Some thought on your failure to get into your dream school for your favourite dentistry.

It's been a while since I updated this blog. As of now, I've already been through my final year study, and currently on a job hunt. I came across this post in some confession page last night. The author whined about the experience which was exactly the same as what I have experienced. 

As the post was in Mandarin, I did my best in the translation.

"    Yesterday, I got the result of my UPU application and I was completely floored. 

    My SPM result was 6A+ 4A, and for the science subjects, besides an A for my add maths, I obtained all A+'s for all the others. In my secondary school, I strive so hard in many science-related competitions, thinking that it would be advantageous for future applications. Then, I went to matriculation institute, which was 500km-600km away from my home. I endured over a year and obtained CGPA 4.0, MUET band 5, and with co-curriculum of 10 (marks).

    I thought that I could finally take up my favourite course of study and realise my own dream, but my dream shattered last night. I have applied dentistry in UM, UKM, and USM, and they all failed. Instead, I obtained the fifth choice. 

    Did I do so terribly in the interview?  Before the interview, I collected so much information & experience from the previous dental interview candidates and studied the potential interview questions. After that, I typed all the answers out in a file for each of the questions. Needless to say, I practised for so many times, and I even went to all kinds of website to obtain the dental or dentistry-related data to support my answers. I looked for dental knowledge, gum diseases, and looked into how to care for the teeth, dentistry specialist, crowning teeth, etc. I even watched all Dr. Kayla Teh's video. I prepared and did whatever I could. TBH, I thought I was doing well in the interview. I talked smoothly, and was able to answered all the questions. I expected all those questions.

    I wondered where I did wrong? I think I'm a waste, and all my confidence was destroyed. Even after the interview, I prayed so hard. Not even once I didn't think about my dream. I told myself that I would get into dentistry! I even endured the most difficult time in my matriculation, just for my one and only dream - to be a dentist. It's my passion and my goal, but the result wasn't what I wanted at all. 

My family couldn't afford private dental colleges, and the cheapest one cost 300 thousand. Where should I go now? There's little to none scholarship for dentistry as the fees are very expensive. UPU result splashed a bucket of cold water on me, stripping away my passion in studying in a university. I lost all the expectations of being in a university. Now I know that efforts do not guarantee an accomplished dream. When I compared myself to some of my friends in my secondary school, even though they didn't have a good result, their family could provide them with the tuition fees of a private dental university. 

    Where did I lose? I don't know. But I know I lost the drive to continue my study. My efforts all this while had gone to drain. I can't stop crying. Anybody help?"

After reading this post, I could relate very much to the author's experience and feelings. If you wondered why, I actually wrote about my USM dentistry interview in my previous blog. Link is attached down below,

http://2ndalexander.blogspot.com/2016/05/usm-dentistry-interview.html

I did not get a placement in USM to study dentistry, which was my first choice back then. I did fight all the way to get the placement, although I know that there's only a slim chance of success. In Malaysia, the recent batch of matriculation student reached an estimated number of 40,000, and the number of STPM students increases drastically over the years. Therefore, a placement of studying your favourite course in your dream school wasn't easy at all, given the increasingly intense competition. Moreover, you are also competing with students who studied A-level or equivalent. Unfortunately, getting into your favourite Malaysian public university wasn't depending on your effort only, but also, luck, especially dentistry, since you are fighting for the placement which everyone is killing for. 

As for me, I used to naively think that dentistry was the only way to succeed in life as I was told by many that dentists make good money. I was always an excellent student in academics. I scored straight A's  (8A+, 2A) in my SPM,  and 3A* 1A in my A-level. I do believe that, should I have been given the chance, I would be very likely to succeed. However, I was quite devastated when I failed the interview, which I had prepared day in, day out. The failure did take a dead toll on my self-confidence, as I started to doubt my competence and all my efforts. I did mention in my previous blog that my family could not afford the staggeringly expensive tuition fees of a private dental school. The scholarship for dentistry is still low in number and the chance of receiving is very low. Therefore, I accept the reality and I took the given fifth choice instead, which is Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical-Aeronautics) in UTM. Despite the fact that I wasn't able to study dentistry, to this day, I still think I made the right decision to study my course because it is a whole new better world for me. 

So, my words to all the candidates who failed the interviews: Don't lose hope, and don't give up. If that was your one and only dream, just fight for it. If you still want to stick to your dream, you can appeal (rayu). Otherwise, take whatever course you were given and scored excellently in the exams of the end semesters. You can plead for your dream course again, provided that the university of your given choice has dentistry course. 

To the author of the confession, and people who is currently going through the same experience, I would like to say these,

1. Nothing is absolute or guaranteed in our lives. Same goes to success. Success isn't merely depending on efforts. But I do believe success depends on your attitude and outlook in life.

2. Don't compare yourself with others because everyone has a different starting point in our life race.

3. The reality is cruel but you shouldn't let it defeat you and your confidence because when you stop believing, that'll be the end of you.

4. Give the other alternative a chance, even though it wasn't your first choice. "When one door closes, another door opens. But we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we did not see the one which has open for us." and if you did pray so much, remember "God doesn't close one door without getting ready to open another with bigger and greater things."

I would now proudly say this: I found greater things in my decision. How about you? Whatever your decision is, I wish you all the best in life!