5 May 2025 : As Singapore Management University (SMU) celebrates its 25th anniversary, it also marks a transformative shift in how universities can prepare students for a skills-first economy. Held at the Mochtar Riady Auditorium on 15 April, the SMU Co-Curricular Symposium 2025 gathered over 280 students, educators, and industry leaders under the theme Nurturing Holistic & Career-Ready Scholars. This milestone event set the stage for the official rollout of two landmark initiatives — the Co-Curricular Transcript (CCT) and Lifelong Career Support for Alumni. The Guest-of-Honour was Minister for Education, Mr Chan Chun Sing.
Launching a First-in-Singapore Transcript
At the heart of the event was the announcement that the graduating Class of 2025 will be the first cohort in Singapore to receive the Co-Curricular Transcript, a formal record that documents each student’s growth across leadership roles, service, internships, and student life.
Developed over several years through a design thinking process, the CCT complements academic transcripts and is underpinned by the Integrated Co-Curricular Management System (ICMS) — an online platform where students track reflections, receive mentor feedback, and earn digital badges mapped to SMU’s Graduate Learning Outcomes.
“As a graduating student about to step into the fast-changing workforce, the Co-Curricular Transcript allows me to showcase my soft skills in leadership roles, community involvement and real-world skills,” shared Timothy Lua, from the School of Computing and Information Systems. “It provides potential employers with a holistic view of who we are beyond our academic achievements.”
The CCT breaks down student development into three progressive levels: Exposure, Integration, and Transformation. Each level highlights how far a student has gone in applying their skills to real-world settings — a key differentiator in an increasingly competitive job market.
“The Co-Curricular Transcript allows SMU students to stand out in interviews by illustrating the core skills we've developed in our university life from day one,” Timothy added.
A Skills-First Vision for the Future
Guest-of-Honour, Minister for Education Mr Chan Chun Sing, delivered an energising keynote, reiterating the need for deeper, values-driven development beyond traditional metrics.
Commenting on the Co-Curricular Transcript, Minister Chan said, “In its rightful spirit, (this) is for our people to better understand our strengths and weaknesses, and to know how to use those strengths to make a positive contribution to society,”
“It is about finding and understanding ourselves, and using what we have to make a meaningful contribution.”
Minister Chan went on to outline 4Cs — Curiosity, Connection, Creation, and Contribution—essential attributes that he hopes to see in our students as they navigate an evolving world. He encouraged students to remain curious, build meaningful relationships, create new value propositions and make positive contributions to society.
Building Career Resilience for Life
Complementing the CCT is SMU’s announcement of Lifelong Career Support for all alumni, launching officially on 1 May 2025 — fittingly, Labour Day. With career transitions becoming the norm, this initiative positions SMU as the first university in Singapore to institutionalise structured career services for graduates at any stage.
Run by SMU’s Dato’ Kho Hui Meng Career Centre (DKHMCC), SMU alumni — whether fresh graduates or mid-career professionals — will enjoy annual career coaching by certified coaches, access to SMU’s exclusive Alumni Job Board, opportunities to join industry networking events and mentorship programmes, and ongoing insights on career transitions and upskilling pathways.
For Richie Sison, an SMU MBA graduate (2021, Philippines), career coaching was pivotal in transitioning from finance to supply chain and operations. “SMU Career Services has been instrumental in helping me pivot from finance industry to supply chain and operations. The advice and support from the coach has enabled me to land a role as a Supply Chain Manager at Amazon Singapore, which later opened doors for me to move to Uber Eats in Taiwan as an Operations Manager. The launch of life-long career coaching for alumni will be invaluable as we navigate through new career opportunities throughout our lives.”
Nathaniel Tan, an SMU Master of Science in Applied Finance (2023, Singapore) graduate, credits SMU’s career support for helping him break into the finance sector. “SMU’s personalised coaching, hands-on workshops, and strong industry connections gave me the confidence and skills to make the shift. Even as an alumnus, I continue to benefit from their advice and resources. This commitment to lifelong career support is invaluable for any graduate looking to grow in their career.”
From Concept to Community: Voices from the Panel
The event featured a rich panel discussion on Nurturing Future-Ready Learners moderated by SMU Provost Professor Alan Chan and featuring Elsie Ng, Head of Talent Development – Singapore, LinkedIn, Dr Michael Preston, AVP for Student Success, Texas State University, and Nicholas Nash, Managing Partner and Co-Founder, Asia Partners.
Each panelist brought a unique lens to the conversation. Ms Elsie Ng spotlighted LinkedIn’s data showing that 73% of recruiters now prioritise skills over degrees, urging students to confidently articulate their personal narratives.
“Your transcript tells part of your story — but how you frame your journey, your leadership, and the impact you’ve created, that’s what resonates with employers. SMU’s Co-Curricular Transcript gives you the language and structure to do that with confidence,” she said, while also noting that hiring today is increasingly about potential and adaptability, not just past achievements.
Dr Michael Preston, U.S.-based higher education leader, offered a global perspective on student success. He emphasised the need to build systems that serve students throughout their evolving careers:
“Universities need to stop thinking in four-year cycles. What matters is whether graduates are thriving five, ten, twenty years out — and that means designing learning environments that cultivate lifelong learners,” he said, at the same time, praising SMU’s decision to institutionalise reflective practice and co-curricular visibility, calling it “a model that more universities should study.”
Nicholas Nash, investor and entrepreneur, encouraged students to embrace uncertainty and rethink traditional career metrics:
“The most successful people I know didn’t follow a straight line. What made the difference was the ability to create value — again and again — in different contexts. That starts with understanding your own superpower and knowing how to build teams that complement it,” he said, emphasising the importance of “entrepreneurial thinking,” not just for founders, but for every future-ready leader:
“It’s not about starting a business — it’s about approaching every opportunity with curiosity, urgency, and purpose.”
Knowledge in Action: Symposium Masterclasses
Earlier in the day, two interactive masterclasses engaged participants in deeper exploration of co-curricular innovation.
The first, “From Experiential to Transformative: Assessing & Documenting Learning from Co-Curricular & Student Employment Experiences”, led by Dr Michael Preston and Alvin Sim from SMU’s Co-Curriculum Development team, walked educators through case studies and approaches that allow student engagement in co-curricular and student employment activities to be meaningfully measured and documented.
The second, “Curating Impactful Co-Curricular and Community Service Experiences for Transformative Holistic Student Development and Career Readiness”, by the SMU Centre for Social Responsibility and Office of Student Life focused on sharing practical tools to design impactful beyond-the-classroom programmes that empower students to develop essential career & life skills. Both sessions were well received by attendees from across local institutions.
A Quarter-Century of Transformation
Since its founding in 2000, SMU has pioneered efforts to integrate real-world learning into formal education. From requiring 80 hours of community service and 10-week internships, to expanding student club engagement and launching overseas immersion experiences — SMU has consistently positioned its graduates for success.
“The CCT represents the next step in a long-standing commitment to holistic education,” said Professor Alan Chan. “It gives students a language to articulate their development, and a structured way to stand out in a world where skills, not just scores, increasingly matter.”
The Symposium also spotlighted SMU’s design thinking journey that led to the CCT’s development, rooted in empathy-driven research involving students, educators, and employers. This process helped surface a common gap: critical core skills, though highly valued, remained largely invisible on traditional transcripts.
With the Co-Curricular Transcript and Lifelong Career Support, SMU is not just responding to the needs of today — it is shaping the roadmap for what a future-ready university must look like.
