Self-Assessment against FEIT Graduate Descriptors

This assignment is a self-assessment report by Shirley Wong, a student in the Master of Engineering Management program at UTS. She reflects on her current attainment against FEIT Graduate Attribute 'D' (Self-Management) and identifies gaps in knowledge and skills. Her expected attainment includes gaining thorough knowledge in project management, understanding technical operations, and making informed decisions. She plans to focus on three modules: Judgement & Decision Making, Economic Evaluation, and Engineering Project Preparation to mitigate these gaps.

Assignment 1: Self Assessment against FEIT Graduate Descriptors
1. Introduction
My name is Shirley Wong, and presently I am studying Engineering Project
Preparation, which is a part of Master of Engineering Program in UTS. I had completed my
Hong Kong Certificate Level Examination from Kiangsu-Chekiang College, on Science
subjects and then completed Foundation Studies on Communication, Accounting, Economics
and Advanced Mathematics from Canberra Institute of Technology, Australia. I then
ventured to complete Bachelors of Commerce from Australian National University which
focused on Financial Accounting basics, Business economics, commercial law etc. I joined
the engineering sector in 2001, and worked as an account clerk in Wing Kwai Engineering
Limited and Startac Engineering Limited. After a brief stint with real estate companies of
Hong Kong, I completed my Advanced Diploma in Management Studies Program in 2017.
Since 2013, I have been associated with Startac Engineering Limited, as an Accounting and
Human Management Manager, and my duties include employee management, conducting the
administrative and personnel related work. Startac Engineering Company is owned by my
father, and he is about to retire soon, for which it is critically important for me to gain a
sound theoretical understanding along with industry based practical experience on managing
engineering organizations. This has guided my aim of pursuing a Master of Engineering
Management, as I want to have a theoretical strong hold along with gaining practical
expertise in this field of engineering.
The purpose of conducting this report of self assessment is to understand on the
expectations from a MEM graduate, and the status of my current attainment, and the intended
attainment, so that the gaps in knowledge and skills can be identified, and initiatives can be
taken by me to mitigate such gaps. I have chosen the FEIT Graduate Attribute “D” as I
believed that this would help in understanding personal development and focus on lifelong
learning and would help me develop my knowledge, skills and attitudes and make me a better
manager in the field of engineering.
2. Current Attainment
D. Self Management
1. Manage their own time and processes effectively by prioritizing competing demands to
achieve personal goals (manage self)
Knowledge has always fascinated me, and I have always focused on gaining
theoretical and practical knowledge in various academic fields. After completing my
Bachelors of Commerce from Australian National University, I took a break to gain industry
experience but always felt the calling for gaining further knowledge and experience. Though
it might appear fat fetched from my past educational experience as well as professional stints,
I decided to undergo a small Diploma course in 2007, in Fashion Stage and Media Make Up
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just because I was interested in gaining diverse awareness and understanding. However, for
personal growth and for better management of time I have always interspersed my education
with professional experience to make my choices for education more economically viable.
Prior to conducting the diploma on Fashion, I was working in Hong Kong’s real estate sector
as a property agent, and had experience for over 2 years. I took time off, to follow my own
personal agenda, and soon after I joined back I felt the need to get involved with volunteering
work to give back to the society.
I have completed the internationally renowned Wood Badge Training for
Scout Leaders and till today, even after balancing my present job in Startac Engineering
Limited and gaining advanced educational diplomas namely, Diploma in Management
Studies Program, I continue my volunteering services and help plan the activities for the Cub
Scouts who intend to learn Scouting and gain life skills, group games etc.
I believe that, I have attained sufficiently in this attribute, as unless effective
time management and self discipline and efficient multi tasking I could not have gained
knowledge in diverse fields, stay professionally engaged to organizations in which I have
served and along with it served as a volunteer in scouting.
2. Reflect on personal and professional experiences to engage in independent development
beyond the formal education for lifelong learning
My educational experience has ranged from Foundation studies in economics and
mathematics, to Bachelors of Commerce, to Diploma in Fashion to Business management,
and presently I intend to pursue Masters of Engineering Management. However, my
professional exposure has almost always been vastly different from my formal knowledge. I
started my professional stint as a Sales personnel in companies like, Golden Jade Company
and Wing On Travel Company, which were Travel and Tourism companies in Hong Kong,
and then moved on to become a clerk in Engineering companies of Hong Kong, namely,
Wing Kwai Engineering Limited and Startac Engineering Limited. Here I operated as an
Accounts Clerk. Post this, I moved to join the Reality Sector of Hong Kong and eventually
returned in Startac Engineering Limited as a Personnel Manager. As mentioned prior, Startac
is owned by my father and I eventually have to take over, and in order to effectively run it
and sustain its competitive edge, I need to gain thorough knowledge about the theoretical and
practical aspects of Engineering Management. And all along, I have been working as a
volunteer as a Cub Scout Leader.
This entire experience span I have, in both professional and personal field, depicts
that, there hardly exists an alignment between the two, and I have always focused in gaining
independent personal exposure and lifelong learning instead of focusing on mere professional
development. Had it been so, my educational and professional graph would have been
slightly different. However, even though my focus was on lifelong learning, this is at attribute
which is still incomplete as per me as presently I am working in an engineering company and
I lack technical engineering knowledge and skills. Therefore, this is what I aim to cover more
through my association with MEM.
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3. Expected Attainment
I have had to multi task and plan my personal and professional activities from a very
early age. My strengths have been in adjusting myself efficiently in whichever sector I have
worked in and effectively maintain the discipline, conduct planning and actually operating in
timely schedules. This course of Master of Engineering Management is very exhaustive and
tough, but I aim to gain thorough knowledge in project management and other focused areas,
which will help me work efficiently in Startac Engineering Limited and focus my gained
engineering knowledge in conducting my professional duties more effectively which
includes, employee management, parts of operation management and reporting to my
contractor and overseeing other areas which need attendance.
I aim to fulfil my dream of gaining lifelong knowledge (D 2), and intend to balance
effectively my duties as a professional, as a volunteer and also effectively fulfilling my duty
as a student in gaining thorough information about the different engineering knowledge
modules. I intend to focus on gaining the following expertise;
- Understand the technical operations side of my present company and make informed
choice and decisions
- Understand technically as well as strategically each project my company is in, and
thereby make informed decisions which will be technically feasible and economically
viable as well
- Gain thorough knowledge about the field in which I am presently associated in and
intend to remain associated in future
4. Activity Plan
In order to achieve my expected attainment, I intend to focus my attention on the
following three modules which will help me mitigate the gap I felt in D2 - Judgement &
Decision Making, Economic Evaluation & Engineering Project Preparation.
In order to understand the operations of Startac Engineering, and undertake day to day
decision making, I need to have thorough understanding about the work, and learn how to
undertake judgements and make informed decisions. I need to learn how to evaluate different
projects economically and conduct their viability in terms of the bottom line of the business.
Alongside, I need to also gain knowledge about engineering project preparation, which will
help me understand the technical side of things, which I lacked till date. Hence, these three
modules are chosen and the following is their timeline;
- Session 1 (2018 B) : Judgement & Decision Making (49001)
- Session 2 (2018 D): Economic Evaluation (49003)
- Session 3 (2019 A): Engineering Project Preparation (42908)
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