Diploma in Electronic & Computer Engineering alum Liew Chong Boon topped the Computer Engineering cohort at NTU last year.

Liew Chong Boon, who graduated from Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) with a Diploma in Electronic & Computer Engineering, was named valedictorian of NTU’s Computer Engineering degree course last year.

For being the top graduate of his course, he received both the Koh Boon Hwee Scholars Award and the Lee Kuan Yew Award.

The Koh Boon Hwee Scholars Award allows recipients to honour an inspiring teacher, and Chong Boon chose NP lecturer Mr Ng Beng Kiat. Under the award, Mr Ng can nominate an NP student to receive a $5,000 grant upon admission to NTU.

Speaking of his mentor, Chong Boon said, “Mr Ng would always stay past his working hours to guide us in our projects. He has cultivated the spirit of determination and perseverance in me, so that I constantly challenge myself. This has established the foundation for me to shine in my research endeavours.”

Chong Boon, who is now an engineer at the Defence Science & Technology Agency, has also been an avid grassroots volunteer since 2008. At 26, he is one of the youngest members of the Boon Lay Zone H Residents’ Committee. As the vice-chairman of his residents’ committee and an executive member of the Boon Lay Citizens’ Consultative Committee, he looks after the welfare of the residents under his ward and spearheads projects that promote bonding.

“Volunteering at the grassroots level allows me to understand the matters of society in greater depth, and is a platform for me to help and improve the welfare of the residents. As long as I can find ways to contribute, I’ll be a volunteer,” he said. 

Poly life may have been challenging for Lim Yu Xin, who graduated from Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) with a Diploma in Banking & Financial Services, but it was good training for university.

After all, she said it was thanks to her poly background that she graduated from NTU with a first-class honours degree in Business last year.

“In poly, there were always deadlines to meet for tutorials and projects, which trained me well. I had the determination and the endurance level to meet the endless project deadlines in university, which was very stressful,” she said with a laugh.

It was also at poly that Yu Xin learnt the meaning of “study smart, not hard”. While at NP, she acquired the habit of completing tutorials before classes, which helped her to understand lectures better.

“When I was deciding where to go after my ‘O’ levels, NP was the only poly that offered a course in banking and finance. Now, NP has the most reputable business courses among all polytechnics, so I feel that I made the right choice coming here,” she said.

“Coming from NP definitely gave me a competitive edge over my peers at university,” she added. Yu Xin, who is now working at a major bank, eventually hopes to be an analyst or trader.

Engineering graduate wins pioneer SuTD scholarship

The $44,000 award from Singapore’s fourth university will help Goh Ming Hui fulfil his dream of being a research engineer

Now that he has been awarded a Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) scholarship, Goh Ming Hui is one step closer to achieving his dream of becoming a research engineer.

Ming Hui graduated from Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) with a Diploma in Electrical & Computer Engineering in 2008. The inaugural scholarship, which is worth $44,000, will allow him to pursue a Bachelor of Engineering in Engineering Product Development at SUTD in 2012 when he completes National Service.

“The SUTD selection process is highly rigorous as they aim to admit only the best. Receiving the scholarship and a placing at the university is both astonishing and exciting, as it shows Ngee Ann students have what it takes,” said Ming Hui, who also received scholarship offers from two other local universities.

At NP, Ming Hui majored in robotics. He also won the All Japan Micromouse Competition and Tan Kah Kee Young Inventor’s Award.

“The R&D sector is interesting, exciting and meaningful. Research is a field that constantly contributes to science and the society, and it also allows the individual to constantly acquire new knowledge,” he said.

Now, as part of the pioneer batch of SUTD students, he will be able to take his passion for mechatronics further with its Engineering Product Development programme.

“SUTD combines technical education with design, and focuses on creativity and research. It’s a perfect environment to cultivate my interests. It will offer me a chance to experience the best of mechatronics,” he added.

Recipients of the LKY-STEP Award (fourth from left) Thomas Ng, Teo Shi Jia and Chong Hui Xian with senior management of Ngee Ann.

Chong Hui Xian, an Accountancy graduate, was ecstatic when she first received the news that she had been awarded the prestigious Lee Kuan Yew Scholarship to Encourage Upgrading (LKY-STEP) Award.

“Only a handful of poly graduates are awarded the LKY-STEP Award and receiving this award means that my hard work in poly had paid off,” said Hui Xian, who is currently pursuing a degree in Accountancy at NTU.

The LKY-STEP Award, which encourages upgrading and lifelong learning, is presented to outstanding polytechnic graduates who have good academic and CCA records, and are pursuing full-time undergraduate studies at one of the four local universities.

Teo Shi Jia, a Health Sciences (Nursing) graduate, and Thomas Ng Wenjie, who graduated from the Mechanical Engineering course, also won the LKY-STEP Award this year. Shi Jia and Thomas are currently pursuing Life Sciences and Engineering degrees respectively at NUS.

Now that her tuition fees are fully covered by the award, Hui Xian, who also received the Tay Eng Soon Gold Medal for being the most outstanding graduate formerly from ITE, has even more impetus to keep up the good work at university.

“When I first entered poly, my ultimate goal was to make it to university. Now that I’ve achieved that, my next goal is to focus on my university studies so that I can land a job in one of the ‘Big Four’ accounting firms when I graduate!” said Hui Xian.

Ngee Ann's nursing grads enrol directly into second year at NUS

This marks a first in Singapore’s history for nursing graduates from a polytechnic

These 11 nurses from Ngee Ann made history when they were directly accepted into the second year of the NUS nursing degree programme.

Today, as one of the 11 Health Sciences Nursing (HSN) students from Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) who were accepted directly into the second year of the nursing degree programme at NUS Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies, she is one step closer to realising her dream. This is the first time nursing graduates from a poly have pulled off such a feat.

Antoinette chose to pursue nursing over going to an arts college after her ‘O’ Levels, and it is a decision that, now more than ever, feels right.

“A degree expands your knowledge and builds on the foundation set in a diploma. Nurses are expected to have more knowledge and expertise, as compared to the nurses of the past,” said Antoinette.

She added, “The future generation of nurses will be one that is able to work hand-in-hand with doctors and other healthcare professionals in the care of patients, think critically and play a greater part in the management of illness.”

Antoinette’s passion for nursing is shared by her peers. Gayathiri d/o Dhavadas, 25, who is among the 11 HSN graduates accepted into NUS, took a long route to achieving her dreams of becoming a nurse. Determined to join the nursing profession, Gayathiri enrolled in NP’s HSN course seven years after she first graduated from ITE.

Another HSN graduate, Muhammad Fairoz Bin Abdul Malek, found himself choosing between being a teacher and a nurse. Enrolling in NP proved to be a good choice to a bright future – Fairoz’s nursing degree in NUS is sponsored by Tan Tock Seng Hospital.

New talent grant for arts business management students

Each TAG grant worth up to $5,000 sponsors the artistic development of talented Arts Business Management students in a specific field.

From April 2011, selected Arts Business Management (ABM) students at Ngee Ann will benefit from the new Talent Development Grant (TAG).

Worth up to $5,000, the TAG is given out yearly to talented ABM students to help them develop in an area of the arts, such as music, dance, theatre or visual arts.

The grant will go towards subsidising the cost of private lessons with personal coaches, as well as Masterclasses, conferences and competitions.

Recipients of the TAG will be given the opportunity to share their work with the Ngee Ann community when there is a suitable platform, as well as with the larger arts community in Singapore.