Contestants in the ACCA Hong Kong Job Hunting Competition 2009 knew they were in for a 'job interview' with a difference once they took their seats on stage for the semi-final at University of Hong Kong.
The competition attracted more than 200 contestants from nine universities in Hong Kong, and the University of Macau. The basic requirement was that they had to be full-time, non-final year undergraduate students. Sixty were selected to take the Bulats English test, and aptitude tests. After the tests, 24 candidates advanced to the semi-final, before 12 finalists were picked.
The semi-final took place on March 23. The contestants were randomly split into four groups to attend a 30-minute simulated group interview with senior human resources and finance executives on stage in front of an audience. The interview was divided into three parts. First, the contestants were asked in random order to introduce themselves in Putonghua and explain why they deserved to qualify for the final round.
It was not easy, said Wong Chun-wai, a third year bachelor of business administration student at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology who failed to make the final round. 'I was very nervous, especially as I had to use Putonghua to introduce myself,' he said. 'My Putonghua is not so good. There is still a lot of room for me to improve.'
The second part was an open group discussion in English, including how the contestants viewed their career prospects in the economic downturn and how they were preparing themselves for a highly competitive job market. The contestants had different styles of performing the tasks, with some paying close attention to the people in their groups, making gestures of affirmation, such as nods, while others paid closer attention to the interviewers. Some aggressively spoke at the same time as others, even though it was meant to be a 'group discussion'. The last segment was mostly conducted in Cantonese, with the panel of judges asking the contestants questions about their personal experience, such as the most difficult projects they had ever undertaken, their career aspirations and how they would lead a team.
After the group interviews, Vinna Tsang, manager of Michael Page International (Finance), gave a career seminar, providing the contestants with tips about how to stand out in a job interview within 90 seconds and what not to do. She also shared some of her own interview experiences with the contestants.
'Don't just say you did x, y and z,' Ms Tsang said. 'Use key words like, I was one of the few selected to go on an exchange. This shows [the extent of] your achievement.'