Hearty congratulations to CTPCLC Alumnus, Khoo Yi Feng (NUS Southeast Asian Studies and Psychology '17, Social Work (postgraduate diploma) '20), who was one of 12 young alumni to receive the NUS Outstanding Young Alumni Award on 2 November 2023!
Dubbed the “Mental Health Guy” by friends, Mr Khoo Yi Feng is passionate about building hope and helping others find their self-worth. His professional background encompasses clinical practice, community outreach, as well as national service planning efforts. Known for his engaging delivery, he has been a conference speaker and panel moderator at various local and international events, given media interviews, and authored op-eds on mental health.
His mental health advocacy began as an undergraduate. While a fellow of the NUS Chua Thian Poh Community Leadership Programme, he founded the NUS Mental Health Wing to promote mental wellness and reduce stigma. In 2016, the group ran a year-long campaign, partnering 20 agencies and reaching over 200 undergraduates. Believing in “Better Understanding for Better Wellness”, he created platforms for his peers to engage with each other, caregivers, professionals and individuals recovering from mental health conditions. These platforms included dialogues, field visits and skills-based workshops to enhance empathy, self-care and peer support skills.
After graduating from NUS in 2017 with a degree in Southeast Asian studies and a minor in psychology, he continued his advocacy efforts in both community and corporate settings, working with two social service agencies and a mental health hospital. As a young professional, he also designed and ran group work interventions to address transitional challenges faced by young adults, and facilitated conversations to support youths undergoing transitions.
With a keen interest to grow his empathy for persons with mental health conditions and enhance his effectiveness in helping them, he moved into direct clinical practice and obtained a Graduate Diploma in Social Work at NUS in 2020. For his academic excellence, he received the Alice Goh Scholarship.
For the past six years, Mr Khoo has actively volunteered with the National Youth Council’s Young Change Makers Grant as a Curator to empower budding community leaders with resources, networks and mentoring, and was most recently appointed as Advisor (Mental Wellness) to further support grant applicants.
He regularly returns to NUS to deliver guest lectures and training on mental health literacy, suicide prevention, trauma-informed care, peer support, adolescent development, and community development.