In 2009, Mr Mohamed Safiullah was among the first batch of students to receive the Infocomm Development Authority’s (IDA) Integrated Infocomm Scholarship (IIS). On 31 July, he went on to receive his National Infocomm Scholarship (NIS) at the first joint awards ceremony held by the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (MICA) and its agencies.

40 students received the Integrated Infocomm Scholarship, which supports outstanding “O” level students in their infocomm studies from polytechnic through to the university level.

The 2012 MICA Scholarships Award Ceremony, which took place at the NTUC Centre, featured 100 scholarships from MICA, IDA, Media Development Authority, DesignSingapore Council, National Arts Council, National Heritage Board and National Library Board. They were presented by the Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts Dr Yaacob Ibrahim.

Mr Mohamed Safiullah was one of 17 recipients of IDA’s NIS. “Taking up the IIS at an earlier stage helped me develop my interest and knowledge further in IT, and led me to take up the NIS today,” said the 23-year-old, who will be pursuing his studies under the NIS Flagship Infocomm Masters Scholarship, supported by SingTel. Under the programme, he will spend two years studying for his Bachelor of Science (Information Systems Management) at the Singapore Management University, and another two studying for his Masters of Science (Information Technology) at the Carnegie Mellon University in United States.

Ms Karen Phoon, Human Resource Director in Talent Management and Development in SingTel, who was present at the scholarship presentation, commended IDA for doing a very good job in reaching out to students in the schools and universities. “We view this sponsorship and partnership with IDA as a good way for us to reach out to infocomm students and offer them the opportunity to realise their fullest potential with SingTel,” she said.

SingTel is one of the 26 corporate partners who are supporting the IDA scholarship programme this year. These partners include leading global companies, local companies and government agencies. Under the NIS, which was established in 2004, the companies help nurture the students, providing them with mentorship and local or overseas work attachments.

Another 40 students received the IIS, which supports outstanding “O” level students in their infocomm studies from polytechnic through to the university level. Both scholarships form part of IDA’s initiatives to build up Singapore’s infocomm pool and ensure a future pipeline of talent for the infocomm industry.

Like Mr Mohamed Safiullah, Mr Chi Kok Pin also took the IIS route to the NIS. The Singapore Polytechnic graduate, who received an NIS Full Overseas Scholarship supported by the Centre for Strategic Infocomm Technologies, said the scholarship gives students like him a “head start” in the industry. “Besides the financial support provided by the scholarship, we would have an opportunity to work for five years with a NIS partner organisation upon graduation,” he explained. Mr Chi intends to pursue a computer science degree, in particular in the field of network and security.

One IIS recipient who is hoping to tread the same path is Ms Grace Ting Yan Teng, who is currently studying for a Diploma in Business Intelligence and Analytics at Temasek Polytechnic. “This scholarship motivates me to pursue something I have always dreamt of – which is to go on to get a university degree.”

For another IIS recipient, it was Lord of the Rings which provided the motivation to apply for the scholarship and pursue infocomm. Mr Darren Lee Wei Sheng is currently studying for his Diploma in Game and Entertainment Technology at Temasek Polytechnic. “I love animation, that’s why I took Animation as one of my ‘O’ levels subjects. I really hope to be able to create my own animated movies one of these days, or to create special CGI effects like what we saw in the movie Lord of the Rings.”

Mr Isaac Lee Bo Xi, who is currently doing his first year in the Diploma in Infocomm Security Management course at the Singapore Polytechnic, also came to be interested in infocomm whilst in secondary school, where he was Chairman of the Infocomm Club. There, he learnt many useful skills which he applied to help and engage other students in building up their infocomm knowledge. He also found himself taking part in infocomm competitions such as the National StrlTwise Challenge and the Schools Digital Media Awards. “This interest later became my passion,” said the IIS recipient.