Ming Joo Koh

Ming Joo (MJ) Koh was born in 1987 and raised on the sunny island of Singapore. As a research assistant in Professor Philip Chan's group during his undergraduate years at Nanyang Technological University (NTU), MJ worked on a number of projects that employed gold-catalyzed alkene and alkyne cycloisomerization transformations to furnish architecturally distinct heterocyclic compounds. Upon graduating from NTU with a Bachelor of Science (First Class Honours) degree, MJ pursued his Ph.D. and post-doctoral studies under the tutelage of Professor Amir H. Hoveyda at Boston College, USA. In collaboration with Professor Richard R. Schrock's group at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MJ's doctoral research mainly focused on developing catalytic stereoselective olefin metathesis protocols to access stereoisomerically pure alkenes for applications in natural product and pharmaceutical synthesis. As a post-doctoral fellow, MJ shifted his focus to developing catalytic stereoselective transformations involving organofluorine compounds. In June 2018, MJ was awarded the President's Assistant Professorship to commence his independent studies at the Chemistry Department of the National University of Singapore.

AWARDS & HONORS

• NUS Inauguration Grant: 2019
• Asian Core Program Lectureship Award (China, Thailand): 2019
• Excellent Young Teacher Award: 2019-2020
• Innovators Under 35 (TR35) Asia Pacific Award: 2021
• Thieme Chemistry Journals Award: 2022

Companies

• President's Assistant Professor National University of Singapore (2018)
• Postdoctoral Fellow Boston College (2018 — 2018)
• Ph.D. Candidate Boston College (2012 — 2017)
• Teaching Assistant for Organic Chemistry Boston College (2012 — 2014)
• Undergraduate Research Assistant Division of Chemistry & Biological Chemistry, School of Physical & Mathematical Sciences, NTU (2009 — 2012)
• Teaching Assistant for Year 1 Organic Chemistry Laboratory Division of Chemistry & Biological Chemistry, School of Physical & Mathematical Sciences, NTU (2011 — 2011)
• Relief Teacher First Toa Payoh Secondary School (2008 — 2008)

Education

• Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) Boston College (2012 — 2017)
• Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) Nanyang Technological University (2008 — 2012)
• GCE 'A' Level Victoria Junior College (2004 — 2005)
• GCE 'O' Level Victoria School (2000 — 2003)