BEHIND THE SCENES
Meet the next generation of coders
These are the Swift Student Challenge winners from Southeast Asia.
Behind every app, there’s a long, sometimes challenging process of coding and debugging before programmers can bring their vision to life. Here, next-generation coders from Southeast Asia who took part in the Swift Student Challenge share the motivations that keep them going in the app development space.
Where there’s a problem, there’s a solution
For Apiphoom Chuenchompoo, a computer engineering and digital technology student at Thailand’s Chulalongkorn University and winner of the Swift Student Challenge in 2021 and 2022, creating apps is primarily a problem-solving endeavour.
“The original ideas of creating apps come from daily issues we face,” he says. “Just start with ‘why’, and how to solve the issue. Be courageous, and start your own path to make the world a better place.”
Try his puzzle game OthelloZ.
Branch out for new perspectives
When Jia Chen Yee was 18 years old, he created Overengineered Arrow Keys, an app that helps users control the screen of their device from afar. According to Yee, a current student at Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Singapore and a two-time Swift Student Challenge winner, the path of great programmers should not be limited to writing code and fixing bugs.
“In secondary school, my favourite subject was a unique one my school offered called Changemakers,” he says.
“This is a subject that combines several other subjects such as Internet communication, art design media and technology, innovation and entrepreneurship, and presentation skills, all in one. The freeform nature and approach allowed me to try new things and gain insights as to how the real industry worked, broadening my horizons.”
Try his remote control app Overengineered Arrow Keys.
Sit with your users
Supachod Trakansirorut, a computer engineering student at Thailand’s Bangkok Christian College and winner of the Swift Student Challenge in 2022 and 2023, finds from experience that the best ideas for optimising an app might actually come from its users.
“My friends love the design and variety of content on my apps. They also suggested I add more mini-games to make the games more challenging,” Trakansirorut says.
Try his message encryption app Simply Cipher.
Focus on yourself and your work
Launching an app goes far beyond coding – there’s also plenty more work to be done to market it to the right audience. And when the challenges start to mount, James Ryan Chen emphasises the importance of taking a step back and focusing on what you can control.
“Everyone learns coding at a different pace and in different ways. While I used to compare myself with my peers, what I realised is that technical skills are not the be-all and end-all. There is a certain joy in coding to pursue one’s own interests, rather than just to compete with others,” Chen says.
Chen is currently a student at St. Joseph’s Institution in Singapore, and he won the Swift Student Challenge in 2022.
Try his Chinese-learning app Writezi.
Check out more apps and games from past Swift Student Challenge winners: