TAR UC grad earns spot at Asia digital challenge

Tan takes gold at national round of competition while studying for exam

NEXT month, an accounting fresh graduate from Tunku Abdul Rahman University College (TAR UC) will be representing Malaysia at a digital challenge that will see her competing with participants from across the Asia-pacific region.

Tan Seh Er (pic) earned her spot at the grand final of the International Computer Driving Licence (ICDL) Asia Digital Challenge 2021, through her performance at the recently concluded national round where she was named one of the Gold Prize winners under the Business Track (Tertiary) category.

Tan expressed her joy at the news, attributing her achievement to her lecturer Ong Mor Yang’s encouragement during her final semester.

At the national round, participants were tested on management spreadsheets, an area in which Tan had an upper hand as Advanced Spreadsheets was covered in her Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) programme.

“I had completed the same ICDL module as part of my coursework. This greatly improved my confidence,” she shared in a press release.

She added that she had made the decision to join the competition – even though the preliminary round was held one week before her Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) examination – as she wanted to expand her skillset and portfolio before graduating.

“The job market today is very competitive and fresh graduates need extra skills to stand out,” said Tan, who will be embarking on an auditing career soon.

“Having good computing skills will give me an added advantage. In the future, I will continue to enhance my accounting, as well as computing, knowledge to keep up with the fast-paced technological advancements being implemented across industries,” she added.

At the upcoming grand final, participants will have their data analytics knowledge tested.

Tan conceded that data analytics is a subject foreign to her but she is taking steps to familiarise herself with it, starting with the e-book provided by the ICDL Foundation.

“I plan to spend at least an hour and a half each day after work to prepare for the competition,” she shared.

Tan is the second student from TAR UC who has advanced to the grand final of the competition, which is in its fourth edition this year.

In the 2018 edition, another TAR UC student Wong Yik Han, who had emerged as the national champion, went on to bag a bronze medal in the grand final, held in Bangkok, Thailand.

Held virtually, the ICDL Asia Digital Challenge 2021 is aimed at fostering practical digital skills, such as emerging technologies, data analytics, design, and the use of office application tools, required of various professionals in the workplace today and the future.