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Ms Sindy Wong, 47, holds two masters degrees, but was rejected from part-time course for being too "arrogant".
Armed with two Masters' degrees, Ms Sindy Wong never thought she would run into problems when she wanted to upgrade herself by enrolling in a part-time course at the Tourism Management Institute of Singapore (TMIS).
But she got a rude shock when she was told she had been unsuccessful in the interview and was rejected, after she had already paid the registration fees.
The course Ms Wong was interested in was a part-time tourist guide programme, offered by TMIS.
In a letter to the Straits Times, Ms Wong had complained about being made to waste her time and money, despite having the passion and desire to upgrade herself.
Ms Wong said she had passed the initial aptitude test but as the class was full, she was advised to pay the registration fee to secure her place in the next class, which she did.
However, she found out later that she had to go for an interview, and was later deemed unsuitable for the course.
Used to earn $8,000 a month
When contacted by Shin Min Daily News, Ms Wong, 47, said when she signed up for the programme in June this year, she was told the class starting in July was already full.
She was advised by a staff member to pay the registration fee of $107, to secure a place in the next class. Ms Wong decided to do so as she was keen.
The former business development manager at a local company had lost her job during the peak of the recession in 2008. She said she used to earn about $8,000 a month.
Despite two Masters' Degrees, Ms Wong, who is divorced, has been unable to find job that provides a stable income, and does freelance work to provide for her two teenage sons.
One is studying at a polytechnic, while the other is in university.
She had signed up for the course as she hoped to land a permanent job, which would provide some relief from the considerable financial burden.
However, Ms Wong told reporters she was not informed that there was an interview process to go through as well when she signed up, and was only notified of the interview in September.
Ms Wong said the registration fee was not refunded to her, even though she had failed the interview and was not admitted to the course in the end.
Interview to save applicants from wasting more time and money
When contacted by Shin Min, a spokesperson for the Tourism Management Institute of Singapore (TMIS), said it is stated clearly that the registration fee is non-refundable, regardless of whether the applicant gets through the interview process.
In a reply to Ms Wong, TMIS clarified that the application fee is not "for income" as alleged in her letter, but due to the high cost of processing the application, which includes the cost of having a panel of experts for the interview.
Why the need for an interview in the first place? According to TMIS, the course is 90 per cent funded by the Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA) under its Workforce Skills Qualifications (WSQ) system.
Under the system, students who fail the final exam will have to pay the full amount for the course.
Therefore, the process is stringent to weed out "unsuitable students who will end up wasting even more time and money", said a spokesperson for TMIS.
TMIS also said they had informed Ms Wong that she could appeal for a second interview at no extra cost.
Proud and aloof
Additional reports by the Chinese daily revealed that two interviewers who assessed Ms Wong said she had failed because she was proud and aloof.
She also did not display the warm and friendly nature required of a tour guide.
One of the interviewers on the panel is an English teacher, who will assess applicants' language ability, while another is an industry expert and manager at the school. He will assess if applicants have the ability and is suited to handle the role and responsibilities of a tour guide.
They both said Ms Wong stressed on her academic qualifications several times during the interview, highlighting the fact that she had two Masters' degrees.
According to the report, she also frequently used the phrase "not sure if you know" during the interview - which gave the interviewers the impression that she was arrogant.
Ms Wong however, disagreed, and told Shin Min reporters that she would not appeal for a second interview. She intends to enrol in another course elsewhere, where she believes she will have a "higher chance" of being accepted.
Armed with two Masters' degrees, Ms Sindy Wong never thought she would run into problems when she wanted to upgrade herself by enrolling in a part-time course at the Tourism Management Institute of Singapore (TMIS).
But she got a rude shock when she was told she had been unsuccessful in the interview and was rejected, after she had already paid the registration fees.
The course Ms Wong was interested in was a part-time tourist guide programme, offered by TMIS.
In a letter to the Straits Times, Ms Wong had complained about being made to waste her time and money, despite having the passion and desire to upgrade herself.
Ms Wong said she had passed the initial aptitude test but as the class was full, she was advised to pay the registration fee to secure her place in the next class, which she did.
However, she found out later that she had to go for an interview, and was later deemed unsuitable for the course.
Used to earn $8,000 a month
When contacted by Shin Min Daily News, Ms Wong, 47, said when she signed up for the programme in June this year, she was told the class starting in July was already full.
She was advised by a staff member to pay the registration fee of $107, to secure a place in the next class. Ms Wong decided to do so as she was keen.
The former business development manager at a local company had lost her job during the peak of the recession in 2008. She said she used to earn about $8,000 a month.
Despite two Masters' Degrees, Ms Wong, who is divorced, has been unable to find job that provides a stable income, and does freelance work to provide for her two teenage sons.
One is studying at a polytechnic, while the other is in university.
She had signed up for the course as she hoped to land a permanent job, which would provide some relief from the considerable financial burden.
However, Ms Wong told reporters she was not informed that there was an interview process to go through as well when she signed up, and was only notified of the interview in September.
Ms Wong said the registration fee was not refunded to her, even though she had failed the interview and was not admitted to the course in the end.
Interview to save applicants from wasting more time and money
When contacted by Shin Min, a spokesperson for the Tourism Management Institute of Singapore (TMIS), said it is stated clearly that the registration fee is non-refundable, regardless of whether the applicant gets through the interview process.
In a reply to Ms Wong, TMIS clarified that the application fee is not "for income" as alleged in her letter, but due to the high cost of processing the application, which includes the cost of having a panel of experts for the interview.
Why the need for an interview in the first place? According to TMIS, the course is 90 per cent funded by the Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA) under its Workforce Skills Qualifications (WSQ) system.
Under the system, students who fail the final exam will have to pay the full amount for the course.
Therefore, the process is stringent to weed out "unsuitable students who will end up wasting even more time and money", said a spokesperson for TMIS.
TMIS also said they had informed Ms Wong that she could appeal for a second interview at no extra cost.
Proud and aloof
Additional reports by the Chinese daily revealed that two interviewers who assessed Ms Wong said she had failed because she was proud and aloof.
She also did not display the warm and friendly nature required of a tour guide.
One of the interviewers on the panel is an English teacher, who will assess applicants' language ability, while another is an industry expert and manager at the school. He will assess if applicants have the ability and is suited to handle the role and responsibilities of a tour guide.
They both said Ms Wong stressed on her academic qualifications several times during the interview, highlighting the fact that she had two Masters' degrees.
According to the report, she also frequently used the phrase "not sure if you know" during the interview - which gave the interviewers the impression that she was arrogant.
Ms Wong however, disagreed, and told Shin Min reporters that she would not appeal for a second interview. She intends to enrol in another course elsewhere, where she believes she will have a "higher chance" of being accepted.
