The NUS Achievement Awards (NAA) 2026(opens in new tab) celebrated 341 students and alumni from the Class of 2026 for their contributions and achievements beyond the classroom. Held on 25 October and graced by NUS Provost Professor Aaron Thean, the ceremony presented 11 Distinctions, 24 Merits, 57 Commendations and six Recognitions across seven categories, reflecting the many ways students have shaped campus life and beyond.
While NAA honoured the NUS community for their achievements in co-curricular pursuits, many award recipients also drew on their academic knowledge to make a meaningful impact beyond the classroom. Among them were a handful of projects that stood out for their innovative use of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Leveraging AI
Isaac Chin, AY25/26 President of Sheares Hall(opens in new tab)’s Junior Common Room Committee (JCRC), wanted to understand how policy changes would affect residents before they were implemented. The final-year Science student majoring in Data Science & Analytics(opens in new tab) worked with his Vice-President to build in-house AI tools that calculate co-curricular activity (CCA) points for more than 500 residents across over 70 CCAs, with a clear breakdown of how each score was determined. He also developed a simulator to test proposed policy changes against residents’ data, allowing student leaders to assess their impact before implementation.
Isaac credits the staff and student leadership at Sheares Hall for embracing change. “I'm most grateful to the 45th JCRC and to Master Vini, for daring to challenge the status quo. Not every idea worked, but they never wavered so that we could build a better community for Sheares.”
A similar spirit of experimentation drove Bumblebee Autonomous Systems, a 23-member NUS team that competed and emerged champion at RoboSub 2025. The team used machine learning (ML) to help their underwater robots navigate difficult conditions, enabling the robots to identify and respond to targets more reliably. After the competition, the team open-sourced their software stack, allowing the wider robotics community to learn from and build on their work.
Team Lead Leong Deng Jun (Computer Engineering, Class of 2026) looked back on his team’s achievements with pride. “The competition was especially challenging as we faced a record number of participating teams. As the positions of obstacles in the competition arena were not fixed, we decided to use AI and ML to aid our robot in detecting them reliably each run. This allowed our team to spend more time developing strategies.”
Caring for the community
Beyond technology, a strong sense of responsibility towards the others was a common thread among many recipients.
Project Healthy to Thrive (HTT), a team of Duke-NUS Medical School students, extended free health screening to over 450 migrant workers through partnerships with Ministry of Manpower Assurance, Care and Engagement (MOM ACE) Group Tuas South Recreation Centre and doctors. Beyond looking out for patients’ health and wellbeing, the project team also partnered Project Brother Bear, another Duke-NUS community service project focused on health education, to refine education materials, and worked closely with translators from ACE.
“Many migrant workers face barriers to preventive healthcare because of demanding work schedules, language differences, financial constraints and limited access to health information. HTT sought not only to detect disease, but also to empower migrant workers to take ownership of their health through education, partnership and sustained engagement,” said Doctor of Medicine (MD) student Gini Wong Wei Wen, who served as Project Director for both 2025 and 2026.
Beyond healthcare, students also found ways to improve others’ wellbeing through the arts. Dancer and choreographer Tan Yu Hao (Year 2, Computing) extended his belief in socially impactful dance through the NUS Community Dance Programme, an intergenerational health initiative by the Alice Lee Centre for Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies. Over 12 weeks from February to April 2026, Yu Hao taught choreography for pre-frail older adults at Lions Befrienders’ Active Aging Centres, focusing on seated and standing variations to encourage movement despite their limitations in mobility.
“Their growing confidence, engagement and retention showed me how dance could support health, dignity and connection,” said Yu Hao who was also NUS Dance Blast!(opens in new tab) President in AY24/25.
Meaningful collaborations
Alongside individual initiatives, many NAA recipients also demonstrated the spirit of camaraderie and teamwork that collaborative projects demand.
NUS Indian Dance and NUS Dikir Barat brought two different artistic traditions together for Antara Dua: Between Two Choices, A Destiny Prevails at NUS Arts Festival 2026. They consulted NUS faculty across English, Sociology and Malay Studies departments, and took time to attend each other’s rehearsals, showing us that collaboration begins with the willingness to learn from one another.
NUS Indian Dance President Sridevi Vasanthakumar Reshmika (Year 3, Economics) is proud of this milestone collaboration: “This award celebrates Antara Dua’s coming together of Indian and Malay traditions, affirming the value of intercultural collaboration in Singapore’s arts landscape. We are grateful to NAA for recognising this work, and to our staff managers and our tutors for their trust, patience and support as we learned from one another and brought our vision to life.”
Collaboration extended well beyond the arts. The 16th Bizad Charity Run in 2026 brought together more than 1,200 runners and over 170 volunteers from the NUS community and its partners, raising S$90,000 for its beneficiaries. Planned over five months, the event expanded its reach beyond the Business School with a four-day roadshow across the faculties of Business, Arts and Social Sciences, Computing, and Science, while strengthening collaborations with faculty clubs, alumni, beneficiaries and community partners. On Race Day, the 5km route became an interactive, family-friendly Fun Run, welcoming competitive and casual runners alongside NUS staff, students and alumni across generations.
“This experience taught me that leadership isn’t about standing in the spotlight, but about creating the conditions for others to step forward, work together, and ultimately create something greater than ourselves,” said Lim Liang Yng, a Class of 2026 double degree in Business Administration and Social Sciences graduate, who served as Project Director.
Sustained team excellence
The ability to work towards a shared goal and excel beyond expectations was just as evident among NUS sports teams. NUS Table Tennis demonstrated this through consistent performances across competitions and its contributions to campus life, securing 10 of 12 SUNIG and IVP titles over three consecutive academic years, including double Institute-Varsity-Polytechnic Games (IVP) victories by both the men’s and women’s teams in 2024 and 2025.
Beyond competition, the team supported the wider NUS community through initiatives such as the Learn-to-Play programme, Inter-College Games and NUS120 Homecoming. Their achievements and sustained contributions earned them the President’s Sports Award of the Year. This is the first time the award has been presented since 2019.
“Receiving the President’s Sports Award of the Year after being recognised at NAA for three consecutive years is incredibly meaningful. This motivates us to continue working hard, improving together and striving for even greater achievements in future,” said Jade Ng (Year 3, Business Analytics(opens in new tab)), NUS Table Tennis Women’s Team Captain in AY25/26.
Creating long-lasting impact and friendships
For many recipients, the significant of NAA extended far beyond the ceremony and award mementos – personal growth, support from mentors and loved ones, and friendships forged along the way proved to be the most valuable takeaways.
Ashlyn Mohan (Year 4, Chemistry) from Project Sabidee by NUS King Edward VII Hall, which received Merit for Community Service, reflected on the bonds formed through the project: “I am extremely grateful to my teammates, Lee Yi Heng and Dhaaniya Sree Ramesh. We have been through so much together and despite all the challenges faced, we never once thought of giving up. In fact, it brought us closer and more determined to do better.”
For Tan Li Ting (Year 3, Business Analytics), Team Captain of NUS Badminton (Women), the award was a reflection of a community far wider than the team itself: "This award recognises not only our team’s effort and commitment, but also the community behind our achievements. It reflects our coach’s countless hours of preparation, our alumni’s continued support, and our parents’ constant encouragement. We’re grateful to share this achievement with them."
Fellow badminton player, Justyn Sim Yi Ming (Year 3, Business), who received Merit for Sportsman of the Year, summed up the NAA experience best:
“This award means the world to me. It's a moment to be grateful and appreciative of those that have contributed, believed and supported me wholeheartedly. I think this is also a time where I can give myself a pat on my back, tell myself that it is all worth it, and remind myself to keep going even on rainy days.”
Click here for a full list of this year’s recipients.
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