She also encouraged the soon-to-graduate students and future job seekers to prepare their portfolios and make hardcopies of them to drop off at the reception of companies. Then, send a self-introduction email, saying that they have dropped a portfolio accompanied by the reason why they would like to work with the company. Also, do some research on the employer and interviewer to gauge what interests them and how to connect with them. She also tells students to always show perseverance while keeping a humble personality.

She related that working was tough at first. College experience was very different from the working world. When studying, students are asked to build one logo and then work and progress on that logo. Whereas in a company, designers are asked to churn and produce hundreds and thousands of logos, which is good because when working, they would want to progress to be a good designer, and all that practice will benefit them.

“Whenever a project comes your way, take it as an opportunity to flaunt your skills and show them how much you’re willing to work and be able to work with others as well. Because when you’re in the advertising industry, you’re not working by yourself or for yourself, but for your clients,” she urged.

She realised that with The One Academy’s specialisation, its students excel at being able to produce work in large amounts and with precision. All the training in portrait design and marker rendering is something that is not seen elsewhere. So, in a sense, The One Academy trains its students to be machines, which does great at preparing them for working in the industry.

“What makes you stand out and able to climb the ladder, is that you take that extra effort into putting an extra amount of work,” she said, adding that perseverance is the key to getting to the destination.

[The One Academy of Communication Design was established in 1991 with the aim of promoting the region as the world’s center of creative reference. Strategically located in the thriving creative hub of Bandar Sunway, Selangor, with a branch in Georgetown, Penang, The One Academy is today a top notch leading international institute in art, design and creative multimedia, renowned with graduates who steer successful careers in creative capitals worldwide. The courses offered are Digital Media Design, Digital Animation with Game Development, Film Visual Effects, Illustration, Movie & Game Art, Advertising & Graphic Design, Interior Design, Paris Fashion Design & Pattern Making and Fine Arts.]