Amidst an extraordinary year in history, more than 6,100 Singapore Polytechnic (SP) graduates will receive their full-time diploma, advanced diploma, specialist diploma and certificate in the mail. Amongst them are the first batch of graduates who enrolled via the Early Admissions Exercise (EAE) theree years ago.

Despite the current challenging circumstances, the polytechnic is celebrating the academic success of graduates who have shown passion and determination. In the graduating Class of 2020, a caring community of inspired learners have also responded to the government’s continued call for kindness and love to serve our society during these trying times.

Outstanding graduates with a heart for the community

Volunteerism has always been in the blood of two SP Institutional Medallists – Diploma in Creative Writing for TV & New Media graduate Kelly Hui Wen Ting (Tan Kay Yong Gold Medal) and Diploma in Engineering with Business graduate Elyn See Kailin (Lee Kuan Yew Award)/ Besides topping their respective courses, both graduates are strong advocates for community service and are active volunteers at their constituency’s Meet-The-People sessions (MPS).

When COVID-19 hit Singapore, Elyn helped to pack food donations with the Singapore Food Bank. These food donations went out to disadvantaged families and Elyn ensured that they were not alone in facing the pandemic. For Kelly, COVID-19 was another opportunity for her to reach out to fellow Singaporeans by helping to pack hand sanitisers and assisting residents with the applications for the Temporary Relief Fund.

“We are all a part of this global COVID-19 outbreak. It is thus important to make kindness and concern a part of our lives. We hope that our small efforts will allow Singapore to emerge from this outbreak stronger and resilient,” shared Elyn and Kelly.

Hacking his way to success

As a child, Institutional Medallist James Lim En Hui was already interested in computers and programming. When the EAE was launched three years ago, James did not hesistate to apply for it using the strong portfolio of websites and applications that he developed over the years. The Lee Kuan Yew Award winner impressed the interview panel and received a spot in the Diploma in Computer Engineering before sitting for his GCE-O Level exam. And he has not looked back since.

At SP, James became the polytechnic’s first and youngest student to be a certified Amazon Web Services Solutions Architect Associate. With his additional skill sets, James applied them to 15 different hackathons and competitions – both local and international – and won half of them.

The budding technopreneur has already founded a startup, to further develop and commercialise some of the solutions that he had thought of over the years.

A poly for all ages

Unlike his peers, Institutional Yang Anlin took a longer academic path. The Lee Kuan Yew Award winner scored well for his GCE O-Level and enrolled in a top junior college. A few months before finishing junior college, Anlin dropped out as he could not find his purpose.

Subsequently, he enrolled in SP’s Diploma in Infocomm Security Management course, eight years older than his peers. The mature student was more committed and wanted to excel after being given a second chance at education.

Anlin’s strong interest in programming drove him to learn independently, and he even sat for the professional exams to qualify as an Organisation System Security Analyst and a Certified Ethical Hacker. Even before graduation, Anlin has already found a job as an IT Security Consultant at NCS Pte Ltd, the same company he interned at.

This year, SP also celebrates the graduation of 1,510 adult learners, representing an increase of more than 22 percent as compared to 2019. This is also the highest number of Continuing Education & Training (CET) graduates recorded by the polytechnic and signifies SP’s continued efforts in encouraging life-long learning.

Amongst this year’s CET graduates is 55 year old, Isaac Soong.. As a senior manager at a leading chemical manufacturing company, Isaac knew that having a background in chemistry and specialty chemicals will complement his mechanical engineering background. Determined to build up the areas he was lacking in, Isaac enrolled in the Specialist Diploma in Formulation Science & Technology course by tapping on the SkillsFuture Mid-Career Enhanced Subsidy.

It was the right choice for Isaac as he was able to apply his new proficiencies at work after his 18-week course. With a better understanding of areas including chemical regulations and the use of advanced lab equipment, Isaac is now able to better advise his staff on their work and operations.

The specialist diploma course proved to be so useful and inspiring for Isaac that he is already enrolled in the Advanced Diploma in Specialty Chemicals course and is even considering a Master’s Degree in the future.

Sharing his motivation, Isaac quipped, “Things are changing and technology is evolving constantly. There is a need to continue upskilling as what I learnt years ago is no longer relevant. These Continuing Education & Training courses serve as a good platform for myself and especially the older generation, to embark on life-long learning.”