Happy Women's Day!

Macam kebetulan terfikir nak blog pasal ni and hari ni Hari Wanita Sedunia. Guess what I'm going to write about? 

BEAUTY TIPS!

Haha. Not qualified, I know. But remember this? 'Sampaikanlah walaupun sepotong ayat'. So kalau ada sedikit pun ilmu kita kena share :)

Selain daripada prepare for the wedding day itself, B2B akan prepare herself for the big day, as in jaga all aspects of her beauty yada yada yada. Now that I'm in that phase, barulah terasa oh God kenapa lambat sangat baru nak realize ni kurang, tu terlebih, that shouldn't be there and the list goes on. Kalaulah dari zaman remaja dulu dah sedar at least now just kena maintain je and bukan baru nak start. Ye, sepatutnya bukan baru nak start jaga itu ini bila tahu nak kahwin ye. Kalau tahu setahun awal nak kahwin takpelah juga, buatnya boyfriend kau ajak kahwin bulan depan tak ke terhegeh-hegeh nak pergi spa sana sini, masa tu dah terlambat diknon. And one more thing these beauty regimes bukan nya seminggu dua dah boleh show results, at least kena 3-6 months, itu pun kalau betul-betul jadilah. Another thing, it is too risky to change your beauty regime at the very last minute, especially skin care regime sebab kalau tak sesuai and you have breakouts and all, takut tak sempat je nak betulkan balik. 

So ladies, please start early. Start now! 

Selalunya perempuan ni (me included), especially yang bertudung, kita just fikir nak jaga muka sebab itu je yang nampak. Yang lain tu secondary. But actually semua pun penting and kena jaga. Let me share apa yang kita selalu lupa/abaikan based on my experience (sebab sendiri pun tak amik kisah sangat dulu :P)

1. Nail and cuticle

Malu nak mengaku actually, but for the sake of sharing. Seumur hidup baru pernah buat manicure sekali, itu pun bila kesedaran timbul few days before nak bertunang haritu. Cina yang buat tu pun geleng kepala and cakap, 'Ini banyak keras wo, you kena selalu datang'. Lebih kurang camtu lah ayat dia. 

So at least once a week, rajin-rajinkan lah remove your cuticles and apply nail and cuticle oil untuk mendapatkan jari-jemari yang lembut mulus. luls. Tak perlu pun pergi salon, buat kat rumah pun boleh. Just buy the necessary stuff and tengok Youtube. 

2. Scars and stretch marks

Old acne scars and surgery scars boleh try guna Bio Oil. Untuk stretch marks dekat you-know-where sebab berat fluctuates like crazy, boleh try Palmers Cocoa Butter. Stretch mark ni kadang-kadang kita tak bother pun nak check sebab ingatkan perempuan mengandung je develop stretch marks, tapi sekali sekala cuba examine your whole body. Boleh Google untuk keterangan lebih lanjut mana nak cari stretch mark areas especially for women :P

3. Eye bags

Oh tell me about it! My biggest concern is my eye bags! Dah baca (read:baca, bukan buat :P) macam-macam kat Internet and ada la buat a thing or two, tapi doesn't seem to work. Tegar sungguh eyebags ku ini (or maybe I didn't try hard enough). 

Wash your face with ice cold water in the morning, massage around the eye area, use eye patch, use eye cream, place frozen cucumber slices on the eyes. Dah cuba semua ni tapi give up half way sebab tak nampak kesan. Nampak sangat tak sabar. But you guys yang ada eye bags problem cuba buat those tips above consistently and tell me jadi ke tak okeng.

4. General well-being

Ni paling basic yang semua orang tahu tapi couldn't care less. Untuk luar nampak cantik, it must come from within. Cewah. That's why it's important to take care of your well-being, by eating well, exercising and by looking after your personal hygiene. 

Take fruits and vegetables everyday, UK NHS suggest five 80 grams portions every day. The campaign is called '5 A Day'. *tetiba promote kempen NHS*

Exercise at least 3 times a week. Tak perlu sign up gym membership pun. Buat kat bilik pun boleh. Tengok Youtube sudah. Exercise bukan sebab nak turun berat je tau, untuk yang dah ada ideal weight, buatlah toning exercise pulak. 

Personal hygiene tu faham faham sendirilah eh. Baju laundry elok-elok, cadar tu rajin-rajin tukar, kalau pakai make-up jangan lupa pakai make-up remover, contact lens jangan biar sampai kering yada yada yada. Rumah, bilik, dapur pun kira termasuklah sekali, janganlah muka cun body mantap tapi suami balik rumah ya ampun macam tongkang pecah. hihi

I think that's about it. Ingat, start now! Tambah-tambah dah meningkat usia ni (25 this year waw!) lagi macam-macam kena jaga. Belum cakap pasal supplement, pasal wrinkles, aging oh noooooooooooooo!

Here's to all beautiful ladies out there! :D

PhD:The Process

Salam,

Happy Friday everyone! 

So since several people have asked me this question, I thought why not do some good and put it in the blog so that others can learn as well. Honestly I thought I have blogged about it before, but after I checked, I just blogged about my interview experience, and nothing on the application process. 

So my dear friends, here you go. Oh btw, this is application process for UK universities :)

1. Where do you start? How do you find projects?

There could have been so many different ways, but it's only fair I share what I've experienced. When I started applying early 2011, I did it in two ways. 

I came across this useful website, findaphd.com. At first I thought it's an unreliable website, but it turned out pretty reliable. Professors/supervisors will 'advertise' their available projects through the website. 

When you get into the website, type in your field of interest, and voila!, there you a list of available projects, together with the supervisors contact details, funding information and other details. Easy peasy lemon squeeeezy!

My second method was to go directly to the university's website, and see if they advertise there. Nottingham doesn't do this, but Manchester does! (I applied to these two only :P) *click picture to see larger image*

It's just an example. Other universities might have different ways to put the projects in their website, so look hard!

2. How do you approach the professors/supervisors? What do you say in your e-mail?

So after you've picked the project you like the most, start e-mailing the professors/supervisors to ask if the available project (on the website) is still available. Give a little bit of background of yourself, mention your interest and then wait for reply.

My very first e-mail to my now supervisor.

Her reply.

The changing of e-mails takes quite sometime because it's the 'sesi suai kenal' between you and your potential supervisor. They will ask so many questions, and hey you should too! You want to spend 3/4 years doing things you like with people you can easily approach, so it's crucial to get your questions, (and theirs) answered. And as you already know, they are busy people, so they don't attend to every e-mails every single day. Patience is the key!

3. What's next?

The process for US and UK application is quite distinct. I think for US, you find the program you like, apply online, interview, and wait for the decision. You don't get to choose your specific project just yet. You'll spend the first 2 years of your PhD doing lab rotations, and the end of that you choose which lab you'd like to work in and work on your project.

For UK, you choose your specific project right away. No lab rotations, you go straight into the lab and start working. That's why PhD in the UK is shorter than in the US. 

At some point of your e-mail changing, the professors/supervisors will ask for an interview to be held. Remember, at this point you haven't officially applied to the university yet. More on interview in this entry. After the interview, they will give you sort of verbal confirmation (usually very prompt) that you may now apply through their online system. Then, you wait. Dup dap dup dap dup dap

Decision time.

ACCEPTED! 

Alhamdulillah.

I hope this helps, if not a lot, just a little tiny bit :P I could go on talking about funding or other related issues, like choosing your supervisor (of course in another entry) if you want me to :)

Interview Part I: PhD studentship interview

Salam,

Before my old blog decided to kill itself (actually I killed it), I have thought about sharing my interview experiences with you people. So far I had gone through four different interviews, different in purpose, and different in approach. So in this Part 1 (let's see if I'm rajin enough to continue to Part 2 3 4), I'm going to share my latest interview experience for a postgraduate program.

I was interviewed by two universities in two different ways. I had phone interview with Nottingham, and Skype interview with Manchester. The questions asked were almost the same (which I'll share in just a moment), but the feelings were different.

Personally, I prefer Skype interview, over a phone interview or a face-to-face interview. First, because I didn't feel as nervous, compared to the face-to-face interview. Maybe I got my brain to think that these people were far from me, so if I did any mistakes, or said something wrong, they couldn't whack me or anything (not that face-to-face interviewer would do that to me). The atmosphere was less intense. They couldn't really 'bantai' you with all sort of questions because the distance and medium set certain limitations to the questions asked. I don't know how to explain this. Please just tell me you geddit! Haha. My Skype interview was very casual, not only the conversation was casual, but I dressed super casually too! I just put on my black 'tudung Indon' and a......pyjama! See, the comfort of doing Skype interview in your own room :) Since I was less nervous, I became so chatty and I smiled the whole time and I made people laughed. Good time ey?

So the questions..(not in chronological order)

1. Why PhD?

I told them about the USM fellowship thing and how I have always wanted to have a PhD at some point in my life. In my essay for university application, I told them how I wanted to be a medical doctor but too bad I was scared of blood. But I may not be a doctor who cure people, but another kind of 'Dr' who finds cure for people. Cheesy, no? Haha

Tips: They want to see your enthusiasm. PhD is a pretty scary thing, so they must make sure you have the will power and can endure all the scary things.

2. Why this university?

Time to gorengggggg. Haha no lah. Cliche answers would be university ranking and top notch research facilities. I also added 'large Muslim community' in my bullet point because it was a concern in the US. In the US, Muslim community is not concentrated at one place, and it's hard to find halal eateries. It's definitely a concern for many different reasons.

Tips: Try to impress them with your knowledge about the university and area. If it has the largest Cancer Research Center in the world, for example, make it a point in your answers. I didn't really do this when I had my interview, but I guess doing little homework will do you good.

3. Why UK, not US?
Jeng jeng jeng. I secretly answered 'US PhD program takes the whole 5 years out my life, when am I gonna get married?' Hahaha. Of course I didn't answer that, and of course marriage is not a concern, what are you thinking? :P I just answered, "Been there for three years and I got tired of the US" and they laughed to it. I know people have been comparing UK and US PhD education a lot and US trumps in that case, but I just want to explore UK and Europe and experience the different cultures and lifestyles and whatnot. *so many AND ah?*

4.  Why Immunology? What amazes you?
Frankly speaking, I don't know how to answer this. It's more of how I feel towards it than a factual reasoning.    I answered (it may sound lame), "I am amazed at how small things like a cytokine can do so much in our body yada yada yada" Seriously I don't know how to describe this interest of mine.

Tips: Know your thanggg! Lucky me it was on Immunology, something I'm very fond of. If USM sent me to do some protein engineering project, seriously I'm gonna BS all the way. So you gotta have passion in what you are doing, then only you can ease your way in answering these interviewers. DWYL LWYD, remember?

5.  Explain your undergraduate research project.
Haha this is the most interesting part of all. I have a standard concluding statement whenever someone asks me this question. So I worked on the role of Notch signaling pathway in cell transformation bla bla bla. They asked, "So what's the outcome of the research? Did you publish any papers?" My answer was, "Oh the research was halted half way, because my mentor died of lung cancer" It's not a joke okay. I know we have this insider joke that goes, "Oh tak habis belajar, sebab cikgu mati". But seriously, I was telling the truth. My research mentor died in January 2010 and the research was just handed over back to our collaborator in Maine Medical Research Center.

Tips: The most sought after PhD candidates are the one with heavy research skills under their belts (I'm talking about science candidates here, not sure about others). I'm definitely not one of those people, as I had only a year of experience compared to my other friends, plus my research was not completed. I admitted that to the interviewers, and they said it's fine as research skills are easy to be developed (they say, okay, not me).

Ermmm what else eh? Oh aaa..

6.  From your opinion, what are the characteristics should a good PhD candidate have? (It's another way of asking, what makes you a good candidate for us?)
Gorrenngg time again. Well not really goreng lah. Excellent time management, committed to work, able to work under pressure yada yada yada.

Tips: This is the time to SELL yourself, whether it's asked in one way or the other. Show them that you are worthy candidate, and that you are willing to learn and work hard in order to patch up your weaknesses (as for me, lack of research skills or rather rusty research skills)

I guess that should suffice for now. Too long already, you might yawn reading it. InsyALLAH I'll come up with Part II; my job interview.

I'll leave you guys with this very useful website, one that I used extensively to prepare for my PhD interview:
http://www.kent.ac.uk/careers/applicn.htm

Me being a noob - Episode 2

I am not normally a quitter. (Note: This is not cubaan untuk memuji diri sendiri ye)

When I do things, I finish them. 

But if there is anything in this world that makes me give up almost instantaneously, guess what would that be?

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SIDE PARKING!

Muahahaha! I know what you are going to say. I don't blame you though.

I just can't get it right man. Not that I never tried. I just don't understand the physics behind it (At least I think it involves SOME physics. Tetibe rasa macam bimbo gila) In my whole parking experience, I think I have only succeeded once or twice, out of maybe five trials. I avoid side parking as much as I can. There was one time, when I first drove to the office, I had to side-park on the hill. Sumpah nak nanges. I even tried to ask some random guy to help me park, but he ignored me. I was late, clock was ticking as I had a early morning meeting that day. I spent a good 15 minutes to perfectly parked my car. Same thing happened yesterday. It was the only parking space available so I just had to try my luck. People said practice makes perfect. Since I never bother to practice, so my side parking is never perfect. Macam-macam jenis pusingan I dah try, tak masuk kotak jugak. Again, I was looking for someone to help me. Tired of the whole thing, I gave up, double-parked somewhere and put my telephone number on the dashboard in case the car next to me want to chow. The whole time I was nervous in case the guy/lady didn't see my number and marah gila, he/she decided to just bang my car. None of that happened by the way.

Ladies and gentlemen, never try this at home! No, I don't mean side parking (though I secretly wish side parking space is abolished di seantero dunia supaya menyenangkan hidup aku), I mean asking other people to help you to park. It was stupid, and I really had to do it out of desperation. The naive me thought that everyone is nice and sweet, and we shouldn't doubt anyone. Truth is, there are bad people out there, and they might run away with your car if you are unlucky and bad at judging at the first sight.

Let me share with you some other road survival tips. Well coming from the most inexperienced driver you know might not be so helpful, right? But hey everyone has got to start somewhere. Nanti lama-lama I jadi la experienced driver :p

1. Make sure your fuel tank is always full, or berada di tahap selamat. Don't be a cheapies, isi minyak RM10 je. Eventhough you use the same route everyday and know how long RM10 tank would last, but you have to foresee the unforeseen. Who knows tetibe ada accident, jalan jam gila, tup tup you tak cukup minyak. Tak pasal-pasal you jadi penyebab jam sebab kereta mati tengah jalan. Most importantly, you never know if you are gonna be lost (contoh terdekat ada di sini). Buatnya sesat larat pastu takde gas station, ha! Moral of the story, jangan kedekut! Sekali isi, isi terus penuh.

Points 2, 3 and 4 are related.

2. Make sure handphone ade credit if you are a prepaid user, and sila bayar bil so your line won't get barred if you are a postpaid user. 

3. If you cannot afford a GPS, like me, make sure you have friends who can act as a GPS for you. Preferably, friends for all over the places - Shah Alam, Damansara, Kajang, Ampang, Putrajaya, KL city etc so that all areas are covered. Bila you taktahu jalan, your GPS is just a phone call away. That is why you need to have number 2. Takyah spend 400 over ringgit to get the real GPS. Also, kalau tayar you pancit around those areas, you already know who to call for help :P

4. If you are expressways user, it is important to have the expressways helpline number. Like myself, I take MEX to the office. And lately I have seen a lot of cars at the side of the road sebab accident lah, kereta rosak lah, tayar pancit lah. And siapa yang tolong mereka? Mestilah bukan I because I know nuts about cars. It's those HELPLINE guys. Dari hari ke sehari (skema nye oh my) nak save number MEX Helpline tu dalam handphone, tapi tak buat-buat. OK I'm gonna save it now *Google-ing MEX*. OK dah save. Again, this is why you need number 2. Takde credit, lambai-lambai je la tepi jalan tu dik non, dengan harapan ade yang sudi membantu. Takpe, InsyaALLAH rakyat Malaysia semua baik hati, kan?

For now, I can only think of four tips. Actually banyak je lagi tapi dah malas. Haha

All in all, we are all undergoing some sort of learning process, so bear with me when I ramble about my driving and whatnot. Nanti bila I dah pandai and berani, sure I tak heran nak post pasal driving lagi :)

Till then, pandu dengan cermat! Kasihanilah noob drivers seperti saya :P