working environment will be different from another, so be prepared to face challenges that are very dynamic in nature. For example, a shoe production factory can have very different safety and health procedures and standards compared to a chocolate factory. Your critical thinking skills will be put to test as you access, analyse and customise feasible safety and health solutions based on the needs of different workplace environments.
You will also have an ability to practice and maintain active listening. Many clues in your initial diagnoses and assessments of the safety of a workplace come from existing employees. The ability to be able to engage and obtain valuable feedback from people whose health and wellbeing are directly involved can be an important attribute of a safety and health officer. Expect to be tested on your ability to listen and acquire feedback in classes.
Your ability to articulate and communicate well with others will also increase. As a safety and health officer, not only do you need to ensure that all the safety procedures are in place, you will also be expected to carry out lectures or training sessions to educate employees. Inevitably, you will be trained to give detailed presentations in your Occupational Safety ; Health course, as good articulation and presentation skills are needed in this field.
Well equipped with the right knowledge and relevant qualifications, graduates of an Occupational Safety ; Health course can kick-start their careers as OSH Specialist, Health Inspector, Safety Officer, and Trainer or as a Hygiene Technician Occupational safety and health is a broad field as it needs to cover all dynamics of the working environment. Passing the respective competency courses and assessments, on top of chalking up the required working experience, will allow you to be licensed as a competent person accordingly.
3. ENGINEERING
Ever been fascinated with how things work in the world? Do you love solving complex puzzles and learning new things? Are you constantly getting A’s in math and science, so much so that your classmates are constantly seeking free tuition from you? If you’ve answered a resounding “yes!” to all of these questions, then an Engineering course might just be the right degree for you!
Engineering is all about using math and science to solve problems. By applying scientific, economic and mathematical knowledge, engineers work to design, build, maintain and improve all sorts of things, including structures, machines, electronic devices, systems and processes.
Many things in your everyday life are products of engineering, from buildings, bridges and roads to your laptops and fancy iPhones. Without engineers, you would not be able to drive to the nearest shopping mall, check your Facebook newsfeed or even use the toilet!
As engineering is an extremely broad discipline, there are many specialised fields of engineering. The four majors are, Civil Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Electrical and Electronic Engineering and Mechanical Engineering.
Other fields of engineering include: Aeronautical Engineering, Petroleum Engineering, Environmental Engineering, and Mechatronics.
In many universities, you will be required to decide which discipline of Engineering you would like to study for your undergraduate degree. For example, if you choose the Mechanical Engineering discipline, you will be pursuing a Bachelor of Engineering (BEng) in Mechanical Engineering.
In order to pursue a degree in Engineering, you will generally need to meet the minimum requirements set by colleges and universities. An Engineering degree is usually 4 years long, but some universities may offer 3 years degrees. If you intend to get a professional qualification as a professional engineer in Malaysia, you must study an accredited Engineering degree. After at least 3 years of relevant work experience, professional development training and passing the professional exams, you can then register yourself as a professional engineer.
Generally in engineering degree, you will study applied mathematics and basic computing, in addition to specific subjects that are related to your chosen engineering discipline, for example in Civil Engineering, you will study about Materials, Structural Mechanics, Surveying, Geo-technics, Environmental Engineering, Coastal / Highway / Traffic Engineering or in Mechanical Engineering, you will be study Thermodynamics, Fluid Mechanics, Solid Mechanics, Automatic Control ; Instrumentation, Machine System Dynamics.
You will also have individual and group projects that require you to design, build and test a new product or a technical solution. This allows you to gain valuable experience in building things and solving problems, which are necessary once you graduate and start work as an engineer.
With so many degree options out there, here are some of the top reasons why you should study Engineering.
Engineers work to solve real-world problems by designing, building, fixing and improving things. It’s a chance for you to help make the world a better place by creating new products and developing new technologies to solve problems, from household appliances and petroleum refineries to driverless electric cars!
Engineering is a rigorous and academically challenging degree. In addition to applying all the science and math knowledge that you have learnt, you will also need to be able to think logically and analytically in order to solve complex problems. If you’re up for the challenge of working through problems and long study hours, then Engineering is the right choice for you!
An Engineering degree gives you a good foundation to branch into different sectors. In addition to being employed in various engineering-related industries, such as oil ; gas, telecommunication and construction companies, you will also find engineers in finance, investment banking, and management consulting and business development areas. Engineers are valued in these fields because of their analytical thinking and strong problem solving skills.
Studying an Engineering course will develop your problem-solving and analytical thinking skills that will be extremely beneficial to you in the future. These skills are not just helpful to your career as an engineer, but can be used in other industries (e.g. business, commerce), as well as in your everyday life!
Some of the key qualities and skills that you will need to develop in order to do well in an Engineering course are a solid foundation and a good understanding of the mathematical principles. Besides that, you also need an ability to logically approach and solve complex problems, also break it down to understand the mechanics of it where finally, you must be able to piece together all the knowledge that you have learnt to come up with a viable solution.
In additional, engineering isn’t just about calculations. Hand-in-hand with problem-solving is the ability to think creatively. You will need to be able to come up with multiple ways to solve a problem, and this requires creativity and the ability to think outside the box. Remember that many of our everyday innovations and modern day technologies are built by engineers!
An Engineering degree also will require you to read and re-read concepts over and over again until you’ve fully understood them, and are able to apply these concepts to solve problems. You will find yourself studying a lot more and a lot longer than most other degrees in addition to lab work and projects.
A degree in Engineering will prepare you for a career in various sectors, including oil ; gas, manufacturing, construction, logistics and automotive.
If you decide not to pursue a career in Engineering, you still have other career options! In fact, many non-engineering companies such as Banking ; Finance, IT ; Technical Consulting, Management Consulting, Management Consulting and Project Management employ engineers for their analytical and logical skills.
