| NYP has many amazing graduates with the drive, passion and acumen to succeed. Armed with an NYP education as their foundation, many of them have gone very far indeed. We introduce you to 10 of our recent amazing graduates. We will continue to introduce you to new amazing graduates from time to time. |
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Ever dream of what it would be like to take a spin in a racing car at 250 km per hour, and experience the thrills of being a Formula 1 driver? That is just what part of entrepreneur Daniel Junhao Charles does for a living.
Daniel runs two motorsports businesses. His first company deals with motorsports equipment and parts. With the profits reaped, he started his second business which brings the racing experience to the ordinary man-on-the-street who wants to experience the thrill of driving a fast car like a Porsche or a Ferrari. For his enterprising spirit, Daniel won the Spirit of Enterprise award in 2008. |
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Daniel took a Diploma in Marketing at NYP because he wanted to learn more about the different aspects of business management. He was glad that his NYP training was rigorous and practical-based. In particular, he felt his projects have given him good business grounding.
“To me, life is a journey to be experienced, not just a destination. My goal is to enjoy this journey, and learn many lessons along the way. I believe that being an entrepreneur allows me to really savour this journey. And it has been an exciting ride so far,” said Daniel, summing up his life’s philosophy. |
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Top IT graduate, WorldSkills champ, enterprising entrepreneur, role model and mentor – all rolled into one. That’s Lo Min Ming! Adding the latest feather to his cap, Min Ming, 23, was accepted by the prestigious Stanford University, USA since September 2007. He is currently doing the Bachelor in Computer Science programme at Stanford on a partial scholarship.
Min Ming has an illustrious track record for doing well. He topped his Diploma in Information Technology course at NYP and also won the Lee Kuan Yew Award as well as the IT Youth Award 2005. Min
Ming also did NYP and Singapore proud in various competitions. |
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His most memorable moment was at the WorldSkills Competition 2005 in Helsinki, Finland. (Min Ming was Singapore’s representative for the Information Technology – Software Applications category). At that prestigious competition, Min Ming edged out an international field of competitors to win Gold. He was also one of two Singaporeans who topped all the gold medalists in the competition.
Min Ming felt that being in NYP has helped him in his Stanford journey. He explained,“The lecturers in NYP really helped to groom me. They encouraged me to take on additional modules on networking technology, to deepen my IT knowledge. They also gave me opportunities to take part in competitions, to stretch me further. Most of all, they were very understanding about my hectic schedule of competitions, community service and studies, and would even help me to plan my time-table and manage my time.” |
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When Muhammad Fadzuli bin Mohamad Said was a young lad, all he ever wanted to do was to play computer games. Fadzuli found his dream course when he took up the Diploma in Digital Entertainment Technology course in NYP. There, he discovered he had a natural flair for creating games, and discovered his strengths in games programming, multi-player networking programming and games design.
“Lessons were great fun, because of my passion for games,” recalled Fadzuli. |
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“I was also determined to do well so I made sure I understood all my lecturers taught me. I set targets and pushed myself to achieve my best in every single module. My lecturers motivated me too; their chats with me would inspire me to stretch beyond the normal scope of the assignments, resulting in projects I was proud of.”
Fadzuli topped his cohort with 18 distinctions and 13As, and received the prestigious Media Development Authority of Singapore IDM Award - awarded to the most outstanding student of the School of Interactive and Digital Media. This led to another golden opportunity. He was given a direct entry into a Masters of Entertainment Technology programme at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, USA. He was awarded the prestigious Media Development Authority-ST Electronics Scholarship for his studies.
Fadzuli was recently cited by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong during his National Day Rally speech as an example of a Singaporean who is writing his own Singapore story.
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Seah Lay Hoon is no stranger to academic success. She has won several awards as a Molecular Biotechnology student at NYP, including the Lee Kuan Yew Award in 2006. She furthered her studies on a scholarship by pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Microbiology at the University of New South Wales. Lay Hoon graduated in 2008 with a First Class Honours, and she was also awarded a medal for topping her Microbiology course.
Lay Hoon is grateful for the opportunity to study in NYP. “This course gave me an opportunity to focus on molecular biology, microbiology and genetics, areas I am interested in. |
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When I first visited NYP’s laboratories, I was impressed to discover how well equipped they were with the latest industry standard facilities and technology,” she recalled.
She is now working as a Microbiologist and Technical Specialist at Silliker Pte Ltd, and hopes to further her knowledge in business management, as she wants to enhance her knowledge of how organisations are run. In future, she hopes to do a PhD to fulfil her passion for scientific research and development. |
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It was during his NYP days that Eugene Soo – now a successful Financial Advisor – started to think big.
Eugene took up a Diploma in Banking & Finance in NYP in 2001. NYP was his first choice polytechnic, and he took up the course because he “loved numbers.” Although he began his course without much expectations, it was during his course of study that his confidence grew. |
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“The main reason was my lecturers. They were very patient and encouraging, and took the time to explain difficult ideas. They were able to explain concepts in such a way that I could grasp. In fact, when they started teaching by using real-life examples, I could actually visualise applying my skills to the real world. I became highly interested in my studies, my grades improved and for the first time in my life, I started to think big,” said Eugene.
After he completed his National Service, Eugene continued his studies in Applied Economics at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU). At NTU, he headed the university’s Investment Club, which ran activities to educate students about investing. |
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Rumya is a nursing student with a difference – she has a deep concern for healthcare issues and wants to make a difference.
Her opportunity to do just that came in November 2006 when Rumya represented Singapore at the first Youth Health Conference in New Delhi. There, she met like-minded youth who shared her same concerns for healthcare issues of youth worldwide. Together, they formed an informal network called the Youth for Health Network. One of the key issues for the Network is to consolidate a report on youth health issues, to be presented to the UN. |
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Because she is passionate about healthcare issues and has a strong nursing foundation, Rumya was selected for this mission. Together with the Youth for Health Network, Rumya worked on a report highlighting five key health concerns among young people today: smoking-related problems, HIV, healthy diets, alcohol and gender issues. As a result, she had the chance to go to New York in October 2007 to present her report to the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon.
Rumya was active in Co-Curricular Activities at NYP and by the time she has graduated, she was awarded the National Youth Achievement Award (NYAA), Gold. This award is given to youth who are outstanding in a variety of voluntary and challenging activities.
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Hayley has achieved what many dream about – a First Class Honours from a prestigious university. In 2007, she graduated with First Class Honours in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Imperial College, UK.
“It was tough going, as there were as many as 11 modules to juggle with many projects. But I’m influenced by the Singaporean spirit of excelling in whatever we do…so I set my heart and mind to do well. Plus, my lecturers and friends at NYP showed a lot of faith in me, and I simply couldn’t let them down!” said Hayley, who hails from Vietnam. |
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She first joined NYP to take up the Diploma in Electronics, Computer & Communications Engineering in 2001. After graduating in 2004, Hayley worked as a Development Technologist at NYP to gain work experience, before attaining a scholarship to further her studies in the UK in 2005.
Despite her hectic schedule, Hayley enjoyed her studies. “I feel fortunate to have done both a diploma and a degree. The diploma gave me a strong engineering foundation, and the nature of the NYP diploma is that it is very practical, which helped me, especially in projects. And the degree has allowed me to gain an in-depth study of the various fields of Electrical and Electronics engineering,” said Hayley, who is now working as an executive in the energy business development field. |
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He may be young, but he already has DS Lite games under his belt.
Dennis joined NYP's Diploma in Digital Media (DMD) course in 1997. After NS, he did freelance work for a year, before joining Japanese games company Genki Studio under EDB's Training Attachment Programme. When G-Gadget (child studio of Genki Studio) broke away, Dennis continued to work with G-Gadget, which was subsequently renamed Gevo Entertainment Pte Ltd. |
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At Gevo, Dennis started out as an Artist in 2004, and he has taken on various responsibilities over the years, and has assumed the role of Project Lead. He was involved in a good number of DS Lite games created by Gevo Entertainment, and the latest game which is he the Project Manager is called "Imagine: rock star" a DS Lite game for pre-teen girls which is currently being sold in the US and Europe. He is also the project manager in charge of the new NYP-Gevo Entertainment Games Studio which has been set up within NYP. |
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Cui Peng has always been an enterprising lad. Soon after secondary school, he set up a consultancy service to provide expertise to Singapore businessmen keen to do business in China.
Said Cui Peng, “Many companies in Singapore are keen to do business in China, but they do not understand Chinese culture and Chinese business etiquette enough. I try to guide and help these companies.” Besides consultancy services, his company also focused on event management and branding. |
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Juggling his poly studies and running his businesses was no easy feat, as he would attend classes in the day, and hold business meetings at night. Still, Cui Peng managed well, and even roped in his classmates to help him with various aspects of his business.
Cui Peng feels that the NYP environment has helped him become a better entrepreneur. “My course – Engineering Informatics – equipped me with valuable business and IT skills. Through project work, I also learnt many skills, like project management and creative thinking,” said Cui Peng. |
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Quek Teng Wan dreams of new designs everywhere she goes. She could be on a bus or MRT train when a new design idea would just pop into a her head. “It could be a wild or crazy idea at first, but I would refine it and find ways to make it work,” she explained.
Teng Wan has a strong passion for the fine arts, and she specialised in acrylic painting and sculpture in secondary school. When she first joined NYP, she knew a lot about art but very little on design. It is her Industrial Design course which taught her how to combine her artistic talents with practical designs. She discovered that her strength is in visual arts.
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Throughout her three years in NYP, she has come up with interesting design ideas, like a range of apparel that leaves tattoo-like patterns on the body after sun-tanning. Teng Wan’s designs have also won at the ASUS Eee PC Design Competition (Silver for Most Creative Eee PC Award) and McDonald’s Mural Competition (Second Prize). The design she is most proud of is the logo design for NYP’s 15th Anniversary Celebrations, which was selected from a range of proposed designs. Teng Wan topped her course and received the Flextronics Monza Design Centre Gold Medal.
Currently an NTU undergraduate doing Visual Communications, Teng Wan’s philosophy on design is this: “Design is about freeing ideas and imagination to make a difference in people’s lives.”
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Last updated on
04-Jun-2010
by Liang Hwee Ming
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