Singapore Management University (SMU) undergraduate Ho Min Han has brought pride to the university by clinching Third Prize for the Long Presentation Category at the Early Career & Student Statisticians Conference (ECSSC) on 21 November 2024. Min Han, a second-year student from SMU School of Computing and Information Systems, stood out for his moving and statistically robust presentation of Save.Me.Too., a national suicide awareness and prevention project, created by Ms Rosie Ching, Principal Lecturer of Statistics from SMU School of Economics, in her statistics course popularly known as Statistics-X.
The ECSSC is a biennial event that brings together the best student and early-career statisticians. This year’s conference culminated in highly competitive video presentations across two categories: Long Presentations (10 minutes) and Short Presentations (5 minutes). Min Han’s exceptional "live" performance in the Long Presentation Category secured him the third spot amongst participants worldwide, most of whom were postgraduates, statisticians and PhD holders.
Min Han is the third student to win after two back-to-back statistics students, Joshua Tan Jing Yi and Shawn Lew Wei Hwa, each mentored by Ms Ching, emerged as Champions in the 2019 and 2021 editions of the global competition.
Min Han’s presentation focused on Save.Me.Too., a national survey-based initiative spearheaded by Ms Ching. The project had analysed the stigma surrounding suicide and the critical need for suicide awareness and prevention measures in Singapore.
“This was my very first project in statistics, and it’s a testament to Ms Ching’s incredible teaching and mentorship,” Min Han said. “She inspires confidence, challenges us to aim higher, and is right there with us through the entire process. Winning this competition feels surreal - it’s a win for everyone who poured his/her heart and soul into Save.Me.Too. in STAT-X.”
Min Han added, "Working with Ms Ching has been incredibly rewarding, with a once-in-a-blue-moon opportunity to work on data at a national level, learning and using new statistical skills that are highly applicable to any field. It also gave me the full extent of project management, an experience that is highly valuable in the workforce. I’m incredibly grateful to Ms. Ching for the opportunities I’ve been given working alongside her and being able to play a part in creating real social impact in Singapore. Thank you, Ms Ching - working with you has been really inspiring. If I end up doing further studies in Statistics, that’s all you."
In the lead-up to the event, Min Han spent countless hours refining his work, refining every detail and putting in extra hours to practise on stage. Demonstrating his dedication, , Ming Han even flew to Australia for the competition the week before SMU exams - an intense period during which the STAT-X Finale and Exhibition were also taking place. Through the pressure, Min Han rose to the challenge, staying focused and determined. From Singapore, he was cheered on by Ms Ching and his peers throughout this crucial time.
“Ms Ching was pivotal in guiding me through the maze of statistical methods, making sure I could link our multitude of statistical findings in everyday language for everyone to identify with,” Min Han shared.
“The simpler it was, the more impactful it became. I kept pushing to polish the script and delivery until it was near-flawless,” he continued. “Knowing that both Save.Me. and Save.Me.Too. have been included in the Project Hayat White Paper for the government to create Singapore's first National Suicide Prevention Strategy, the significance of this study is beyond what I would have dreamed possible as a young undergraduate pursuing an introductory course in statistics."
The quality of presenters at the global competition was excellent and the judges had a tough time with their decision-making, assessing each entry based on the criteria of Organisation, Content, Verbal, Non-verbal, Timing and Audio-Visual aids. For all of the above, ECSSC awarded Min Han the prize for seamlessly marrying rigorous statistics and charts with empathy, demonstrating how data drive meaningful change in society, especially with a deeply sobering and sensitive subject like suicide and people in crises.
“Min Han is the epitome of grit, talent, confidence and humility. I worked closely with him as a freshman through Save.Me.Too and again for this competition, at the end of gruelling nights of consecutive rehearsals.” said Ms Ching, who was overjoyed for her student. “What he has accomplished here is simply phenomenal. He has transformed what many perceive as a mere statistics project into a powerful call-to-action for suicide awareness and prevention, and on a scale beyond Singapore.”
She added, “What makes Min Han’s win even more special is the purpose behind Save.Me.Too., which is not just about data – but about humanity and people’s lives. His achievement is an amazing testament to his strength, ability, creativity, and determination to further our collective mission of saving lives. Min Han has mastered the art of using statistics to tell stories that genuinely matter, and this is just the beginning of his journey. I couldn’t be prouder of him!”
With Min Han’s permission, here is a summary of his winning submission:
I’m Min Han from SMU, and in Project Save.Me.Too. spearheaded by my statistics teacher Ms. Rosie Ching, I joined the national mission against suicide sparked by Singapore’s highest rates in 20 years. Guided by Ms Ching, we surveyed 5,274 people, uncovering myths and gaps between hope and action on one of the darkest topics in humanity. The biggest myth subscribed by 64%, is believing that talking about suicide could plant the thought. Although 90% say suicide is preventable, only 1 in 3 would act without hesitation, exposing a troubling gap between hope and action. To tackle this, we created the Suicide Stigma Index, revealing that youth under 21, the most affected by suicide, hold the highest stigma levels. With no improvement since 2022, we turned data into action, hosting a once-in-a-lifetime exhibition where we transformed our findings into visual narratives that engaged on a personal level. We displayed heartfelt quotes from survey respondents and even simulated the losing of a loved one to suicide and the impact it has on family and friends, the people closest to the victim who once again knew what to do but did not know how to reach out to help.
The impact? I am inspired and transformed. Nationally, our work is now part of Singapore’s first suicide prevention white paper, for our proposed National Suicide Prevention Strategy, that bridging hope and action will save lives.
View Min Han’s ECSSC2024 Presentation at: https://youtu.be/AdIY445C0-U
For more details on the winners, visit: ECSSC 2024 Prize Winners.
Congratulations to Min Han for this wonderful achievement and for using the power of statistics to make meaningful impact!