NUS-IT-Report-Card-2021_PDF-3(FromCD)

REFLECTIONS BY CITO

"FOREWORD, FORWARD" - A LEAF FROM THE DESK OF CITO, MS TAN SHUI-MIN

It is hardly possible to find a single word to describe the year that had almost gone by. The local community watched in trepidation brought on by COVID-19 as the numbers mounted and witnessed the annus horribilis that continued into 2021. Yet, there were tailwinds from this that made us a stronger and better NUS. McKinsey’s findings showed that responses to the pandemic have accelerated the adoption of digital technologies by several years. We found testament in our institution, and saw over 60,000 mobile downloads on iOS and Android for uNivUS , 5,500 staff at our Digital Enablement workshops and “Learning IT with bITbIT”, 3900 users of Virtual Desktop , 8,000 students and alumni members on conNectUS, and the roll-out of more than 70 new solutions. 2021 is also the year where we set a new vision to build a Borderless University powered by Infinite Technology. This vision, crafted in alignment with NUS’, spurs us to enable NUS to extend its reach and influence globally via the digital realm. Constantly reminding ourselves to be agile, innovative, and to push boundaries, NUS IT remains committed to building a new digital for our Education, Research, and Administration.

interactive navigation to lead you to your destination through leveraging AR. At the Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies, students hone their core competencies and situational patient management, through Immersive Virtual Reality – Procedures (IVR-P) in a “Nursing VR” initiative that has been proven to save manpower and facility costs. Throughout 2021, staff of NUS IT provided Thought Leadership through their participation in conferences as guest speakers and panellists to lend valuable insights on today’s IT landscape from the perspective of a higher education institution. A few prominent line-ups of forums included the CIO ConnectGOV Summit 2021, Microsoft’s EduDay Webinar, Educause Annual Conference, and GovInsider. We brought our experience to the table and shared breakthroughs achieved in technological advancement for Higher Education with the aim of being a catalyst of growth for the industry. Competence and adeptness were extended to the NUS community through the Digital Enablement programme that sought to raise dexterity in new technology skills and tools for better work and business outcomes. Amongst students, our internship programmes have reached the broadest band of undergraduates spanning Arts, Design Engineering to Technology, imparting multi-disciplinary skills and bringing their learning to life. Internally, our culture speaks of agility, innovation and one that pushes boundaries. Efficient, helpful, responsive and reliable are as perceived in the perception survey, entrenched in the spirit of a cohesive team that perseveres and delivers. We celebrate our successes in the recognitions we received from CIO Academy, Medical Education Grand Innovation Challenge, Singapore Computer Society, Microsoft Power Apps Hackathon and Times Higher Education Awards Asia 2021, and we are delighted to honour our senior management and stakeholders for their unwavering support.

digital dexterity of the NUS community. In Response to COVID-19, we deployed AI and computer vision techniques to verify vaccination certification and ART results upload, which replaced the need for human intervention and provided a brand new user experience. We made use of WiFi to perform SafeEntry check-ins as one moved from one building to another on campus. Such seamless experience is unique to NUS because of our dexterous deployment of technology. In Education Transformation , we cliff-ed the edge of technology as NUS moved towards the integration of knowledge and skills across disciplines in an ever-dynamic landscape. The Undergraduate Admission System is exemplary of bringing the best of experience to those behind the scenes, engendering productivity improvements of 50% turnaround time for applicants’ data verification, and at the same time providing a simple and seamless encounter for 20,000 polytechnic and A-level students. Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) have often been said to bridge the digital and physical worlds, and they will continue to influence the way we take in and visualise information. NUS IT has been a front runner in this space, and works closely with our researchers and academic staff to create innovative pedagogies and improve campus life. In the near future, should you lose your way while looking for a room in NUS, Pathfinder will get you back on track with

Working from home most of the time this year has not stopped us from making technical breakthroughs, extending our thought leadership beyond NUS, and raising the

Finalist for CIO Academy Asia Women in IT Awards, Asia, 2021

MS TAN SHUI-MIN NUS CITO

SG100 Women in Tech