From ITE to Nafa: Student scholar trying to make her mark on the fashion industry
The TL;DR: Up-and-coming fashion designer Soh Ray Chel has had her works featured at events such as the National Day Parade and Laos Fashion Week. The 23-year-old design practice undergraduate was one of 10 students awarded the Ngee Ann Kongsi scholarship for the 2025/26 academic year, which is being expanded from the next academic year onwards.
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Ms Soh Ray Chel pictured in a sewing studio in Nafa Campus 2 on Sept 16. The fashion designer has had works featured at events such as NDP and Laos Fashion Week.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
Follow topic:
SINGAPORE – 2025 has been a watershed year in Soh Ray Chel’s budding fashion career.
Not only did she design costumes for eight performers from Maya Dance Theatre for National Day Parade 2025, she was also one of four Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (Nafa) students whose works were showcased at Laos Fashion Week.
The 23-year-old’s featured six-piece collection The Veil Of Two in Laos earlier in September was inspired by her close relationship with her younger sister and featured a unique pair of dresses – in which the front of one dress is connected to the back of the other – that piqued the curiosity of attendees.
“Other designers and brand representatives were coming up to me to ask about my inspiration for the outfit. It was a proud moment for me,” she recalled.
Her fashion ambitions are supported by the Ngee Ann Kongsi Scholarship for the 2025/26 academic year.
The scholarship provides $10,000 annually to 10 undergraduate students, mainly to help them defray undergraduate tuition fees that cost Singaporeans below 40 who have tuition grant subsidies $8,650 to $10,270 a year.
Miss Soh said: “Even without (the scholarship), I would have pursued my degree at Nafa, but it’s helped me ease my family’s financial burdens and focus on my studies.”
The school recently announced that its scholarship programme would be expanded from the next academic year onwards to support undergraduates from all degree programmes, rather than just University of the Arts London validated degree programmes, as part of Ngee Ann Kongsi’s additional $1.2 million contribution to Nafa to support arts education in Singapore.
Miss Soh’s interest in fashion started when she was a child styling her Barbie dolls in different outfits – this influenced her to pursue a Nitec in Fashion Apparel Production and Design at ITE in 2020, which paved her way to Nafa.
“I knew I wanted to do something hands-on after secondary school, so that led me to try fashion design,” she said.
At ITE, Miss Soh picked up the basics of fashion design – a prospect that appeared daunting to her at first.
“From sewing to draping to drafting, there was a lot for me to learn. But my lecturers’ support and praise helped motivate me to pursue fashion more seriously.”
After graduating from ITE in 2022, Miss Soh pursued a diploma in Fashion Design at Nafa, before continuing with her undergraduate studies there as a design practice student.
Miss Soh’s work has been featured at local events.
While studying for her diploma, she participated in a 2024 collaboration between Nafa and the Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations (SCWO) whereby Nafa students created pieces inspired by stories told by survivors of domestic abuse, using pre-loved fabrics and materials.
A research sketch done by Ms Soh Ray Chel, 23, Year 2 undergraduate in Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Design Practice, for the pieces created in collaboration with Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
For her piece, Miss Soh repurposed a white dress into a women’s top, skirt and bag. To represent the physical and emotional scars brought about by domestic abuse, she painstakingly hand-sewed over 100 creases and indentations into her pieces over the course of a month.
“It was difficult, but this is one of the most meaningful projects that I’ve worked on,” said Ms Soh. “Being able to tell these stories through my pieces is one of my favourite things about fashion.”
Through a Nafa staff member, Ms Soh was also commissioned to design two outfits inspired by Peranakan tiles for Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Culture, Community and Youth and Sustainability and the Environment Goh Hanyan and Minister of State for Transport and Culture, Community and Youth Baey Yam Keng for NDP 2025.
Miss Soh, who attended NDP 2025 with her teacher and course mates, said: “My teacher and friends would point out every time one of my outfits appeared on the big screen, like when Mr Baey waved or when they spotted the (Maya Dance Theatre) performers. I was very proud to see my work displayed there.”
Looking towards the future, Miss Soh hopes to work in a fashion company when she graduates from Nafa and eventually build her own fashion brand.
When asked what motivates her to continue pursuing fashion, she said: “Being able to express myself through my garments. I’m always happy when I see (other people) wear the outfits that I spent time and effort crafting.”
