Personal on YKM's Corner on the Web

Reflections of a newly minted NUS CEG Master graduate

Fri, 18 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

After 2.5 years of sweat, tears and lack of sleep, I’m a Master Graduate loh! I just graduated with a Master of Science degree in Computer Engineering from NUS College of Design and Engineering (CDE) Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) department.

Before I embarked on this master degree program, I actually did not know what the experience will be like as I did not know anyone taking up similar programs beforehand.

There is not much online information on the experience of graduate level programs from the CDE faculty and ECE department compared to the undergrad level. This is not surprising as relatively few Singaporeans take local graduate programs compared to undergrads in the first place. Of those that do, many anecdotally gravitate towards Masters in Business/Finance or CS/Tech related programs instead of core engineering.

Therefore now having completed this program, I decided to share my thoughts and structure this post in the way that would have helped someone like my younger self before I started.

These are the points covered in this blog post:

Why I chose to take a Masters in ECE?
Program structure of ECE-CEG Masters
Reviews of courses that left me the greatest impression.
Profile and working with other students
General Feedback to professors to accommodate part-time students
When or should a Singaporean take an NUS coursework engineering master degree?
Conclusion

Birthday 2021: Year in Review and going forward

Sun, 05 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0000

So another year has passed for me. It really didn’t feel that long ago that my previous birthday just passed. As many older people have told me, once you hit your 30s, one does not bother counting their ages any more. I can concur with this.

I think it’s more important to measure things now by what was done and learned and my goals going forward rather than just counting numbers.

Learnings from preparing a wake

Sun, 18 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0000

My grandmother who lives with me and my family passed away at home recently. In the ensuing days, my family and myself went through a wake process that took a few days but felt like many months of work went by.

This was not my first time attending or helping out in a wake, but it was the first one that I was heavily involved in since the departed involved a close family member in my home.

Although no one likes to go through wakes especially one from your own family, there are several points to learn from so it can lessen the burden for the subsequent one. In hindsight, I would say my family did quite well in this aspect but of course there are still extra learning points.

Stock take for my last birthday in my 20s

Thu, 05 Sep 2019 00:00:00 +0000

Today marks the last year of my 20s. My true age has always surprised people whom I just met. Yeah, I’m actually not that young already. So stock take for what was an amazing year for me!

Conference Emcee Experience: GopherconSG 2019

Sun, 05 May 2019 00:00:00 +0000

If you asked me 2 months ago whether I would be a conference emcee, the answer would be a clear no. But here 2 months later, I managed to pull off being the conference emcee at GopherconSG 2019.

Making the initial welcome address to the audience before passing over to the Conference Chairperson Sau Sheong.

I became a Private Pilot and this is my story: Part (2-2) in San Diego

Sat, 16 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +0000

This post continues from Part 1 of my Private Pilot training journey. This part details the flying portion I did in San Diego, USA. It’s divided into the following sections:

I became a Private Pilot and this is my story: Part (1-2) in Singapore

Fri, 15 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +0000

I finally got my Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Private Pilot Certificate or Private Pilot License (PPL)! It seems so surreal, but I can actually fly a plane with my family and friends. This journey was almost a year in the making which I made immense sacrifices in time, money and much more.

With my San Diego Flying Training International (SDFTI) instructors Charles and Luke on the Cessna 172R (N2441E) which I did my first lesson, solo and checkride on.

With my training buddy Davinder

Capt Kumeran from Flightschool.SG who gave me foundation training in the Redbird MCX simulator.

My journey is so long that I have to break it into 2 different blog posts:

Part 1: Preparation in Singapore
Part 2: Practical training at San Diego
- Arrival in San Diego
- Waiting for TSA clearance
- Exploring Montgomery
- Stage 1: Train for Solo
- Stage 2: Train for Cross-Country Solo
- Stage 3: Prepare for Check ride
- Final Checkride
- Conclusion
- What’s next

Reflections after 2 weeks of PPL Training in the US

Sat, 01 Dec 2018 00:00:00 +0000

2 weeks ago, I put my life on hold in Singapore to come over to the birthplace of aviation to achieve a life-long dream to fly a plane.

As expected, learning to fly a plane is nowhere near as simple as just taking up car driving lessons for example. Behind the videos I have posted on social media so far of my practical lessons, hides the countless hours of mundane but very important theory lessons I have to attend.

In just 2 weeks, I feel like a lifetime has just passed with the daily information overload I face. I have to absorb how every single system works in the Cessna 172, from fuel, pumps, electrical, engine, control surfaces, instruments, specifications, you name it I have to be able to recite from memory.

My First Conference Emcee Experience

Sun, 19 Nov 2017 00:00:00 +0000

Yay, conference emcee achievement unlocked! Just completed my solo emcee role at GeekcampSG 2017!

With this I have completed the double trifecta of doing the roles of emcee, speaker and Engineers.SG recorder at both tech conferences and meetups.

Preparation for this role was quite a long time coming for me. I volunteered to be the Hackware meetup emcee for about 6 times to prepare for this. Even then, no amount of practice in small evening meetups can equal to emceeing for a conference 10 times the number of people that lasts the whole day.

Mandatory proof of doing the role.

Other than the sheer numbers and the usual task of introducing speakers, a conference emcee has extra challenges that I felt first-hand. But let me first mention the good stuff of being a conference emcee.

X commandments before finding a tech-cofounder/engineer

Wed, 08 Nov 2017 00:00:00 +0000

I’ve been approached several times by many people looking for tech-cofounders or engineers to help build a product based on an idea they had. After getting so many of them over the years, I decided to write this list of pointers based on the advice I have given to those who approached me.

So here are my X commandments you should do, think about or have an answer to before looking for that tech person:

First Flight Experience in a light plane (Socata TB10)

Fri, 15 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0000

The first time I stepped on an airplane, I was 10 and was going to Australia with my family for a holiday. From then on, I always wondered what it was like to one day be the person flying the plane instead of being a passenger. Due to several decisions which I regret today like not joining the Youth Flying Club when I was younger, I never got the chance to do.

So when my friend Joyce told me her private pilot friend Roger will be going up to the skies with his plane, I jumped at the opportunity! It is not everyday that one will see a pilot controlling the very aircraft you are on and speaking to the air traffic controller in real time.

This is the plane, a Socata Tobago (TB) 10 co-owned by Roger. French-built, 13 years old and Malaysian registered (9M-prefix). It is operated under the Johor Flying Club at Senai Airport.

The actors in the show from left, me, Joyce and Roger.

CV of Failures

Mon, 19 Jun 2017 00:00:00 +0000

I recently chanced upon the concept of CV of Failures from Princeton Professor Johannes Haushofer. He wasn’t the first to do so but I guess the first that actually popularised it. Inspired by his example, I decided to write the following post. After all, it is not just success that defines us but the failures as well.

I’m obviously not as academically-credentialed as this Princeton Prof so I’ll put up key events that happened in my life in both school and outside.

For obvious reasons, this will be an evergreen post that will be constantly updated.

Pulau Semakau trip

Sun, 21 Feb 2016 00:00:00 +0000

It is not everyday that one is like a tourist in our own country. I went on a trip with my fellow Repair Kopitiam coaches and others for a practically once-in-a-lifetime experience to Pulau Semakau, an island located 8km south of the mainland. It is affectionately known as a landfill island, where our incinerated trash gets sent.

Who would have known the cleanest public area in Singapore is the landfill itself!!! What a revelation! Our guide boasted that there are no cockroaches and other pests cos there is nothing left for them to consume. I also learned that the landfill island is actually a reclaimed combination of the original Pulau Semakau and Pulau Sakeng.

Costing some SG$600 million to reclaim and build in 1990s dollars, it is probably one of the most expensive projects undertaken by the government that are outside of the public eye and concern.

A view of the outside of the main administration building and the bus that will take us on the tour.

Recap of 2015 and plans for 2016

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 00:00:00 +0000

2015 has ended and 2016 has just begun, so a new first post of 2016 to mark this moment.

2015 recap

In short, I felt 2015 was the greatest transitory year I have been. In some ways, this post is very similar to what I have written just half year ago after I graduated to summarise my Uni life.

Graduation, Uni story arcs and thanks

Sun, 26 Jul 2015 00:00:00 +0000

(Long post warning: 2.5k words)

This post is 2 weeks late as I was rather busy during this period. Anyways, as this will be the last post I will have about Uni life, thought would like to thank a few key people and describe the 5 story arcs that has greatly defined my time in Uni.

The mandatory first picture is of course this one lah.

Just collect the dummy scroll simply with no fuss. Unlike the few from the Information Systems Department who pulled selfies on the stage.

Test driving an electric car (Mitsubishi i-MiEV)

Wed, 20 May 2015 00:00:00 +0000

In case the title confuses you, I’m not buying an electric car or any car for that matter anytime soon given the crazy car prices in Singapore. You can’t even buy an electric car here.

Nevertheless, when I saw this pure-electric Mitsubishi i-MiEV roaming around Plugin@Blk 71, I could not resist asking for the opportunity to drive one of the handful of electric cars in Singapore.

My thoughts on Lee Kuan Yew’s passing

Tue, 24 Mar 2015 00:00:00 +0000

We all know our first Prime Minster Lee Kuan Yew (LKY) passed away yesterday morning. People have expressed their condolences both online in social media and offline on the streets and condolence sites.

Many of my friends have changed their profile photos and shared blog posts and news commentaries. I could have easily done so, changing my profile picture or sharing something someone else has written is just as simple as a click away but I thought I should do more and write a blog post for reflection, hopes and personal record. This will definitely be much more mature than what I wrote for J. B. Jeyaretnam some 6 years ago.

My (brutally) honest 24th birthday reflections

Fri, 05 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Thanks to all the birthday well-wishes both online and offline! Also special thanks to some of the YRS folks who spontaneously decided to sing the birthday song for me just less than 3 hours ago.

I had actually taken a little time to reflect now that I’m nearing a quarter century old. This will be my last birthday in an academic environment. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, I will be in the working world when I hit the quarter century milestone. Things will never be the same again as this birthday.