Press Release - Class of 2022 Celebrates!

A total of 14,179 students graduated from ITE in Academic Year 2021/2022. Of these, 761 have already received their Certificates of Merit (COM) for being among the top five per cent of the graduating cohort during the College-based graduation ceremonies held in February and May 2022. 

On 27 July 2022, ITE held its ITE Graduation Ceremony in recognition of the outstanding achievements of the following graduates: 

• 236 Course Medallists (who are also COM holders)

• 10 Tay Eng Soon Scholarship recipients

• 16 Top Graduates, comprising:

  • 1 IES Engineering Award

  • 1 e2i Gold Medal

  • 2 Singapore Business Federation Gold Medals ^{NEW AWARD!}

  • 3 Singapore National Employers Federation Gold Medals

  • 3 The Ngee Ann Kongsi Gold Medals

  • 3 Tay Eng Soon Gold Medals

  • 3 Lee Kuan Yew Gold Medals

More details on these Awards can be found at Annex A.

Aiming for the Courts 

Among the top 16 graduates this year is Lee Kuan Yew Gold Medal Award recipient, Nurqistina Atiqah Binte Abu Bakar. When she was younger, Qistina was inspired by the late criminal lawyer, Subhas Anandan, and his pro-bono cases. Her ‘O’ level Math grade did not meet the minimum requirement for the diploma course of her choice, putting a damper on her dream of a legal career. Though she was offered a science-related course, Qistina chose to further her studies at ITE instead because of the internship opportunities it offered. She felt that this would better prepare her for working life.

To build up her portfolio and make the best of her two years at ITE, Qistina seized every opportunity offered to her. She participated in close to 50 college, community and national-level events – all, while maintaining a near-perfect Grade Point Average. During her internship, her outstanding performance impressed her employer and she emerged as the top intern of her batch in the company. Though a longer route, Qistina’s ITE education journey was a most enriching one. More importantly, it gave her a second shot at pursuing her legal dreams. She is now currently pursuing a diploma in Law & Management at Temasek Polytechnic. Qistina hopes to build a career in the legal industry and make an impact in the community.

Savouring the Fruit of Success

Tan Wen Yao took the unconventional choice of taking a gap year after his ‘O’ level examinations to figure out what he wanted to study next. After working part-time in areas like event management and banquet service, he eventually made up his mind to learn culinary arts. Determined to get a place in ITE’s Western Culinary Arts course, Wen Yao applied for both the full-time and traineeship options. He was offered the traineeship course and he took it up without hesitation. Despite having an intensive schedule where he worked five days at a hotel and attended classes at ITE for one day, Wen Yao loved it. Upon completing his Nitec (traineeship) course, he chose to further hone his techniques via ITE’s Technical Diploma (TD) in Culinary Arts.

Wen Yao took the TD in unprecedented times during the pandemic but it gave him the chance to see how restaurants adapted to changing dining regulations. He also savoured the opportunity to learn different aspects of running a business. Wen Yao successfully applied what he learnt and performed outstandingly in his final-year project, entrepreneurship project and industry attachment at a three-Michelin starred restaurant, Odette. For his steadfast commitment to mastering his craft, Wen Yao emerged the valedictorian for his TD course and is one of the first two winners of the new Singapore Business Federation Gold Medal Award. He is currently a Demi Chef De Partie at Le Bistrot Du Sommelier.

IT’s a Success

It might have taken Mohamad Hilman Bin Mohamad Hatta a few years to discover his potential, but those bumpy years were necessary for him to grow into the person he is today. Hilman professed feeling lost and lacking in motivation when he was younger. It was only during National Service that he decided it was time for him to do something to better himself. He enrolled in an Information Technology course at ITE as the industry was booming at the start of the pandemic. Though it was an entirely new field for him, Hilman took up the challenge and discovered he had a flair for it.

Hilman also took the chance to feed his passion for social work by taking on leadership positions in the Service Ambassador Club and Student Volunteer Corp, and participating in several community projects. On top of that, Hilman held a part-time job to finance his own expenses. For excelling in so many areas, he is most deserving of The Ngee Ann Kongsi Gold Medal. He is currently pursuing a diploma in Information Technology at Singapore Polytechnic and hopes to marry his IT skills with his passion for social work in the future.

Annex A

Details of Top ITE Awards

The Institute of Technical Education (ITE) recognises graduates who have performed well in their courses with various awards.