Jason Wu (2007), is one of the recipients of the NIS this year. After completing his national service, he shall be undertaking the Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Science) degree at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) which will be sponsored by the Centre for Strategic Infocomm Technologies (CSIT).
I met up with Jason for dinner and a chat last week. Let’s listen to what he has to say:
The most accurate word to describe my feelings when I heard that I was going to receive the National Infocomm Scholarship was ... Surprised!!! Because as far as I believed, only perfect people with perfect grades who juggled many CCAs and actively participated in community activities inside and outside school would receive scholarships. I felt really lucky, more than anything else.
I applied for the National Infocomm Scholarship (NIS) on its official website. I had to fill up an online form with details regarding my academic results, CCAs (secondary and polytechnic) and also had to describe my career and life objectives.
I also had to choose the companies that I will work at following the completion of my education at NTU. Choosing the company is a very significant choice since the successful recipient of the scholarship will be bonded with the company for 3 years following the completion of degree course. You will also be attached to this company for your internship programme while at the university.
I think that the online application is really important because it is the first thing that the companies have to judge whether they would like to sponsor you for the scholarship. Whether or not you will get shortlisted depends on how well you can impress them at this stage.
Following the online application, I was asked to take a psychometric test. It consisted of written tests that assessed language, mathematics proficiency and also logical thinking ability.
Sometime after that, I was asked to go for an interview with a company that was considering to sponsor me. My interviewers were interested in my personal background, and my reasons for choosing their company. It’s very important to build rapport with the interviewers because their impression of you will determine whether they decide to sponsor you. After all, the company is making a huge investment by sponsoring you and it is only natural that they want to be sure that you are worth it.
I believe that being an MIT student has given me an edge over other NIS applicants. Being exposed to various disciplines of Infocomm has piqued my interest and encouraged me to pursue a career as an IT professional.
Having a scholarship on your resume definitely makes you stand out more than others. Considering that the process of getting a scholarship can be quite tedious and only a certain percentage of students are able to receive them, it is quite certain to put you in good stead in the future.
If you are seriously interested in a career in the Infocomm industry, I would encourage you to go ahead and apply for the NIS :)
Reported by Swee Lin
here's the full list for the National Infocomm Scholarship 2007 scholars.
http://www.ida.gov.sg/doc/News%20and%20Events/News_and_Events_Level2/20070914165721/MR150907AnnexA.pdf
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