How was your 2020?

If your answer is a firm ‘terrible’ or a ‘could be better’, we know how it feels. While 2020 may not have been the best year for us all, there were still a few bright spots: one of them is how our youths are using their skills and talent to generate a lasting impact in our society.

Here are three especially promising examples from the Singapore Institute of Technology’s (SIT) Class of 2020 that we’d like to shoutout!

Helping save lives through technology: Macalino Noel Minjoot

When major road accidents or vehicle breakdowns happen, it’s crucial to arrange for necessary aid ASAP. This is what Macalino’s capstone project centred around.

Currently a System Software Developer with supply chain solutions provider Y3 Technologies, Macalino did his Integrated Work Study Programme (IWSP) with Continental Singapore. Continental Singapore is part of Continental AG, a German multinational automotive technology supplier and a leading player in automotive emergency call systems[i].

Using both coding and engineering skills, the Telematics (Information Systems Engineering)* graduate helped Continental Singapore optimise their test process[ii] of inputting test sets for the car modules of such systems. To do this, Macalino ran a code to read 20 ‘test cases’, with each test case comprising anywhere between five to hundreds of test sets!

Apart from that, Macalino also used the National Instrument’s LabVIEW software (a graphical programming environment used to develop sophisticated measurement, test, and control systems) to automate multiple test scripts, which would help the company lower costs and improve efficiency.

Continental Singapore has taken over Macalino’s project for further refinements and consideration. Macalino hasn’t rested on his laurels, however! He and his team were the Grand Champions of the ‘Startup Weekend Singapore 2020: Tomorrow’ hackathon, with their winning idea being a mobile marketplace for community urban farmers[iii]. We’re sure that he’ll put his software engineering skills to good use, should the team decide to explore their business model in the future!

* Starting Academic Year 2021, the programme will be renamed ‘Computer Engineering’.

Remote cybersecurity training: Shaun Yang

Many organisations faced operational setbacks after the sudden emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, and Shaun’s capstone project helped Centurion Information Security to reduce the impact of it!

The Information and Communications Technology (Information Security) graduate worked with the cybersecurity penetration testing and advisory services company to create and programme a training platform. The training platform enables Centurion Information Security to onboard and instruct its staff remotely in a holistic manner. This is done via a feature that allows the company to create a specific environment, such as a lab environment, in their cloud dynamically. With the platform, staff can familiarise themselves with the company’s methodologies and best practices safely.

Here’s what’s impressive: Shaun actually worked on the training platform for about 12 months, outside his official working hours! His dedication and tenacity led Centurion Information Security to offer a full-time position even before his IWSP ended: an offer truly well-deserved.

Leveraging technology to better healthcare: Fong Jun Hao

Jun Hao’s interest in IT and creating applications drew him to SIT’sBachelor of Engineering with Honours in Information and Communications Technology (Software Engineering).

He actively explored his passions during his time with Accenture during the 12-month IWSP, to great results! Together with two other SIT students based at Accenture Singapore’s Liquid Studio—the agile prototyping studio helps clients turn ideas and concepts into solutions through DevOps, disruptive technologies, and agile methodologies rapidly, in an open sandbox environment—Jun Hao worked on a one-stop technology service that offers solutions to challenges that the elderly and their caregivers regularly face.

Called the Medical Tech Suite (MTS), Jun Hao was responsible for the mobile application’s handy optical character recognition model, which could extract data, track its origins, and make it shareable with users’ family members. What’s worth mentioning is how he achieved this after picking up machine learning skills within just four months!

Jun Hao also developed an iOS front-end application for the MTS that allows end-users to conveniently access their prescription history and doctors-in-charge, and even set reminders to take medications on time. He also developed a backend application that allows for auto-recovery and backups in the event of a system crash.

The MTS team’s work greatly impressed Accenture, and a model of the MTS has been incorporated as part of a showcase in Accenture’s Singapore Liquid Studio. Unsurprisingly, Jun Hao was one of the top scorers for his degree cohort’s Capstone Project. He continues his software engineering journey as a software developer with global cybersecurity technology company Acronis, and we’re sure that he’ll continue to make great contributions there too.

Jun Hao, Macalino and Shaun joined their peers in walking up the stage to receive their degree scrolls last February, celebrating their hard work and efforts with close to 2,200 fellow graduates from 47 undergraduate and postgraduate programmes.

SIT’s Class of 2020 includes the pioneer batches of Allied Health students from SIT’s Diagnostic Radiography, Occupational Therapy, Radiation Therapy and SIT-Trinity College Dublin Physiotherapy programmes, as well as the SIT-University of Glasgow Civil Engineering degree programme. We’re excited to see the trio and everyone else make a difference in their respective fields, and wish them a Happy Graduation!

[i]https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/automotive-ecall-market-102047
[ii] For more information about what a test process entails, see https://www.testmonitor.com/blog/test-case-test-suite-test-run-whats-the-difference
[iii]https://www.singaporetech.edu.sg/sitizen-buzz/hackathon-uncovers-bright-future-ahead