[10 July 2004]
SMU Celebrates the Graduation of its Pioneer Class

All of 2003 early graduates and two-thirds of May graduates have successfully secured employment

Singapore Management University ( SMU ) is pleased to announce the graduation of its pioneer batch of students and the university observed the start of the graduates' journey into working life at the Commencement Ceremony held today.

Admitted in 2000, these 309 students have successfully completed their four-year Bachelor's degree courses including 21 who graduated with double-degrees (Bachelor of Business Management and Bachelor of Accountancy or Bachelor of Business Management and Bachelor of Science (Economics) . The ceremony also marked the graduation of 41 students who completed their Masters in Applied Finance.

Dr Tony Tan, Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Security and Defence was the ceremony's Guest of Honour. Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Acting Minister for Education, also graced the event.

“From conception, SMU was designed to provide a different model of university education in Singapore . From this starting point emerged a confluence of factors that make SMU special. The establishment of SMU has also created a positive effect, injecting a dose of competition to business education in Singapore and sparking innovation in the local business schools” said Dr Tony Tan, Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Security and Defence.

“SMU enjoys flexibility in choosing students using broader selection criteria to evaluate the whole person rather than just examination results. Indeed, it can be said that the reason why SMU students are ‘different' is that the very process of attracting and selecting them is ‘different'. I am encouraged by the feedback I have received about SMU students who are described as being articulate, confident and dynamic” commented Dr Tony Tan.

Prof Ronald Frank, President, SMU added, “I've seen SMU push the envelope in many ways. We have the mandate to independently develop our approach to university governance, faculty recruitment, curriculum development and student admission. SMU has shown tremendous results with this latitude, especially through the pioneer cohort. Not only do they reflect the early success of our education approach, they have also contributed greatly towards shaping SMU into what it is today.”

Armed with a good grounding on business and entrepreneurship, creativeness and self-confidence, SMU graduates are increasingly sought after by employers, large and small, local and foreign. All of the students who accelerated their course work and graduated in the second half of 2003 have secured employment while more than 60% of the students who graduated in May this year secured employment before, or within one month of, graduating. More than 50% of all the graduates will be working in the banking/finance sectors and the remaining students have secured employment with GLCs and companies in various sectors such as consultancy and services.

"HSBC is delighted to be able to provide career opportunities for the inaugural batch of graduates from the Singapore Management University . In line with our focus and strategy to attract the best people, we have designed our Management Development Program to identify and groom dynamic and well-rounded individuals with core capabilities for future senior management roles in HSBC. We look for leadership qualities, commitment and drive as well as the ability to work with others in the people we recruit” said Mr Michael Lim, Head, Human Resource s, HSBC Singapore.

“A Business Management and Accountancy graduate, Lim Kong Wee has been selected as one of our Management Associates. He has demonstrated these qualities during the rigorous and stringent selection process. His enthusiasm, determination to succeed, balanced outlook and sincerity differentiated him from the more than 1000 applicants” added Mr Michael Lim.

Lim Kong Wee, who completed a double degree programme in business and accountancy was named valedictorian. Besides his outstanding academic achievements, Kong Wee has been actively involved in various school and community service projects.

Commenting on his experience at SMU , Kong Wee said, “ SMU has provided me with an extraordinary experience that extended well beyond the simple pursuit of a degree. In these four years, not only have I come to appreciate the responsibilities of a leader, but also the value of independent thinking, confidence and team work in real-world business-making. As the pioneer batch of students, our decision to pursue a degree at SMU was regarded by some as a move into unchartered territory and I am proud to say that it was a smart move forward!