In the world of employment, there are some ethics that we adhere to – we call them the unwritten rules. We have the job hunting ethics as well as talent search ethics. As for this posting, we are going to explore the basic job hunting ethics or protocols. Are you familiar with these unwritten rules? If you have not been very successful in your job hunting journey, probably it’s because you’ve failed to abide by these rules.

The list here is not exhaustive but covers almost all the basics.

1. DO NOT lie or misrepresent background and skills in your resume or during interviews.

2. DO NOT accept on-site job interviews (campus) when you are not seriously considering the prospective employers.

3. DO NOT exhibit unprofessional behavior – making disparaging remarks about your lecturers, classmates and college.

4. Show respect to every person that you encounter in your job search process. That includes the Cleaner and Tea Lady that serve you before your job interview commences.

5. Be on time! Arrive 5-10 minutes early before the set appointment.

6. Dress the part for the job, the company, the industry. It’s how you’re dressed that sets the tone of the interview.

7. DO NOT chew gum during the interview.

8. Switch off your hand phone or put it into silent mode. If you had forgotten and if the phone rang, you should turn it off and apologize immediately.

9. Do greet the interviewer(s) by title (Ms., Mr., Dr.) and last name if you are sure of the pronunciation.

10. Do shake hands firmly. DO NOT offer a limp or clammy handshake!

11. Do wait until you are offered a chair before sitting. And do remember body language and posture: sit upright and look alert and interested at all times. DO NOT fidget or slouch.

12. DO NOT tell jokes or flirt during the interview.

13. DO NOT smoke, even if the interviewer does and offers you a cigarette. And DO NOT smoke beforehand so that you won’t smell like smoke. And do brush your teeth, use mouthwash, or have a breath mint before the interview.

14. Do avoid using poor language, slang, and pause words (such as “lah,” “uh,” and “um”).

15. DO NOT make the interviewer guess what type of work you are interested in; it is not the interviewer’s job to act as a career counselor to you.

16. Request permission from the person when you intend for him to be your referee. Be prepared to explain what your job search plans are.

17. It is not unethical for an employer to ask you about other interviews, job offers, and salary offers you have had. Their purpose may be to see if you are seriously interested in the position they are seeking to fill. However, there is no ethical obligation to give a direct answer. All is required is probably, “Yes, I had gone for a couple of interviews but as of now, no news yet.”

18. DO NOT take your parents, your pet, spouse, boyfriends/girlfriends to an interview. If you are not grown up and independent enough to attend an interview alone, you’re insufficiently grown up and independent for a job.

Now, test yourself against a few scenarios listed here. If you managed to answer correctly, then you are more than ready to start your job hunting journey. All the best!

We are not talking about food. We are talking about education. When it comes to sandwich, the sandwich we know is meant to be eaten but in UK, there is another ’sandwich’ which means an additional year for work (so that you gain experience) in between 2 or 3 years of theory study for your course.

You can choose to sign up for ’sandwich’ and work for a year in your field of study. For example, if you are studying accounting, you will be working as an accountant for an accounting firm (usually as interns).

Once you have completed the ’sandwich’ year, you will get to know better about your field so that when you have to choose a major, you know which division you want to choose. If you are taking accounting, this is the time when you need to decide to major in taxation, auditing or costing.

It is during ’sandwich’ year that you get to put everything you have learnt into action, also as a way to test how much you have learnt and are you prepared for the real world out there. To get the best ’sandwich’ year, choose a university wisely. There are many universities in UK that you can apply for admission.

Once you have joined the real world for a year, you would be mature and responsible. Besides, getting real experience in your field of study is definitely going to boost your degree and yourself.

Sound great?

This is available in UK so if you are studying in UK or planning to study in UK, you can always refer to University and Colleges Admission Service, or UCAS.

How about doing the same here in Malaysia? Do you think it is a good idea?

At the moment, our university students are required to go through internships and usually internships last for about six months. Is this sufficient? Let us hear your opinion.

It is sort of a dream job in Malaysia — to work with Government (to join the government’s forces).

It is a reality that being a civil servant, you get more benefit than those who work in the private sector.

The benefit of being a civil servant:

1. Pension
2. Health Care
3. Easy loan application
4. Easy to buy a house/car
5. Year end bonus (this is changeable)
6. Cost of Living Allowance
7. Others

However, how does one get the chance to work with the Government?

First of all, you have to apply for the positions that are suitable according to your academic qualifications. For example, if you are have SPM qualification, be sure to apply jobs that require only SPM qualification. The higher the academic qualification, the better the positions for you to apply.

You can check out the positions available through the newspapers or through the internet.

Normally, there are two ways to submit your application.

1. Get the job application form from the nearest Government agency (PSD or any related agencies), fill in the form and submit directly to the person at the counter.
2. Fill in an online job application form and submit online as well.

What do you do now, after you have submitted your application? You have to wait for some time. It might be a few weeks, a few months and even a few years (yes, this is the reality). If you are lucky enough to be one of the selected candidates, you will be called for an interview.

After the interview, you will have to wait for the final result. Either you will be chosen or not chosen.

The best part is you can apply for the positions suitable for you all year round (basically anytime of the year). Even if you have applied for a job that is currently not available, you might stand a chance to be chosen once there is a vacancy. The key is to keep on trying and improving yourself through education, if possible, if you want to work with the Government.

Finding a job is not easy. However, there are many ways to reach your dream job. One of the ways is to work for free. At first thought, you might think that it is a total waste of time and energy to work for someone free of charge. However, think deeply and you will understand why work for free can be your way towards landing your dream job.

Consider it as a way to network with more people. When you start networking, you will meet many new people and build new relationships. These people might be the ones that can help you to get the job you have been eyeing all these while.

Other than that, working for free can help you build a reputable resume. Lack of experience might be the reason why it is so difficult for you to get a job in the first place. These days, a degree might be important but at the same time, experience plays an important role as well. This is a chance for you to finally gain some experience in the work force.

Unemployment is bad for health. Why? You will be stressful and depress when you have no job. Therefore, even if you have to work for free, you will be happy because you have a job and this job is going to help you concentrate on what you want to do with your life.

By having a job means to set a goal in your life. You don’t have to get the best job right after graduating in order to be successful in life. Everyone works from bottom to top. Therefore, don’t be surprised that there are people who are willing to work for free in this world. You could be one of them.