EVENTS & OTHER HAPPENINGS
Upcoming: CDE e-Open House and Open House 2025
This year's Open House, themed "Shape Your Future," encompasses the university's key message: NUS empowers students to shape their own future by supporting their holistic growth beyond academic excellence and career success.
At the e-Open House this Sunday, 2 March, learn about the CDE undergraduate curriculum, majors, second majors, minors, and scholarships. Hear from our CDE students on their journeys so far, and explore the campus' art labs and facilities through our CDE Virtual Tours.
NUS Open House will take place on Saturday, March 8, where faculty and staff will be available at uTown to answer any questions from prospective students. Specially curated CDE projects will be displayed at the uTown Innovation & Impact Hub NUS120. Additionally, the CDE Robotics Fair will take place in the atrium of the CDE EA building, showcasing innovative projects that push the boundaries of human-robot collaboration. Take advantage of this opportunity to explore CDE in person by participating in our campus tours.
Find out more and watch out for what's to come at our Admissions 2025 microsite: https://cde.nus.edu.sg/admissions25
Orientation for CDE Graduate Programmes
The lecture theatre was buzzing with excitement during the CDE Graduate Programmes Orientation for January 2025, marking the beginning of an extraordinary journey for our newest cohort of graduate students.
Associate Professor Kah-Hin Chai, Vice Dean of Graduate Programmes, set the stage by emphasising how this journey combines academic excellence with personal growth at one of the world’s top universities. This holistic approach to graduate education was further elaborated by Mr Jerrell Kwan from the Office of Student Life (OSL). He introduced the various facilities and upcoming activities, like wellness hikes and candle-making workshops, designed to help students maintain work-life balance throughout their studies.
Mr Kevin Leung, Programme Director of NUS Graduate Research Innovation Programme (GRIP), shared how they help graduate researchers transform laboratory innovations into market-ready solutions, further supporting students in maximising their journey’s impact.
When interviewed, many students shared that their paths began long before orientation day. Kamod Gayashan’s path to a PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering started at a conference in Sri Lanka, where he met his future supervisor. Wang Jiajia’s (MSc in Materials Science and Engineering) inspiration came from her teacher’s own NUS experience, while He Chun (MSc in Safety, Health and Environment Technology) was influenced by a former classmate’s strong recommendation. Varun Kumar (MSc in Materials Science and Engineering) was drawn by NUS’ reputation for cutting-edge research in emerging materials.
These diverse pathways now converge at NUS, where each student has exciting plans for their paths ahead. Kamod aims to advance sustainable pavement materials research within the circular economy, promoting eco-friendly infrastructure in his home country. Jiajia looks forward to utilising advanced facilities while joining hiking clubs. He Chun plans to explore NUS’ Central Library while balancing studies with wellness activities. Varun hopes to collaborate with professors on soft materials and robotics research.
Learn about CDE’s graduate coursework programmes here.
Department of Architecture's MUP x MAUD Planning Futures 2025
The Master of Urban Planning (MUP) and Master of Arts in Urban Design (MAUD) programmes from the Department of Architecture collaborated for the second time to host the Planning Futures event on 21 January 2025 at the SDE4 Open Plaza. This initiative showcases their ongoing commitment to bridging the gap between academia and practice, providing students with valuable insights into the job market and opportunities for internships and employment. Students' recent projects were displayed in the MUP Design Studio on Level 6 of SDE4.
Click here to learn more about students' internship experiences in Singapore and Beijing, as well as recent graduates sharing their career journeys post-graduation with firms like Morrow Architects & Planners and Coen Design International.
CEE 70th Anniversary Logo Launch: A Milestone Celebration
The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) kicked off its 70th Anniversary with a logo launch event that embodied the spirit of community and collaboration on 10 February 2025. Over 150 participants, including staff, students, distinguished alumni and esteemed guests, gathered in a celebration of community and innovation.
Professor Richard Liew, Head of Department at CEE, highlighted CEE's legacy and remarkable alumni achievements, such as those of Professor Liew Mun Leong. A pioneer from the first graduating batch of 1970 from the University of Singapore, his contributions to the development of the Singapore Changi Airport inspire all engineers.
The event also saw the unveiling of the CEE 70th Anniversary Logo by Professor Teo Kie Leong, Dean of CDE, and Prof Liew. Designed by alumna Ms Trang Tran (Engineering, '17), the logo was selected as the winning design among 40 entries. The event also celebrated the generousity of early donors to the College of Design and Engineering Bursary and their invaluable support and commitment to nurturing future talent.
The festivities wrapped up with a lively lo hei ceremony where everyone gathered to usher in a year of prosperity and togetherness. The logo launch marked the beginning of a year-long celebration as the community at CEE looks ahead to commemorate seven decades of milestones and impact.
Singapore Space Symposium 2025
“Space plays an increasingly critical role in addressing the challenges facing the world.”
On 25 February, CDE, through the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, played host to the 7th Singapore Space Symposium (SSS), opening with a keynote address from Adj Prof Quek Gim Pew (Electrical and Computer Engineering), Deputy Chairman of the Office for Space Technology & Industry Singapore (OSTIn).
The Symposium drew more than 400 attendees, including representatives from 25 countries. Participants exchanged knowledge on space applications and explored opportunities for collaboration on the theme of “Frontiers of Space Technologies.”
“Space has never been more central to our life,” said Adj Prof Quek, noting that as a maritime, aviation, logistics and financial hub, “Singapore’s economy is heavily dependent on space-based connectivity.”
In addition, given its geographic situation, he said that Singapore has a “deep interest in the use of space to understand the disruptions that climate change can create”.
The day-long symposium featured more than 20 presentations from the local and international community on four critical themes: Earth observation for sustainability, unlocking very low Earth orbit (VLEO) and resilient satellites, next-generation satellite communications, and innovations in artificial intelligence for space autonomy. The afternoon featured a panel discussion on opportunities and challenges in Artificial Intelligence and machine learning for satellite applications.
Among those attending the symposium were undergraduate students from the Galassia-5 satellite project, under the Innovation and Design Programme. The team presented their work on a new satellite, projected for launch in 2026, equipped with technology for on-orbit, AI-based Earth observation image processing.
Also at the symposium were researchers from the Satellite Technology and Research (STAR) Centre hosted at ECE, with an exhibition booth showcasing their work on the next-generation Lumelite-5 microsatellite.
SONDRA Student Challenge 2025
"Today's event was both insightful and engaging. It was inspiring to see everyone's ideas and hard work come to life. Our team was thrilled to showcase our product and share our vision with various stakeholders," said M Vrinda, one of the student participants of the CentraleSupelec ONERA NUS DSO Research Alliance (SONDRA) Student Challenge. Held on 26 February 2025 at the EA Foyer, the finals of the SONDRA Student Challenge concluded with incredible success. The makeathon, which began in October 2024, challenged 10 teams to apply Edge-AI and Software-Defined Radios (SDRs) to urban RF sensing applications.
The teams showcased innovative projects such as drone detection, AI-powered lane guidance, cognitive radios for interference detection, and smart crowd detection. These cutting-edge solutions highlighted the potential of Edge-AI and Software-Defined Radios (SDRs) in addressing urban challenges.
The winning team earned a one-week sponsored trip to attend the 6th SONDRA workshop in La Grande Motte, France, where they would have the opportunity to network with academics, researchers, engineers, and PhD students from French and European research institutes.
"My fellow judges and I were amazed by the ingenuity and resourcefulness of the students who took part in the SONDRA Challenge! In a short span of time, the students transformed their ideas into prototypes that demonstrated the use of Edge-AI for this challenging urban problem set. I looked forward to seeing the winning team at the SONDRA workshop, where they would share their project with the SONDRA community," said Dr Yap Han Lun, co-Director of SONDRA.
Congratulations to the winning team and all participants for their hard work and creativity!
HIGHLIGHTS
UPCOMING AND ONGOING EVENTS!
