Intensive, rigorous and putting in the hard work is a common sentiment when we spoke to three graduates from the NUS-ISS Graduate Diploma in Systems Analysis programme (GDipSA) 52nd cohort. Collectively, they have kick-started their tech career on the same foot and are growing with multinational information technology company, NCS Group through the Nucleus Programme.
Ready to hit the ground running upon graduation, Yushan and Min Thein are currently working in NCS as Software Engineers and Hafiz as a Cybersecurity Consultant.
From L to R: Alumni, Wang Yushan, Hafiz Azman and Kyaw Min Thein who are all from the GDipSA52 cohort,
Class of 2022 and are taking on the NUS-ISS x NCS Nucleus Programme.
Nucleus: A unique and stackable programme for career acceleration
In partnership since 2019, the NUS-ISS x NCS Nucleus Programme is part of the organisation’s culture and digital transformation journey that empowers and nurtures the workforce through a unique 5-year programme. Making growth a priority for all employees, the Nucleus roadmap is designed to be flexible where employees undergo professional training, technical expertise and industry experience in their chosen field of specialisation, attaining professional certificates as they go along to stack up to a Master of Technology Degree conferred by NUS-ISS.
The Nucleus programme has proved beneficial for both employee and employers as the workforce is constantly future-proofing their roles by constantly learning about the latest technology advancements and applying them to purposeful projects across different business areas.
Said, Ms Lance Foo, Group Head of Talent Acquisition, Asia-Pacific, NCS, “Very few fresh graduate programmes focus on building your foundation, developing your technical skillsets and deepening your specialisation experience. NCS Nucleus in partnership with NUS-ISS does just that! Through purposeful projects, professional coaching, progression and professional certs, your career is accelerated and enables you to be future-ready to take on projects that make extraordinary happen.”
Gaining industry-relevant skills that open doors to opportunities
NUS-ISS’ GDipSA curriculum teaches multiple popular programming languages in the industry such as ASP.NET, JAVA and Python and has proven to be industry relevant for tech roles in NCS.
"With this well-designed curriculum, the students have the options to choose different career paths such as Software Engineer, Mobile App Developer, System Analyst, and more within NCS,” adds Min Thein, whose fulfillment stems from being able to problem solve on a daily basis. He has been assigned to work on tech refresh projects with a government client where his projects includes transforming old software systems to new systems, using the latest software technology.
Shared Yushan, “my current role as a Software Engineer at NCS requires massive knowledge about C#NET core and the experience in GDipSA has really helped me a lot in this area of knowledge along with project management skills.” Yushan is now delving in DevOps development where he enjoys collaborating as a team with colleagues from around the world such as India, China and Japan.
The GDipSA programme had certainly opened up an opportunity for Hafiz in NCS, as his bachelor's degree was not in IT but in chemistry. He shares his thought on GDipSA programme as a successful conversion programme into IT.
"For a non-IT graduate such as myself, I am better able to understand the various processes being used in real-world IT projects. GDipSA has equipped me with the foundational knowledge in information technology that allowed me to adapt better to my current job role. Both the coursework and the internship has provided me with the ability to keep up with the fast-paced nature of large government projects in NCS where I provide configuration, installation and integration of cybersecurity products such as CDRaaS (Content Disarm & Reconstruction as a Service) and functional testing,"said Hafiz.
Lifelong learning for the digital age
Perhaps the biggest factor that seems to stand in the way of continual learning while working is carving out time on top of other commitments and having access to quality resources. The NUS-ISS x Nucleus Programme paves the way as Yushan emphasised that “for new hires, we are given the time and resource to develop ourselves with platforms for us to keep learning and making progress.”
Hafiz adds that, “The Cyber Nucleus programme involves a bootcamp through Percipio, an online learning platform that has various books and courses at your disposal. The Nucleus programme also sponsors various industry-recognised professional certifications for your own learning from organisations such as CompTIA, AWS, and Microsoft Azure.”
Summing up his biggest takeaway and transition from GDipSA to the Nucleus Programme. Hafiz enthused that “learning does not stop after the end of the GdipSA programme. Continuous learning is essential to your success in your career and life and this combination of continuous learning and hands-on working experience allows us the flexibility and structure to better contribute to our current role and excel in our career in Tech.” Leverage on that and thrive far in the future workplace.
We wish our alumni, Hafiz, Min Thein and Yushan all the very best in their careers at NCS!
For more information on NUS-ISS' Graduate Diploma in Systems Analysis Programme, visit here.
Speak to our friendly career consultants on opportunities and register interest for a career with the Nucleus Programme in NCS here.