The wind beneath our wings

Text: Vivien Yap

More than financial aid

When Angel first received the email confirming her as an award recipient, she paused in disbelief. She thought university was out of reach.

“Getting accepted was one thing,” recalls the second year Visual Communication student. “But having the privilege of attending university without financial burden felt like a light at the end of the tunnel.”

Due to traumatic personal circumstances, Angel has had to support herself since she was 19. The award not only covered her tuition fees but also gave her the chance to fully embrace campus life – hosting events, dancing and acting in her hall community.

Angel emceeing for an NTU event. (Photo: Angel Lau)

Jay, who graduated from the Nanyang Business School in 2020, shares a similar sense of relief. In his first semester before receiving the award, he juggled long days of classes with part-time work at a Korean restaurant, often ending shifts at 11pm before heading home to tackle coursework.

“I was exhausted, and my grades suffered,” Jay admits. “When I got the award, I could finally rest after classes and focus on group projects. My grades climbed and I was able to graduate with Honours (Distinction).”

Wei Kang, a 2025 College of Computing & Data Science graduate, was offered a place at other universities but chose NTU because of the award. “It took a huge weight off my shoulders,” he says. “I could focus on discovering my passion instead of worrying about my finances and just getting by in school.”

Discovering themselves

For Jay, the award rekindled his love for dance. It had been his creative outlet since he was in Singapore Polytechnic, taking him to competitions in Taiwan and South Korea, but studying and working part-time left him with no time to practise.

Jay (centre) performing at a Soul Funky event in 2024 as an NTU alumnus. (Photo: Jay Byeong Gyu Shin)

“Dance was how I de-stressed,” he explains. After receiving the award, Jay joined NTU’s Soul Funky dance crew, mentoring younger dancers. “The award gave me back my passion and the chance to pass it on.”

Freed from financial worry, Wei Kang’s path became one of discovery. After dabbling in coding when he was in Singapore Polytechnic, he immersed himself in hackathons and engineering projects at NTU. One of his achievements was winning a prize at an Alibaba Cloud hackathon.

Wei Kang was the first runner-up at an Alibaba Cloud hackathon. (Photo: Poon Wei Kang)

Today, he is a software engineer at PayPal. “The magical thing about software engineering is you can write a few lines of code and build something immediately,” he says.

Angel’s passions bloomed across disciplines like design, global affairs and gender studies. Coupled with co-curricular experiences in hosting, performing and sports, the award gave her the freedom to explore and thrive.

“I have the privilege of growing my skills as a creative while learning new things,” she reflects. “That’s only possible because the award’s financial support gave me the time to try new things.”

Moments that stay for a lifetime

In 2025, Angel was invited to host an event marking a S$110 million gift from UOB and the Wee Foundation to NTU. “I had no idea it was for my own scholarship programme,” she says. Standing on stage, she realised its significance. “This isn’t just an event. This is someone’s legacy. And somehow, I’m part of that story.”

One of Jay’s most treasured memories was calling his mother in South Korea with the news. “She screamed with joy and kept saying I deserved it,” he recalls. “For weeks afterwards, she would call just to tell me how happy she was.”

Wei Kang remembers receiving career advice from other award recipients, including one who shared how he had landed an internship at Coinbase. “It was rare to find peers who were as driven,” he says. “That sense of belonging was priceless.

Wei Kang now works as a software engineer at PayPal. (Photo: Hanafi Ramdan)

Broadening horizons

The award also opened doors beyond Singapore by funding overseas exchanges. Jay spent a semester in Switzerland, travelling across Europe and learning to live independently. “It was my first time in Europe. I learnt how to cook, live on my own and see the world from new perspectives,” he says.

Wei Kang also ventured out of Asia for the first time to Switzerland. The cultural differences taught him adaptability,a crucial skill for a software engineer in the age of artificial intelligence.

Paying it forward

All three recipients agree that the award’s greatest gift is the inspiration to give back.

Angel recalls Minister Chan Chun Sing’s words at the announcement of the S$110 million gift: “I hope the gift will inspire generations of NTU students to give back to society.”

She says: “That’s the kind of life I want to lead.”

Jay now makes annual donations to NTU to support students in need. “Beyond the financial resources, being a recipient of the award taught me about giving back,” says the Group Leader at the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority. He also remains a mentor in the Soul Funky dance community.

Wei Kang hopes to guide aspiring software engineers, just as others once guided him. “I wouldn’t have discovered my passion for software engineering without this award,” he says. “I want to help nurture the next generation.”

 

This article first appeared in issue 6 of U, the NTU alumni magazine.