Magic of self-motivation
Going through the Singapore EM3 stream in primary school exposed a young Ervin Kwan to what it felt like to be “branded”. He was resigned to occupying the bottom places in his cohort each year and university seemed an unreachable vision.
However, come 7 July this year, not only is Ervin graduating with an Honours Degree for Computing in Information Systems, he is also living his dream of working for a technology firm.
Ervin attributed this amazing turnaround to his tuition teacher who taught him life’s lessons, besides studies when he was a secondary one student in Normal Technical stream. His tutor sparked his interest in mathematics and science such that he covered the next term’s syllabus during the holidays. His good results got him promoted to the Normal Academic stream.
Ervin progressed to the Singapore Polytechnic where he pursued Information Technology. An impressive project by a schoolmate inspired him to invest his whole vacation in learning and researching new information online. His in-depth knowledge put him far ahead of his cohort, so much so that he became a “consultant” to his lecturer. The remarkable achievement got him onto the Director’s Roll multiple times.
It was during his polytechnic days that Ervin dabbled in the art of magic, and then stumbled into performing. He recognised that magic is an art that challenges creativity, while the fundamentals provide a solid foundation to innovate, similar to IT. Both subjects dovetail perfectly as the self-professed introvert could apply his performance skills in magic to communicate and present effectively, while he exploited the concept of abstraction layers in computing to devise tricks.
The software whizz then joined NUS where he co-founded interest group NUS Magic, attracting more than 60 members who learnt to show off their illusions to appreciative crowds. The programming wizard also served as a Teaching Assistant, his expertise well-recognised.
An accomplished magician and software wizard, Ervin co-founded NUS Magic while studying at the University
“Never give up because hard work beats talent without hard work,” Ervin advised struggling students. He also highlighted that autonomy and passion will bring a person far, as the driving force comes from within.
He noted his biggest takeaway from the University, “NUS is an incredible platform that grants boundless opportunities for students who proactively seek. Apart from having my coursemates as wonderful friends, I got to know many incredible professors and career leaders through the many events hosted.”
Ervin has been working with local start-up Searix Solutions as a software developer since last December. He still pursues his passion in magic, and wishes to contribute to the academic aspect of the art to advance its professionalism.
