Why Join Us?
This segment mainly goes out to all students who are thinking of pursuing robotics as a CCA in Secondary school or Junior College. Here are the reasons why we are the BEST place to develop your interest and passion in robotics over other schools or private agencies.
Our 6-Year Development Plan
Introduction
Ever since the integration of the High School and JC robotics sections, we have implemented a 6-year developmental program so that members can hone a more comprehensive skillset over a wider 6 year period rather than just 4 years, a similar rationale to the IP stream that HCI offers.
Sec 1-2: Developing Foundations
Our members start out in Sec 1 with the development of foundational knowledge. This includes learning basic robotics concepts, getting to know his batchmates, getting a feel for his working/learning style, etc.
At this stage, competition participation is mainly for gaining experience rather than winning.
Sec 3-JC2: Specialisation
Starting from mid Sec 2, members would have probably identified the area of specialisation that they would like to focus on after getting a feel for robotics across multiple fields.
In Sec 3, members would then start developing in their area of expertise. This focus will continue on till graduation as Robotics has a steep learning curve and everyone will continually learn new things.
Eventually, competent members would also seek to expand their skillset and branch out to specialise in multiple areas. During this phase, members strive to push their limits to win competitions and even represent Singapore internationally.
Sec 4 and Beyond: Educating Others
By Sec 4, they will be the most senior members of the HS section. Together with the JC seniors, they will be in charge of educating juniors with their honed skillsets.
We also remain in close contact with many of our graduated seniors, who would often give us good advice, connections to the working world and even come down to support us at competitions.
Maintaining this senior-junior mentorship culture is especially important to us as a completely self-taught Robotics club, since this ensures continuity of knowledge and sustainability of the club.
What if I only joined in JC?
For our members who only joined in JC, they would evidently not be able to go through the full 6-year program.
We acknowledge that they will have significantly lesser time with us and may not have the same level of knowledge as their HS counterparts upon entry. We also understand that academics become a larger priority with A Levels looming at the end of the 2 short years.
Nonetheless, we implore you to still give Robotics a shot.
We welcome anyone with a passion for robotics regardless of your level of experience or previous school, so there is no need to fear about not fitting in! Our seniors (and juniors) are more than willing to mentor you during your time with us. We have had members who only joined in JC with literally no robotics experience and yet went on to participate in international competitions. The experience will be absolutely worth it as long as you are willing to learn new things and show commitment to the CCA.
What makes us unique?
Well-equipped facilities
We work in an air-conditioned lab that is stocked with a large inventory of parts, equipment and materials. We even have a separate workshop fully equipped with all sorts of power tools e.g. saws, drills, angle grinders, etc. Moreover, we have a self-funded 3D printer that allows us to print things on demand.
Long opening hours
ExCo members are granted direct card access to the Robotics lab, allowing members to access the lab 6 days a week, 14 hours a day (0600-2000hrs). Members are able to enter outside of official CCA hours to work on their robots, allowing them to juggle their other academic commitments more flexibly.
No overbearing coaches
We have the complete freedom to experiment with any robot designs or strategies. While we may experience more setbacks or even failures due to this lack of guidance, we end up gaining a deeper and more meaningful understanding of robotics, since we take ownership of our own learning.
Generous budget
Competitive robotics is expensive and schools with more money will have better parts overall. Our school provides us with generous amounts of funding each year, allowing us to add many of the newest products to our inventory such as the VEX V5 system. Teams that qualify for international competitions would also receive some subsidies from the school.
Interdisciplinary skills
We are one of the only schools in Singapore with a regular presence in 3 very different robotic platforms, namely RoboCup, VEX AND LEGO competitions. This exposes us to various areas of robotics early on — from computer vision to electrical engineering and 3D modeling — whereas most students would only be exposed to these fields in Polytechnic/University.
Opportunity at Tertiary Level
We are one of the few JC/Poly that offers robotics as a CCA at the tertiary level. Even fewer are as well-established, participate in as many robotics competitions across different disciplines, and accept as many inexperienced members as us. Essentially, no one comes close to our program in terms of breadth AND depth.
A proven track record
We have won many awards through the years and had 9 teams qualify for international competitions in the past 5 years. We know what it takes to compete at the highest level, and members who excel in their respective areas of expertise are more than willing to share their knowledge. All our work are well-documented, for junior members to reference and learn from.
Robust support network
Our HS and JC members have forged strong friendships with one another and work together in the same robotics lab. Even our graduated seniors provide us with external connections and often show support for us at competitions. This common bond has allowed for experiences and knowledge to be exchanged freely regardless of seniority.
Integration with Infocomm
We are still technically in the same CCA as our Infocomm counterparts, so members can cross over in their free time and learn more about other sections such as machine learning, competitive programming, etc., thus being truly interdisciplinary. Some members have even integrated these multiple fields of technology into their competition robots.
