Lim Kok Kiang (Ngee Ann Polytechnic) with Minister Chan Chun Sing (Ministry for Education) and NP’s industry partners.
Singapore’s Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) has signed partnerships with Darktrace and Amazon Web Services (AWS) to equip students with industry-driven skill sets and competencies.
It has launched a new ‘industry-in-curriculum’ framework that will see all diplomas have one-third of their curriculums co-developed and co-assessed by industry partners by 2024.
Cyber security firm Darktrace will participate in the new framework and intends to incorporate industry-relevant modules through projects, knowledge exchanges, as well as the integration of emerging technologies in a bid to create practical learning opportunities.
NP signed a three-year collaboration with cloud provider AWS to offer a new cloud computing specialisation program to 500 eligible students.
“While polytechnic courses have always incorporated industry-learning elements, our concerted efforts in redefining our curriculum framework with the support of industry partners will make industry pervasive in curriculum, taking real-world learning to the next level,” said Lim Kok Kiang, principal and CEO of NP.
“By placing industry at the core of the curriculum, lesson content and learning activities are designed, delivered, and assessed to address industry needs and trends. This helps to close the gap between academia and industry, hence strengthening the industry-readiness of our students.”
Darktrace partnership
Principally, Darktrace will collaborate with NP to curate programs that focus on using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to manage cyber attacks.
Students will attend masterclasses delivered by Darktrace experts, learn from real-life use cases through a curriculum that Darktrace has advised on, as well as attain industry-recognised certification.
“We are proud to support the next generation of talent in Singapore by providing NP with industry expertise,” said Germaine Tan, vice president of Cyber Risk Management at Darktrace.
“By taking insights gleaned from our ongoing collaborations with customers in an ever-changing cyber landscape, our experts impart valuable advice on the AI skills required for students to embark on successful careers in the future.
“As part of this partnership, students will learn to use AI to identify real-time threats, participate in discussions about industry challenges and insights, and better understand the role of a cybersecurity professional.”
AWS collaboration agreement
Meanwhile, NP signed a memorandum of understanding with AWS to offer more than 500 students from its School of InfoComm Technology (ICT) access to AWS training and certification programs to pursue industry-recognised certifications for three years from 2023 to 2025.
In addition, NP will launch a new cloud computing specialisation that will equip students with courses like a diploma in information technology, a diploma in cybersecurity & digital forensics, and a diploma in data science with in-demand cloud computing skills, data science, and cloud-native technologies.
As part of this specialisation, 180 ICT students will get to pursue foundational- and associate-level industry certifications through AWS Academy, including the AWS certified cloud practitioner and aws certified solutions architect associate, and have access to the online learning centre AWS Skill Builder.
The collaboration includes a one-year internship programme with AWS, which is open to all final-year ICT students. NP will also explore working with AWS to establish work-study programmes aimed at developing more local cloud talent.
“AWS is proud to support Singapore tertiary institutions like Ngee Ann Polytechnic to inspire students to learn about cloud and certify them for in-demand cloud careers,” said Elsie Tan, country manager of Worldwide Public Sector Singapore at AWS.
“The AWS-NP collaboration signifies a tighter interlock between industry and academia to achieve the shared mission of nurturing Singapore’s next-generation cloud talent.”
