12 Aug 2023
Why should one pursue a career in defence tech?
To find out, close to 180 young technologists and their guests attended the DSTA Scholarship Tea session on 12 August 2023, and gained a firmer grasp of the exciting opportunities available through the DSTA Scholarship.
Speaking to the audience, DSTA’s Chief Executive Mervyn Tan, DSO National Laboratories’ Chief Executive Officer Cheong Chee Ho and Centre for Strategic Infocomm Technologies (CSIT) Chief Executive Darren Teo, shed light on the various responsibilities within the Defence Science & Technology (DS&T) sector, and how it leverages science and technology to provide a qualitative edge to the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). They also highlighted the ways in which a career with these organisations can positively impact individuals’ growth, both professionally and personally.
Chief Executive (CE) Mervyn Tan gave an overview of DSTA and the various career paths the organisation offers.
This was followed by a sharing by DSTA Scholars presently employed at DSTA, DSO and CSIT, where participants learnt more on the scholarship journey, found out more about the culture and work environment of each organisation, and received valuable career tips.
When asked about his greatest takeaway from the scholarship programme, Senior Engineer (Cybersecurity) Nicky Lim recalled how his internship with DSTA led him towards a career that he wanted.
“My internship experience played a crucial role in shaping my career as I discovered a place where I truly want to work and dedicate my professional journey. Hence, I highly encourage pursing an internship with us to connect with like-minded individuals and work on exciting defence projects,” he said.
Senior Engineer (Cybersecurity) Nicky Lim (second from left) was among the DSTA Scholars sharing their experiences.
Later on, an informal Q&A session took place with Senior Management from DSTA, DSO and CSIT, where they took on questions from participants who were keen to find out more about the DS&T sector.
From left: Q&A session with DSTA CE Mervyn Tan, DSO CEO Cheong Chee Ho, and CSIT CE Darren Teo.
Wrapping up the event, the participants were invited to tour the exhibits set up by working engineers and technologists from DSTA, DSO and CSIT and interacted with the professionals to know more about the variety of defence projects being undertaken. These projects ranged from artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, software development and technologies aimed at transforming the training experience within the SAF.
Defence Engineers and Technologists shared more about their work experiences and the technologies they work on with the participants.
The DSTA Scholarship Tea Session was well received by the participants. James Martin from Jurong Pioneer Junior College said: “After going through the session, I became more interested in the field of defence technology and would recommend anyone who is passionate in science and technology to apply for the DSTA Scholarship.”
“It was fun interacting with the engineers and learning about the different technologies that were used in defence,” shared Alyssa Ng from National Junior College.
“I want to pursue the DSTA Scholarship because I can explore roles in DSTA, DSO and CSIT, thus allowing me to expand my knowledge in the field of defence technology and figure out what is the best for me,” said Shanay Jindul from NUS High School of Mathematics and Science.
Curious about a career in the DS&T sector? Learn more about the DSTA Scholarship here.