Intercultural Conflict

I was once at a rather large gathering organized by a group from a single nationality. It was one of those casual events where the members mingled around and played catch up with each other.

So there I was, together with a bunch of close friends, ploughing through the field of old acquaintances and striking up conversations here and there.

A while later, the attention of the entire group were gathered and we were introduced to three new people. Exchange of greetings between our group and with each of the three new friends ensued. Through observing them, I assumed that they were of a different nationality.

A moment neither too soon nor too late passed, and I caught a glimpse of the new friends again, hanging at the edges of a larger group of people talking animatedly. I decided it was the right time to get acquainted with them.

Ploughing through the field of people again, and with my close friends tagging along, we introduced ourselves personally. I find them to be warm, friendly and polite. Yet, it wasn’t enough to stave off what was coming next.

We started off with the stock questions frequently used when getting acquainted with strangers. I noticed everyone began feeling uncomfortable during the moment of silence, which increases as we ran out of topics. There was hardly anything which we had a common interest in. When either of us talked about our home country, each of us could only nod out of friendly respect, as neither of us had been to the other’s country.

Then we shifted to a last common, everyday topic. By then, I realized there were both cultural and language barrier presented within our conversation. Most of the jokes made by us require a degree of proficiency in some of our dialects, as its hilarity lies in its interpretation ambiguity. Besides, we ourselves had difficulty to understand certain words which our new friends said due to their accent. I am sure that they too were experiencing the same problem as there had been a few times they requested us to repeat our sentences. Furthermore, as we knew at least three different languages and tend to mix the words from these languages around in the sentence, our three new friends were sometimes left in a state of utter confusion.

It wasn’t long before I noticed that our three friends began drifting away from the conversation, as we subconsciously reverted back to our old casual speech style.

Personal BioData

Ever since I laid eyes on the National Geographic channel at a very young age, it sparked an interest in me and I became even more curious of the natural world around me. Some years later down the road of life, education finally introduced me to the formal name of my interest. I had at last known that my interest lies within the field of science.

Being a student that had been enamored by science, it is only natural that I continued to study this all the way to university. After completing high school, I took up the chance offered by the National University of Singapore (NUS) to further my studies and the next thing I knew, I am here on a visa. I guess am intoxicated by the thought of the abundance of opportunities in doing laboratory work and attached to projects being supervised by dedicated professors.

While I am extremely interested in anything and everything that had to do with biological sciences, I found that I am more inclined towards the field of research involving microorganisms and the human immunity system. I guess it is the dream of every scientist in this field to find the cure for all diseases, and I am no different.

An undergraduate in Life Sciences, I am currently in Year 3 and am pursuing a specialization in the Biomedical field. My name is Ng Wai Chii and this, is me and science.

Application Letter

Room 422, Block B, Ng Wai Chii Handphone no.: 65-98174180
Ridge View Residences,
25 Lower Kent Ridge,
Singapore 119081.
nwchii@hotmail.com



Agency for Science, Technology & Research (A*STAR)
1 Fusionopolis Way,
#20-10 Connexis,
Singapore 138632
Att: HR Department (Corporate Internship Programme)





To whom it may concern,

If your company is seeking for an inquisitive, flexible and all-rounder intern, I would appreciate it if you would consider me. The experiences that I had gathered so far are highlighted in the accompanying resume.

During the duration of my course, I had been diversifying the courses that I took. My inquisitive nature pushed me to take courses which are not in my major’s domain, including marketing and computing. These courses gave me more chances to hone my presentation skills.

I had also joined as a junior marketing committee for archery club. During my stint, I had secured goodie bags for the club’s biggest event, the NUS Indoor Archery Competition.

I believed that my personality and experiences I possess would be of an added strength to the company. I can be contacted at the number and email listed above and am looking forward to hear from you soon.


Yours sincerely,



NG WAI CHII