04 June 2019
Mr Jason Chua was a student in the Normal (Technical) stream. He used to think that no matter how hard he pushed himself, he would inevitably end up at the Institute of Technical Education together with most of his peers.
However, Mr Chua defied everyone’s expectations, and today, he not only has a university degree, but also works as a prosecutor at a government agency.
Mr Chua used to work part-time at a fast-food outlet while in Secondary School. He told himself that he had to excel in his studies, and with hard work, he eventually decided to take the O-level examinations as a private student at City College. To his pleasant surprise, he scored a respectable 16 points for his best five subjects.
Following the O levels, Mr Chua attended the three-year A-level programme at Millennia Institute and took a diploma in psychology from a private school at the same time. He scored 3 As in the A-level exams — a feat once mentioned by then Education Minister Heng Swee Keat in Parliament in 2012 to highlight students that exemplified resilience.
When Mr Chua was accepted into SMU Law School, he initially felt a bit inferior as the students were all from top schools. But he told himself not to give up, continuing to give tuition three times a week to put himself through university. He graduated last year with his law degree.