CCEB Class of 2026: Kim Minseo
Our CCEB graduate shares about his journey from Chemical Engineering to Software Engineering
Congratulations to the Class of 2026! As our graduates take their first exciting steps into the working world, we caught up with Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (CBE) graduate Kim Minseo. Before he officially kicks off his new role as a Software Engineer later this month, we looked back on his time with us.
We asked Minseo to share the biggest highlights of his unique journey at CCEB, the invaluable life skills he picked up along the way, and the moments that made his NTU experience truly unforgettable.
Q: If you could describe your time at CCEB in one word, what would that word be?
A: I would say that it has been unscripted because I actually joined NTU six years ago. It took me six years instead of four to complete my degree because I became a permanent resident in Singapore and had to take a two-year break to serve National Service (NS) before resuming my final year of studies. At the same time, I didn’t know that I would be venturing into software engineering when I first joined the school to study chemical engineering. It has led me to a place that I would not have expected to be six years ago.
Q: Tell me about your time at CCEB?
A: When I joined in 2020, our orientation was conducted online through Microsoft Teams, and we played games such as Among Us. When we met each other on campus, we gathered in groups of five because of safe distancing measures. I joined activities held by the CCEB Club and hall activities, and I was able to make friendships where we would study late at night and have supper together at NTU.
I was also part of the CCEB Club in Year 1 as the Business Manager. We organised and gave out welfare packs, and even sold school merchandise. It was very fun because we collaborated with different teams, such as the publicity team and the logistics team, and did photoshoots to ensure our merchandise looked good.
One moment that will stay with me as I leave CCEB was the time I had to complete a third-year lab module. Sometimes, the experiment would go on for five to six hours because there was a lot of waiting involved in the process to reach a steady state. What I will remember most is how my friends and I would be talking to the teaching assistant and exchanging banter, and we did not realise that the experiment had ended. With these kinds of experiences, when you look at the timetable, it might seem daunting to see a lab practical session from 9.30am to 3.30pm. In reality, when you are talking with friends and enjoying yourself, time goes by very quickly.
Q: How did you pivot into software engineering?
A: When I joined NTU as a chemical engineering undergraduate, I didn't expect to land a software engineering role after graduation. At the start, I explored research attachments from other schools, which got me interested in machine learning and deep learning projects. That's when I gained some hands-on experience with coding. As I was quite interested in software engineering, I took Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), where you can take online courses on your own to pursue interests outside your major. Through that, I worked on some personal projects on my own to hone my software development skills.
I also got to apply my coding expertise in the gas industry during my professional internship, which was a mandatory requirement for my degree. This was a transitional phase for me where I learned about chemical engineering while applying my coding skills. I got to analyse plant data as well as automate some of the processes that engineers previously did manually.
In my final year, I did software engineering internships that involved developing products for real users. I also learned how to collaborate with different stakeholders, such as product managers, data scientists, and UX designers. That experience really cemented the idea that working as a software developer was what I wanted to do. This July, I’ll be joining DBS Bank as a software engineer.
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Story by Sumita Thiagarajan, NTU CCEB
