GIRL MEETS WORLD

From a convent school background where she hardly spoke to any guys to joining the (traditionally) male-dominated military, Military Expert (ME) 1 Clarie Teo's life took an about-turn when she made the unconventional decision to pursue Marine Engineering after her O levels.

She decided to join the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) during her first year in polytechnic. Recalling the week that final exams ended, she said: "I got a letter asking me to report for training the very next Monday! That's how efficient the Navy can be."

Being in the RSN is a challenge that ME1 Teo relishes. She recalled an incident when one of the frigate's engines heated up and had to be taken offline. In the meantime, the ship had to make do with power from the other three engines.

Together with the engineering department, she checked and rectified the fault - a clogged fuel filter - within the hour. "The rest of the ship's crew was quite amazed we did it so quickly."

On what she enjoys about being a sailor, she added: "Shipboard life is never relaxing but what I like is the team spirit and sense of family among the crew."