When Dr Joel Tan, 37, took the stage at the Harvard Medical School-Affiliated PhD Programs Hooding Ceremony on May 28, going viral was the last thing on his mind. To an audience that included 167 of his fellow doctoral students and his beaming parents, he opened up about being rejected from two of Singapore's public universities before making it to the world-renowned Harvard's doctorate programme. In a matter of days, his speech amassed more than 23,000 views on YouTube and made headlines in Singapore media outlets. Clips from his address were reshared endlessly on social media, particularly the moment where he earnestly proclaimed: "Talent is everywhere; opportunity is not." One LinkedIn think piece quipped: "C's and D's to PhDs".It's a compelling comeback story: the late bloomer seemingly stifled in Singapore's demanding education system eventually makes it to one of the top universities not just in the United States, but the world. To date, it's been about 15 years since Dr Tan has been in Singapore. However, his viral speech prompted hundreds of people from his homeland – acquaintances, long-lost friends and even strangers – to reach out to him to congratulate him and also share their own stories. "That has probably been the most meaningful part of the whole experience,” he told me over a Zoom call from his home in Boston.