The advertising fraternity is working collaboratively to engage graduate students and young talents looking to join the advertising industry as part of its Advertising Graduate Fellowship Programme.

This initiative, spearheaded by the Association of Accredited Advertising Agents of Malaysia (4As), the Media Specialists Association (MSA), and the Malaysian Advertisers Association (MAA), is designed to introduce new talent to the advertising industry.

“Candidates will undergo a three-month fellowship at participating agencies while attending an intensive training programme at 95% The Advertising Academy,” says Tony Savarimuthu, President of the 4As. “We believe this combination of agency exposure and a structured training programme will introduce a stream of new and competent talent into the business.”

Interested candidates, who are degree holders from established universities, can apply by submitting their resumes to 95% The Advertising Academy. Shortlisted candidates, who are successful after an interview by the Academy, will go through a second interview with the sponsoring agency to be accepted into the programme. The sponsoring agency will have the first option to hire candidates who participate in the Graduate Fellowship Programme.

Sponsoring agencies will pay successful candidates a monthly allowance and 50% of the training fees.

“Every year, tens of thousands of graduates join the work force, and there’s a good chance that we miss out on attracting talented and well-qualified people,” adds Savarimuthu. “This programme is the first step to attracting top-draw talent to raise our standards to a higher plateau.”

“As articulated in the government’s Economic Transformation Programme, talent represents the key to transforming Malaysia into a high-income economy. This programme aims to harness the potential of our people by re-skilling, up-skilling, and new-skilling them  -- and setting them up to win in the world of knowledge and innovation economy,” adds Ranganathan Somanathan, MSA President.

This programme is not limited to advertising and mass communications students. Students majoring in Business and Marketing, Multimedia, IT, Psychology, Social Science, Economics, History, Engineering, Law, and History, are also encouraged to apply.

“Instead of constantly complaining about talent shortage, we, as the industry, have taken a long-term sustainable approach to ensure a healthy growth of the industry,” says Khoo Kar Khoon, MAA President.

Closing date for entries is 27 July. The training will commence on 16 August with the Fellowship at sponsoring agencies commencing on 3 September.

For enquiries, please contact Cheryl at 95% The Advertising Academy at (603) 2095 2995, or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it