Chin Weng Khong

Course: Bachelor of Pharmacy (Honours), 2015
Nationality: Malaysian
Current role: Regulatory Affairs Consultant (Associate Manager), Parexel International (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd

Please tell us about your role in your current organisation.

Currently, I am working as a Regulatory Affairs Consultant (Associate Manager) in an MNC Contract Research Organisation (CRO) called PAREXEL International. My job scope is very wide, from acting as SME in providing country-specific regulatory expertise to clients, to project leader for regional level regulatory consultation services and pharmaceutical product registration initiatives. I am also involved in inter-department activities which may include business development, proposal review for new opportunities and staff training. I also act as the company pharmacist aka (Poison Type A License Holder) for Parexel International (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd.

Parexel provides a suite of biopharmaceutical services that help pharmaceutical company clients across the globe to transform scientific discoveries into new treatments. The scope of services spans from clinical trials to regulatory, consulting, and market access.

How have your studies at Monash University Malaysia helped to prepare you for the working world?

Monash's pharmacy course trained me to be proactive in regularly updating myself with the latest knowledge in the pharmacy field including newly launched interventional treatments and revised pharmaco-therapy guidelines. As a health care professional, we should always be well-equipped with the latest information on treatment options for our patients in order to provide them with the highest standard of patient care. The opportunity to undertake summer research under our faculty lecturers’ supervision also helped me to develop extensive analytical skills in everything that we do when we enter the working world.

Did you participate in any student activities or opportunities?

Given the opportunities to be involved in various research projects under the supervision of the faculty lecturers, I was a research assistant for university projects ranging from lab-based to clinical-based works. By involving myself in research, I was able to see from the different perspective of a research-based health care professional as compared to a practising health care provider. This is because Monash's pharmacy curriculum tends to lean towards the clinical setting rather than the research setting. Hence, being able to do research during my summer break enabled me to have a different view as a researcher in drug development and patient care.

I had the great opportunities to participate in the following competitions and activities:

  • MSD’s Pharmacy Inno-accelerator Challenge competition during my first year (2011) in which I received the First Runner-Up prize and the opportunity to go on a site visit to MSD’s pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities in Singapore.
  • AbbVie’s Young Leaders Scholarship competition during my final year (2014) in which I received the First Runner-Up prize and an internship at Abbvie, an MNC biopharmaceutical company. I was exposed to various experiences in the corporate working environment and this included but not limited to sales, marketing, pharmacovigilance, medical affairs, logistic departments etc.
  • I participated in the National Clinical Pharmacy Quiz with my pharmacy peers which provided me a great exposure on clinical pharmacy knowledge and I got to know new peers from other universities.
  • Volunteered for the Tzu Chi medical outreach program
  • Clinical and lab-based (medicinal chemistry) research
  • Student Guide for junior pharmacy students.

Did you go for any internships or work placements, and did the experience help you in terms of career preparation?

During my time, within Monash's Pharmacy curriculum, we had a unit called the Professional Experience Placement (PEP) in which we would need to complete four different work placements in various settings including rural pharmacy, hospital and community pharmacy. I interned at Hospital Serdang, Klinik Kesihatan Kelana Jaya, Hospital Sultanah Aminah and Paramount Garden Cosway Pharmacy. In addition, through the AbbVie’s Young Leaders Scholarship competition, I had also secured an internship opportunity at AbbVie biopharmaceutical company.

What did you enjoy most about your student life at Monash?

Having to cope with numerous in-course assignments while doing internships (ie. Professional Experience Placement). Time management is vital in meeting tight deadlines. Setting priorities for things that have to be done first is essential in preventing backlogs, and you have to avoid procrastinating or the quality of work produced with last minute efforts will not be good. Thankfully, the teaching staffs at the School of Pharmacy were very helpful throughout my four years of study at Monash. They were always available and willing to make time from their busy schedules for consultation sessions with us whenever we needed them.

What is your career goal? What’s the difference you’d like to make?

I aspire to be a renowned consultant in the regulatory fields of clinical research and market access. In order to help reach my ultimate goal, I am currently pursuing a post-graduate program of Master of Laws (Healthcare and Medical Laws) on a part-time basis to complement my current regulatory work scope.