Ms Joyce Gan giving an introduction of her background and experience from where she started her career in advertising and branding.
Ms Kok Wen Juin sharing a light moment with her juniors from the Diploma and Bachelor Degree programmes in Advertising.
In its attempt to provide a clearer picture and understanding of the advertising world, TAR UC’s Faculty of Communication and Creative Industries (‘FCCI’) invited advertising professionals to share their experiences through two online sessions of “Honest Conversation on Advertising”. It was a career talk meant for its Bachelor of Communication (Hons) in Advertising and Diploma in Advertising students. The professionals invited were Ms Joyce Gan, Group Brand Director of Fishermen Integrated and Ms Kok Wen Juin, Senior Account Executive of GREY Malaysia, who is also an alumna of TAR UC’s Bachelor of Communication (Hons) in Advertising programme.
“Nothing beats hearing from the real industry experts and this is one of our objectives to invite two professionals from the advertising industry to expose our students to career prospects in Advertising as well as to help them understand the latest trends and practices in Advertising,” said Ms Cindy Poh Huay Yuet, Programme Leader of TAR UC’s Bachelor of Communication (Hons) in Advertising programme.
“In these two very similar yet different sessions, we had two professionals – Joyce, a seasoned brand practitioner who has managed many outstanding advertising campaigns for clients and Wen Juin, our outstanding alumna who excelled after she graduated from the programme and have since become a Senior Account Executive in international advertising agencies. Their stories and experiences have definitely inspired the students with regards to advertising and its prospects,” she added.
The sessions kicked off with a brief introduction of the speaker’s background, experience and career journey, followed by an interesting illustration about the agency where they work as well as the work they do. Ms Joyce Gan also shared the overall process of one of their award-winning campaigns for the #YouTubeWorksMY Awards 2021, which stirred curiosity and interest among the students who attended the talk.
“It’s been quite some time since I shared in front of so many students, and I think I was a bit nervous!” shared Ms Joyce Gan. “Nonetheless, thank you so much for inviting me to share some information about my journey and insights on the advertising industry. I enjoyed the session very much and I am glad to have had this opportunity to speak,” she added.
Both speakers also shared what it is like working at a creative advertising agency and if a career in advertising is right for them. Before ending the session, students were given the opportunity to ask as many questions as they could to both the industry professionals.
“It felt surreal to be back at TAR UC - the place where I used to study - to share my stories and have some real conversations on advertising with the students,” said Ms Kok Wen Juin. “Before the session, I was glad that I had brainstormed some ideas with Ms Cindy Poh on what topics I should talk about that would benefit the students. In addition to sharing some of the projects that I did with clients, I thought it would be a good idea to paint the real picture of the advertising industry to my juniors - not to scare them but to expose them to what’s really happening on the other side of it. Hopefully this session will heighten their interest and passion for the advertising industry,” she added.
