22yo M’sian Intern in Hong Kong Gets Paid RM7K & Highlights the Importance of Mandarin Language

Should interns be paid? Some believe that one should value experience and knowledge more than money, while others believe that time and effort should be compensated with money, especially with the ever-rising cost of living.

A Malaysian student, who is currently interning in Hong Kong shared his experience in that country, and it’ll probably shock you.

“You get paid up to RM7,000”

In a post shared on the Instagram page Malaysian Pay Gap, the student, who is an actuarial intern said that he scored well in SPM but eventually decided to pursue his studies in HK after getting a better offer from the government.

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He has been interning at a large company for 7 months now due to the graduation requirements. He gets paid HKD12,000 monthly (approximately RM7,030). Despite the high pay received as an intern, let’s just say he has a lot to catch up in a fast-paced environment, where “everything has to be done instantly”.

“I’m required to compile reports on a short deadline, and the excel sheets have to look presentable.”

In the meantime, he also highlighted the importance of the Mandarin language as many companies require their employees to speak in fluent Mandarin, despite being in a Cantonese-speaking country.

Time to ramp up the syllabus in Malaysia

He also took the time to highlight the need for an intervention in the Malaysian syllabus, with attention given to statistics and calculus used by engineers, as well as computer science.

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In terms of intellect, the student said that Malaysians may be at the back as compared to students from China.

“They have to study so hard to gain admission to Beijing. However, our strengths lie in the ability to speak multiple languages.”

In addition to that, he said that it’s time for high school textbooks to start introducing about Covid-19 virus and Quantum Physics, before highlighting that Malaysians should work hard to study and work overseas to broaden their horizons.

“Trust me. In Hong Kong, you’ll get to meet people of different & interesting cultural backgrounds.”

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A post shared by Goodbye Wage Taboo [Mon-Fri] (@malaysianpaygap)

To those who have travelled to HK (or anywhere around the world) for studies or work, do you agree with his take on this?

Also read: M’sian Resigns on Confirmation Day After Boss Yells Vulgarities at Her Every Day for 3 Months