From 0% attendance to 4.0 GPA: How this ITE graduate overcame adversity and topped his class
From 0% attendance to 4.0 GPA: How this ITE graduate overcame adversity and topped his class
At just 15 years old, Moses Hee lost his father - along with his motivation to engage with the world around him.
He spiralled into a dark period of isolation and had a near-complete withdrawal from school.
Now 21, Moses has not only graduated at the top of his class at the School of Electronics and Info-Comm Technology at Institute of Technological Education (ITE) College East, but also clinched prestigious awards and made his mark in sustainability competitions.
Moses receiving the Lee Kuan Yew Model Student Award. PHOTO: ITE
Moses' struggles began at the age of 12, when kidney failure and dementia slowly deteriorated his father's health.
This took an emotional toll on him, and by Secondary 3, following his father's passing, Moses had lost all motivation to study or even to leave his house.
"I completely shut down and shut myself in," he shared with Stomp. "I didn't dare to go out and socialise; I didn't even dare to try. I didn't feel a passion or drive for anything."
Unable to cope with his academics, Moses made the decision to transfer from the Express stream to the Normal (Academic) stream.
Even then, attending school remained a challenge. He recalls barely showing up from Secondary 3 to Secondary 4, and having an attendance rate of zero per cent.
He said: "The pressure of socialising and doing well in studies, it really got to me. At that point in time, I thought the best solution for myself was to lock myself in my room and do nothing."
Everything changed when Moses enrolled in the Nitec in Web Applications course at ITE College East.
"After my first semester, once I got my first grade back, I realised that such a good opportunity was given to me to really try and make a difference for myself, so why am I not taking it?"
This shift in his mindset allowed him to find a renewed sense of purpose and a support system that he needed.
"The stress and pressure that comes with school in general still gets to me, and I'm sure it gets to others too. So it's important to have a strong support system, whether it be through friends or lecturers.
"My form teacher would meet us after competitions and buy us meals sometimes just to tell us that we were doing a good job, and to keep up the good work. It's the small things like that which really made a difference for me."
At ITE, Moses discovered a passion for sustainability. He was involved in campus-wide green initiatives, and participated in multiple competitions focused on zero-waste solutions.
Moses with his teammates Celeste Ang, and Horatius Tay Choon Yew. PHOTO: ITE GREEN AMBASSADOR AWARD 2023
For the International Exhibition for Young Investors 2023, Moses and his team developed a biodigester system that used flies to break down food waste in a self-contained ecosystem. This project earned them a Silver Medal out of 145 entries.
In the Climate Change Zero Waste Competition 2023, he created a high fidelity prototype app aimed at reducing household food waste.
On campus, Moses was involved in a recycling initiative dubbed the Bloobox Initiative. He was recognised for his environmental advocacy, and received a Silver Medal at the ITE Green Ambassador Awards 2023.
"I had a lot of commitments and juggled them with school responsibilities. I think eventually this built good character and also improved my time management skills, which is something that everyone should eventually have."
Despite the rocky start to his academic journey, Moses graduated from ITE College East with a perfect GPA of 4.0. On May 22, he was honoured with the Lee Kuan Yew Model Student Award, which recognises students who demonstrate both academic excellence and exemplary character.
When asked about his dreams and aspirations, he told Stomp: "I've always wanted to try to 'break out' of the system and become my own boss, as I've always been in leadership positions for competitions. I eventually want to bring that into the real world."
Moses is now pursuing a diploma in Information Technology at Temasek Polytechnic, with hopes to further his studies in computing at the National University of Singapore.
Click here to contribute a story or submit it to our WhatsApp
Get more of Stomp's latest updates by following us on:
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
7 days ago
- Straits Times
After things unravelled at home, she went into survival mode, he made space for others
Ms Ryka Putri Eva Sabrinna Sabtu is the recipient of the Lee Kuan Yew Model Student Award for her outstanding academic performance and conduct. PHOTO: ITE After things unravelled at home, she went into survival mode, he made space for others The TL;DR: ITE graduates Ryka Putri Eva Sabrinna Sabtu and Damien Koh Wen Hao pushed through adversity to excel, each earning this year's Lee Kuan Yew Model Student Award. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. That's what two ITE students did when individually facing challenging family circumstances. At 18, Ms Ryka Putri Eva Sabrinna Sabtu was taking her first examinations at Institute of Technological Education (ITE) College Central when her parents kicked her out of her home after her estrangement from her parents came to a head. With the support of her lecturers, Ms Ryka rented a room and applied for financial aid, which helped to cover her school fees and meals. To pay for other living expenses, she worked 40 hours every week on top of her lessons – serving food, giving out flyers and cleaning toilets. The 20-year-old graduated from her Higher Nitec course in marine and offshore engineering in February 2025 with a grade point average of 3.957. She now dons the black-and-white seafarers' uniform at Singapore Polytechnic's Singapore Maritime Academy, where she is pursuing a diploma in nautical studies. Meanwhile, her schoolmate Damien Koh Wen Hao, 19, graduated at the top of his Higher Nitec in sport management course at ITE College West. Now in Nanyang Polytechnic's common business programme, he started a ground-up initiative in March 2025 with five peers under a youth leadership programme, providing a free, comfortable space for other young people to study and socialise in. This idea was sparked by his experience in primary school, when the breakdown of his parents' marriage meant that home was less than conducive for studying. Ms Ryka and Mr Koh were among nine ITE graduates who received the prestigious Lee Kuan Yew Model Student Award on May 22 for their outstanding academic performance and conduct. Here's how they did it. Mr Damien Koh, a sport management graduate from ITE College West, receiving the Lee Kuan Yew Model Student Award from ITE CEO Low Khah Gek on May 22. ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM 'Work hard, or fall apart' Since Ms Ryka was 16, she had already been expected to pay for her personal expenses. But in October 2023, her relationship with her family broke down, and she was told to leave home. What hit her most as she was moving out was leaving behind 'hundreds' of books as she did not know where to house them. 'That was when I cried,' she said. 'I had a full-blown collection that I used my earnings from part-time work for.' She confided in her lecturer, Ms Li Shuang, about her situation. Within a week, Ms Li found her a rental room that cost $550 a month. With savings from her part-time job and a sum borrowed from her best friend, Ms Ryka was able to pay the deposit, a month's rent and for moving services. After leaving home in December, she took any part-time job she could find to cover her living expenses. During a seven-month stint as a waitress, she worked from 7pm to 3am, then attended lessons from 8am to 5pm the next day on six days a week. Often, she stayed back after school for her commitments as a member of the Community Service Club. On how she got by on four hours of sleep on a regular weekday, she said: 'I think it was the adrenaline of having to pay my rent.' Every aspect of her life had to be tightly calibrated. Missing a train and being late to a job could mean a deduction from her salary, while submitting an assignment late meant her grades would slip. 'My life was like a chain of consequences that I couldn't afford to fumble,' she said. 'It was either work hard or fall apart.' Ms Ryka Putri Eva Sabrinna Sabtu graduated from her Higher Nitec course in marine and offshore engineering this year and is now pursuing a diploma in nautical studies at SP. PHOTO: ITE The tide turned in 2024 when she applied for and received the Keppel Care Foundation Scholarship, which is awarded to students from disadvantaged backgrounds who have excelled academically and demonstrated strong leadership qualities. With the cash award of $9,600 covering her living expenses for that year, she could work fewer hours and focus on her studies. That year, she went on to represent ITE nationally in the prestigious Tan Kah Kee Young Inventors' Award, a competition that encourages youth to develop creative innovations. She won a Commendation Award for designing a modified hanger that prevents clothes from slipping off poles in bad weather. She also took part in contests such as ITE's Student Ideation and Design Competition, where she and her team won first place for designing the best sustainability visitor centre for recycling company MeTech. Being independent from a young age taught her to be her own safety net and cope with her emotional struggles. 'I learnt not to let pain harden me,' she added. After graduation, she dreams of taking the helm as a chief officer on a ship. She hopes that students who face similar hardships will continue working hard to achieve their goals. 'Keep showing up for yourself. Drag your tired body if you have to,' she said. At the same time, she reminds others in similar situations to treat themselves with care. 'The sun doesn't ask for perfection to rise – neither should you.' Paying it forward Mr Koh was near the end of his primary school years when his parents divorced, which meant he often looked after himself and his twin brother while their father was not at home. A self-described 'socially awkward' student in secondary school, he opened up during his time in ITE, thanks to teachers who saw his potential. In 2024, his lecturer encouraged him to join the ITE Student Leaders Forum, where he and his schoolmates developed and proposed projects themed around sustainability and inclusion. The forum kicked off his involvement in a series of community projects. That year, he became the president of ITE College West's student development programme, ACE Club, where he coordinated volunteering projects such as a Rummikub game competition with seniors at Fei Yue Active Ageing Centre in 2024. In March 2025, during his first year at NYP, he co-founded Youthful Thinking, which provides young people a free, conducive environment to study and rest, unlike at cafes where they have to buy at least a drink. The project also aims to offer mentorship and companionship to these youths, and has a recreational space for games and movies. He started this initiative as part of the 10-week Youth Leaders' Collective programme by the National Community Leadership Institute, which aims to equip young people with the skills and know-how to run their own ground-up initiatives. Mr Koh, now a first-year Nanyang Polytechnic common business student, co-founded Youthful Thinking as a conducive environment for youth to study and rest at. ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM From 9pm to 11pm once a week, his team of six – a mix of junior college, polytechnic, and ITE students – met online to draft the proposal that eventually became Youthful Thinking. After pitching to potential partners, they secured a space for one day at Macpherson Community Club, sourced some stationery and furniture donations through a Telegram channel, and made their ideas a reality. They held their first 'Homework Cafe' with five youth on May 25, where they coached students on their homework and bonded with them through games. The team plans to hold these sessions once or twice a month. 'A lot of people say it takes a village to raise a child. In my case, it was the community around me,' Mr Koh said. 'To give back that same energy to help that one kid, who might be going through a tough time, means so much to me.' He hopes other youths who had difficult childhoods realise their potential, and that they are 'much more than their labels'. As for winning the Lee Kuan Yew Model Student Award, he said: 'This success is not my success.' 'This success is for fellow ITE students, and for everyone who has ever felt like they are not good enough.' Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Straits Times
15-06-2025
- Straits Times
From 0% attendance to 4.0 GPA: How this ITE graduate overcame adversity and topped his class
From 0% attendance to 4.0 GPA: How this ITE graduate overcame adversity and topped his class At just 15 years old, Moses Hee lost his father - along with his motivation to engage with the world around him. He spiralled into a dark period of isolation and had a near-complete withdrawal from school. Now 21, Moses has not only graduated at the top of his class at the School of Electronics and Info-Comm Technology at Institute of Technological Education (ITE) College East, but also clinched prestigious awards and made his mark in sustainability competitions. Moses receiving the Lee Kuan Yew Model Student Award. PHOTO: ITE Moses' struggles began at the age of 12, when kidney failure and dementia slowly deteriorated his father's health. This took an emotional toll on him, and by Secondary 3, following his father's passing, Moses had lost all motivation to study or even to leave his house. "I completely shut down and shut myself in," he shared with Stomp. "I didn't dare to go out and socialise; I didn't even dare to try. I didn't feel a passion or drive for anything." Unable to cope with his academics, Moses made the decision to transfer from the Express stream to the Normal (Academic) stream. Even then, attending school remained a challenge. He recalls barely showing up from Secondary 3 to Secondary 4, and having an attendance rate of zero per cent. He said: "The pressure of socialising and doing well in studies, it really got to me. At that point in time, I thought the best solution for myself was to lock myself in my room and do nothing." Everything changed when Moses enrolled in the Nitec in Web Applications course at ITE College East. "After my first semester, once I got my first grade back, I realised that such a good opportunity was given to me to really try and make a difference for myself, so why am I not taking it?" This shift in his mindset allowed him to find a renewed sense of purpose and a support system that he needed. "The stress and pressure that comes with school in general still gets to me, and I'm sure it gets to others too. So it's important to have a strong support system, whether it be through friends or lecturers. "My form teacher would meet us after competitions and buy us meals sometimes just to tell us that we were doing a good job, and to keep up the good work. It's the small things like that which really made a difference for me." At ITE, Moses discovered a passion for sustainability. He was involved in campus-wide green initiatives, and participated in multiple competitions focused on zero-waste solutions. Moses with his teammates Celeste Ang, and Horatius Tay Choon Yew. PHOTO: ITE GREEN AMBASSADOR AWARD 2023 For the International Exhibition for Young Investors 2023, Moses and his team developed a biodigester system that used flies to break down food waste in a self-contained ecosystem. This project earned them a Silver Medal out of 145 entries. In the Climate Change Zero Waste Competition 2023, he created a high fidelity prototype app aimed at reducing household food waste. On campus, Moses was involved in a recycling initiative dubbed the Bloobox Initiative. He was recognised for his environmental advocacy, and received a Silver Medal at the ITE Green Ambassador Awards 2023. "I had a lot of commitments and juggled them with school responsibilities. I think eventually this built good character and also improved my time management skills, which is something that everyone should eventually have." Despite the rocky start to his academic journey, Moses graduated from ITE College East with a perfect GPA of 4.0. On May 22, he was honoured with the Lee Kuan Yew Model Student Award, which recognises students who demonstrate both academic excellence and exemplary character. When asked about his dreams and aspirations, he told Stomp: "I've always wanted to try to 'break out' of the system and become my own boss, as I've always been in leadership positions for competitions. I eventually want to bring that into the real world." Moses is now pursuing a diploma in Information Technology at Temasek Polytechnic, with hopes to further his studies in computing at the National University of Singapore. Click here to contribute a story or submit it to our WhatsApp Get more of Stomp's latest updates by following us on:
Straits Times
08-06-2025
- Straits Times
First batch of polytechnic EAE students graduated five years ago. Where are they now?
Ms Vernice Vee, a pharmacist at Singapore General Hospital, entered Ngee Ann Polytechnic via the early admissions route. ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR SINGAPORE – The polytechnic Early Admissions Exercise (EAE) scheme that started in 2017 has provided an alternative admission pathway for students with strong aptitude and interest in an area. Around 14,500 students from secondary schools and ITE applied for early admission in academic year 2025, and around 6,000 applicants received an offer, an increase from 5,500 the year before. Get the ST Smart Parenting newsletter for expert advice. Visit the microsite for more
