Diamonds forged under pressure: Three inspiring NUS graduates who turned their challenges into hope

One turned the challenge of financial hardship into a drive for intellectual inquiry. Another transformed her experience with hearing loss into a passion for advocacy. A third found her calling in medicine after a family crisis. Now celebrating their Commencement, these Class of 2026 graduates exemplify how resilience and determination can turn setbacks into stepping stones.

Eliza Lim: Broadening her horizons

An innate curiosity has always fuelled Eliza Lim’s intellectual pursuits. While other teenagers might set aside their books after exams, Eliza was poring over a wide range of books after her A-Levels, from cosmology to geriatrics and human psychology.

“I didn’t grow up in a very good environment,” said Eliza, 24, who came from a low-income background. “Studying helped me to feel a sense of control in my life.”

She received financial aid from primary school to junior college and did not have access to private tuition.

She then set her sights on NUS, where she majored in philosophy at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, supported by a bursary.

It was her love for physics that led her to philosophy. “Philosophy was the first-ever science, before it branched out into physics. I found it very mathematical and I liked it a lot.”

Beyond her demanding academic schedule and extracurriculars, Eliza juggled multiple part-time jobs to support herself and her family. These included working as a freelance copywriter and teaching Japanese, a language she picked up during a year in Japan on an external scholarship.

In her third year, Eliza began applying to graduate school. Following Assistant Professor Lavinia Picollo and Associate Professor Daniel Waxman's advice, she decided to pursue a PhD in philosophy overseas to deepen global exposure. Her dedication paid off and she received an offer from the University of Oxford for their Bachelor of Philosophy in Philosophy course, a Master's level postgraduate degree. She also enrolled in advanced 4000-level philosophy courses, which exposed her to Master's and PhD-level topics, exploring abstract topics from mathematics to computational theory.

Eliza, who will graduate with Honours (Highest Distinction) for her Bachelor of Arts degree and plans to go into academia, particularly valued the investigative and analytical approach of these advanced classes, which offered greater independence in choosing research topics. “You can choose ideas that interest you most, write papers on them, and consider expanding on your research,” she noted.

“Learning philosophy helps us to make decisions. Decision theory can provide theories that explain why we are making certain choices, and encourage reflection on whether to pursue these choices,” she said.

“When I was younger, studying came from a place of desperation. Now, it comes from wanting to improve myself and contribute to society.”

Nicolette Koh: Advocating for inclusivity in healthcare

While most children grow up surrounded by sound, Nicolette Koh was no stranger to silence. Diagnosed with hearing loss at age two, Nicolette went for her first cochlear implant surgery when she was just five. After her second and third procedures at ages 12 and 13, her hearing improved.

Her personal journey with health sparked an early interest in medicine. Prescribed various medications after each surgery, Nicolette’s curiosity was piqued as she researched how the various components of these prescribed drugs aided her postoperative recovery.

This fascination deepened through chemistry and biology in secondary school, and later, pharmaceutical sciences in polytechnic.

“I wanted to help people through medicine, and this also formed part of my motivation to pursue pharmacy at NUS,” said Nicolette, 25.

The Bachelor of Pharmacy graduate from the Faculty of Science was drawn to NUS’ holistic curriculum which integrated all the pharmaceutical topics into distinct modules, with each focusing on a specific body system (i.e. gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, respiratory). In her first year, she and her batchmates also had the opportunity to study cadavers in anatomy classes, providing an up-close understanding of the human body.

Beyond academics, Nicolette was committed to disability advocacy throughout her time in NUS. In her third year, she led NUS SIGNapse, a sign language club comprising students from healthcare courses. As project director, she was instrumental in transitioning sign language classes from a peer-learning model to instruction by deaf instructors. This change allowed students to authentically learn both the language and culture, ultimately aiming to bridge communication gaps in healthcare, and improve access to healthcare for underrepresented communities.

Nicolette is resolute in continuing her advocacy for inclusivity in her future career.

“I aspire to be a pharmacist who cares for each and every patient,” said Nicolette, who has started her training as a pre-registration pharmacist at Changi General Hospital. “They aren’t just names on a piece of paper, but real people who deserve the best possible care, regardless of their condition.”

Yap Yu Ting: From patient’s daughter to doctor

Eight years ago, when her parents did not arrive to pick her up from canoe training, Yap Yu Ting knew something was amiss. Her intuition proved correct: her mother, a teacher, had been rushed to the hospital after suffering a severe headache and vomiting. Doctors diagnosed a ruptured aneurysm, necessitating emergency surgery.

Yu Ting, then 16, spent the following days at Tan Tock Seng Hospital’s intensive care unit. It was there, amidst the anxiety, that she experienced how the healthcare workers took the time to show her compassion.

“They were not only focused on how they could cure my mom, but also very caring,” the 24-year-old recalled. “Their clear explanations, reassurance and presence made the overwhelming situation more manageable.”

This powerful display of empathy ignited her dream of becoming a doctor — a path that would eventually lead her to the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine (NUS Medicine) a few years later.

However, the journey to medical school was anything but easy. Her mother — who has since made a full recovery and returned to teaching part-time — was hospitalised for over a month, during which she underwent three major surgeries.

During this challenging period, Yu Ting juggled schoolwork, extracurriculars and the responsibility of caring for her younger brother, then only eight. She credits her years in competitive sports, with training sessions taking place both before and after school, for helping her develop the mettle to navigate tough times.

“I learnt a lot about time management and perseverance,” she said.

At NUS, Yu Ting continued her passion for sports, joining the NUS Dragon Boat Team. She competed in two major competitions: the 2023 Singapore Dragon Boat Association Century Race and the 2023 Prime Minister’s Challenge Cup, where her team placed second and third, respectively.

During competition seasons, she would balance rigorous training with her studies and spending time with her family — all while getting eight hours of sleep every night.

“Planning and prioritisation were essential,” she said. “My responsibilities and my passions do not always have to compete with each other.”

Now a house officer at Singapore General Hospital, the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) graduate is determined to embody the very qualities that inspired her as a teenager: compassion and sportsmanship.

“My coach used to tell us that we’re only as strong as our weakest player. We never left anyone behind,” she said. “I hope to carry the same values into my working life in healthcare.”

This story is part of NUS News’ coverage of Commencement 2026, celebrating the achievements of our graduates from the Class of 2026. For more, read our stories and graduate profiles, check out the official Commencement website, or look up and tag #NUS2026 on our social media channels!