Lieutenant Nguyen is the Potemkin's chief transporter operator. He is known to have played rugby for the New Zealand Blackshirts in his youth. He is also an expert water polo player and sometimes plays with other crewmembers in the ship's swimming pool. Additionally, Nguyen has demonstrated a moderate ability to play the Vulcan harp.

During "Doctor Nguyen/One Night Stand" Nguyen tried to compensate for an odd energy signal during transport, and the three women arrived on board pregnant. He later had to deliver the three children, explaining that his mother was midwife.

In "From Nguyen with Love (or "The Luckiest Man in Starfleet")" we saw an alternate timeline where Nguyen was able to repeat the same 30 years of his life twice. Using his foreknowledge, he managed to become captain of the Potemkin and started a romantic relationship with Arkin. However, this version of Nguyen eventually realized he had done more harm than good and he and the crew eventually corrected the timeline.