Student Experiences

Students' Testimonial

Hear what our alumni have to say about our postgraduate programmes and how the programme has helped them in their career.

Dr. Renukha Sellappans

Senior Lecturer and Head, School of Pharmacy, Taylor's University.

I joined the Department of Primary Care Medicine, University of Malaya to pursue my PhD in 2012. With almost non-existence research knowledge and skills, I learnt so much from my supervisors, fellow postgraduate students and academic staff of the department. The department provided a dynamic, vibrant, collaborative and supportive learning environment to the traditionally very lonely postgraduate journey. I am very proud to say that it was the most enriching years of my whole life which has transformed me completely to who I am today. Upon completion of my PhD, I joined the School of Pharmacy, Taylor’s University in 2016 as a lecturer to start my academic career. With the knowledge and soft skills gained through my postgraduate years at UM, I continued to learn and excel in my academic career through teaching, research, postgraduate supervision and administrative tasks. Today, I head the School of Pharmacy at Taylor’s University and I sincerely thank my supervisors Associate Professor Dr Pauline Lai and Professor Dr Ng Chirk Jenn for all their guidance and support. Not forgetting the ever-supportive postgraduate comrades who are all achievers in their own field today. Thank you!

Alumnus of PhD, 2012

Dr. Lee Yew Kong

Senior Lecturer and Head, Research Training Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya

When I signed up for the PhD on shared decision making at the Department of Primary Care Medicine, it was a good foundation for a career in academia. Publication criteria had just been introduced for PhDs in Universiti Malaya. Thankfully, my supervisors (Prof Ng Chirk Jenn, Prof Low Wah Yun) guided me on how to translate research findings (which often dealt with local cultural and health system contexts) into a format suited for international readers. I got my first publication accepted the day before my scholarship (which was publication-based) was about to expire. I am not denying that publication pressure can be frustrating or even toxic, but in this department, I learned to enjoy the process. My PhD overall was a great experience and I remember fondly student group writing sessions, peer-led discussions, lunch and dinner outings, and being able to attend research conferences in Asia, Europe, North America and South America (I still haven’t made it to Africa). After graduation, I joined the department as a senior lecturer where I am assigned to the Department Research Committee. Talking about coming full circle, I was recently invited to the editorial board for the very first journal I published in, and this role has given me new ideas on how to help students engage with research in a positive manner.

Alumns of PhD, 2010

Dr. Teo Chin Hai

Senior Lecturer and Head of mHealth and Telehealth Section, UM eHealth Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya

As what the department aspires to teach (family medicine), it feels like a family being in this department. I was still exploring the career of my life and it was the warmth of the people in this department particularly my supervisor (Prof Dr Ng Chirk Jenn) that kept me locked on my career journey in this family. This department has always been pushing for people-centred care. Yes, publications, presentations and thesis are important to graduate, but it has always been about people first here. I am proud to say that in most of the work I have been involved in, they were done with the passion and intention to improve care for patients and community, not for the sake of publication in mind. I was also given a lot of opportunities to involve in many things aside my PhD work. There were also much fun organising men’s health campaigns, travelling to attend conferences, the outings and sports sessions done together. Of course, there are many experts with PhD whom I could refer to in the department. There were also ample research methodology workshops conducted by the department and often there are international experts whom we were connected up with to feedback on our work. All in all, it has been a very enriching and cherishable PhD journey for me in this department. Moving forward, I am now a senior lecturer in the eHealth Unit under the faculty, pursuing my passion in digital health. The skills and confidence I have built during the journey prove to be valuable as I continue to teach and conduct more impactful research in the university, while applying people-centredness as the core in all my future work.

Alumnus of PhD, 2014