Offering a look at SkillsFuture’s potential

SINGAPORE — When he was younger, Mr Chen Zhangkai got into fights, played truant from school and nearly failed his Primary School Leaving Examination, which did not bode well for his prospects as a student.

But after graduating from the Institute of Technical Education, he went on to Nanyang Polytechnic, before enrolling into the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) for an SIT-DigiPen Institute of Technology degree programme.

Mr Chen, 27, is an example of a “late bloomer” who “took a longer path than usual” and persevered despite setbacks, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday (Aug 23). The SkillsFuture initiative will produce more success stories such as Mr Chen, by providing opportunities “no matter where you are to upgrade and do better”, he added.

Mr Chen’s final-year project and portfolio so impressed a director of animation studio that he was offered an internship, and later landed his dream job as an animator, pointed out Mr Lee.

Speaking to TODAY, other SIT students have shared how the university has offered them opportunities to broaden their experience outside of the classroom. Final-year SIT undergraduate Felicia Yeoh, who is reading accountancy, cited the four-month internship she did in her second year as an example. “It gives me more than just theoretical knowledge,” said the 24-year old.

Mr P Mukkesh Kumar, an SIT-Newcastle University graduate found a job at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research within a month of graduating in June. “The group projects in school helped me to work with my classmates better,” said the 25-year-old. “I cannot choose my group mates, just like I cannot choose in the (workforce)”.