I, Ong Qing Hun joined the 2nd MyPSA National Pharmacy Research Competition 2019 (NPRC) which was held from the 8th to 10th of March 2019 at AIMST University. NPRC is a national event based on the research project of undergraduate students implemented in 2018, under the branch of Pharmacy Education. This event aims to cultivate the interest and instil awareness as well as importance of continuous research in the healthcare sector among pharmacy students by increasing their exposure towards research. Besides, it serves as a recognition for students’ effort in research, where they have the opportunity to present their work to a larger audience. The competition consisted of a 5-minutes poster presentation and a 10-minute slide presentation.
It became a platform for me to “show off” the research that I had spent a year working on. I tried my best to emphasise the important findings that I have discovered in my study to the judges and also the students. When I received a lot of positive feedback from the others as well as some improvement comments from the judges, I felt that my hard work had finally paid off. Fortunately, I broke through and was chosen as one of the finalists in the competition; I now needed to present my research to an even bigger audience.
Our UKM accompanying lecturer, Dr Ernieda inspired me to be confident with a single sentence. She said, “Try to present it as if you are sharing rather than presenting”. It is true that people sometimes will give comments, ideas or even criticism regarding your work. However, if you think optimistically and positively, you will be able to accept those comments and use them as future improvement guidance. The most memorable moment was when I urged the audience to ask some questions about my research project to facilitate their understanding of my project. Did the entire thing feel crazy at the time? Yes, it did! At the end of the day, I won first place in the category “Clinical Pharmacy/Pharmacy Education/Pharmacy Practice/Social Pharmacy”! I would like to express my greatest gratitude to my supervisors Prof Madya Dr Mohd Makmor Bakry and Prof Madya Dr Tan Hui Jan who guided me throughout my research journey.
Colin Powell – “A dream doesn’t become a reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination, and hard work.” NPRC is waiting for you next year – it is your chance to show off your research project the same way I did!
Written by: Ong Qing Hun
Edited by: Pang Jie Yi