After graduating from NUS with his first degree in bio-medical engineering, a young Edmund filled with gusto, joined the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) as a narcotics officer where he managed a team of officers. His daily investigations took his team to criminal activities such as drug raids and drug offences and he looks back fondly where he spent three years of his formative work experience at CNB that was both challenging and exciting. He then decided to further his studies in IT as he recounted a spark and interest for programming.
"My first experience with programming was during my first year in NUS. There was a compulsory module that all 1st year engineering students must take (CS1010E) and I enjoyed that module a lot. I decided to pursue a career switch as I felt that programming is the future," shares Edmund.
Attracted by the 5 months internship component as part of NUS-ISS' Graduate Diploma in Systems Analysis (GDipSA) programme, he was eager to gain real world experience in IT. Added Edmund who graduated from the class of 2020, “GDipSA’s internship component is its most distinguishable feature. I was assigned to a Covid-19 related government agency project where I was exposed to angular framework and delivered enhancements to an app based on knowledge learnt from the lessons I had at NUS-ISS."
He recounts that his biggest challenge was the sudden switch to the Working from Home (WFH) arrangement as he had always enjoyed face to face interaction with others. Adapting to the new normal, Edmund's biggest takeaway was to constantly upgrade himself and to always don a learner's mindset. Despite a steep learning curve, Edmund was hired after graduation.
These days, he solves real world problems of another kind - as a front-end application developer solving issues with a code. His first task, as a software engineer at NCS was coincidentally for a Covid-19 project as well. Extremely rewarding is how he describes getting applications to work with skills gained from the one-year GDipSA programme and he advises potential students to look at GDipSA’s curriculum and decide if the modules are what you are looking for.
Own your transformation journey now. For more information on NUS-ISS' Graduate Diploma in Systems Analysis Programme, visit here.