What's Life As A Uni International Student In Singapore?: What It's Like
Malaysian Student At The National University Of Singapore
I previously blogged about my experience as a foreign student in poly, so today I'll be sharing more about my university experience at the National University of Singapore (NUS)!
Similar to my poly blog post, I'll be going through the admissions process and touch on NUS study life and culture. Again I'll try to be as clear as possible in this blog post and cover as many commonly asked questions as I can.
For more information, feel free to purchase my e-book, which has more details and information about how to study in Singapore!
So without further ado, let's go!
1. How do I apply to NUS?
The NUS admission process
The application process was quite a breeze for me because I already studied in Singapore, so I just applied the same way my local Singaporean friends did. Uni applications opened some time in Feb/March 2018, and I applied online to NUS and Nanyang Technological University (NTU). The application process was surprisingly simple. All I needed to do was just fill up some details like my grades, CCAs, and interested course, and that was it. I remember applying to NTU was more tedious because they required you to have a referee or something and I also had to fill up a some kind of personal statement. NUS was just like - click, fill in, NEXT!
When you first apply to NUS, you don't get to choose your intended major yet. You only indicate the faculty that you're interested in. For example I wanted to major in Psychology which is under the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS), so I'll just choose "FASS". The major thingy comes much later and you have up till Year 2 sem 2 to decide, so no need to rush. For those of you who are wondering what GPA you'll need to get into the course of your choice, you can refer to the NUS website here.
My application outcome came out sometime in April 2018, and it was quite late because my dumb ass forgot to play the application fee. Because of that, most of my friends already knew if they were accepted or not, and I was just stupidly waiting. I don't think I was that kanchiong because I had accepted an early admissions offer from Singapore Management University (SMU) weeks before. SMU already accepted my application very early on, so I knew that I already had a place secured at a local university.
My application outcome came out sometime in April 2018, and it was quite late because my dumb ass forgot to play the application fee. Because of that, most of my friends already knew if they were accepted or not, and I was just stupidly waiting. I don't think I was that kanchiong because I had accepted an early admissions offer from Singapore Management University (SMU) weeks before. SMU already accepted my application very early on, so I knew that I already had a place secured at a local university.
The NUS enrolment process
Once I was accepted, I was immediately bombarded by emails from NUS front back right centre. There were only 2 things to settle upon enrolment. First was to register for the Qualifying English Test (QET), which was basically a test for students who do not have the necessary English Language qualifications when they enter NUS. All foreign students need to take QET, and you have to achieve at least a Band 3. If you get Band 1 or 2, you need to take EXTRA ENGLISH MODULES.
The second thing I needed to do was renew my Student Pass. Mine was supposed to expire 6(?) months after my poly graduation, so I needed to get a new one for uni. I went down to ICA to get it done and got a new Student Pass in a few hours.
I also attended the FASS Open House to find out more about the courses and orientation camps. Lots of free food and free things to take, so make sure to just go if your faculty has it!
Financial aid
Compared to poly, Singapore universities offer a wider range of financial aid for international students. You can get more information here.
I applied for a few bursaries under my Hall which gave me $3,000 a year, and there was also this Malaysian student bursary thing that gave me $5,000. Unfortunately, you'll need to be a recipient of the NUS Tuition Fee Loan (TFL) to qualify for the Malaysian student bursary, so what I did was take the lowest possible TFL at $3690 per Academic Year. With the money from both bursaries, I had a total of 8k, so if I kept the loan and didn't use it I would still have $4310 left.
Since I left Hall already, I'm not eligible to apply for the 3k Hall bursary. Even if I get the 5k Malaysian bursary, I'm only left with $1310 after deducting the $3690 loan. There was no reason to apply for the 5k Malaysian bursary anymore, and because of that there also wasn't any reason to continue the loan, so I cancelled the loan. Currently I'm no longer under any financial aid.
2. What campus accommodations are there in NUS?
In NUS, there are 3 kinds of residences - Residential Colleges (RC), Halls, and just normal residences. Residential Colleges are where all the zai students stay at, and they're located at NUS UTown. To be able to stay there, you'll either have to be under the University Scholars Program, or be particularly talented or outstanding in something. For some reason, you need to take extra modules.
On the other hand, Prince George's Park Residence (PGPR) is the only student residence you can stay at with no strings attached. Mostly foreigners or exchange students live there, and the rooms cost more than a room in Hall.
I stayed in a particular Hall for about 2 years and I had a love-hate relationship with it. I think the hate trumps the love because I went on to write a big expose about it which got spread around Hall and made me some sort of public enemy - but seriously I don't give a fuck because staying there really killed my IQ.
I'm not going to go into detail about my stay because my expose pretty much sums up the whole experience including the CCA culture, Hall culture, and whatever shit culture they claim to have, so read it ok!
If you want to stay on campus and your main priority is to socialise, choose Hall. If you want to stay on campus just for convenience and don't want to be bothered that much, choose PGPR (not PGP Hall - there's a difference). If you want to stay in close proximity to UTown Starbucks, have really smart friends and don't mind taking extra modules on top of your course requirements, stay in RC.
3. What's the NUS psychology course like?
I'm currently in FASS and majoring in Psychology. Not gonna lie - it's super tough. Super isn't even the word to describe it; it's MEGA tough. When you're in Year 1, students get to try different introduction modules (also known as "exposure mods") of different majors. I was deciding between majoring in Psychology and New Media - which is similar to what I studied in poly - so I took the exposure mods for Psych and NM. I eventually decided to go with Psych because NM was just too similar to what I learned in poly and I wanted to learn new things. So yeah I pretty much chose to make life harder for myself.
To major in Psychology you need to take the Psych exposure mod PL1101E and statistics mod PL2131, AND you need to get at least a B- for both modules. If you think it's easy, well - you're wrong. PL1101E was alright, but PL2131 was a killer. I initially got a D for PL2131 when I took it in Year 1 sem 1, but decided to try again in sem 2 and eventually got a B. I was SOOOO HAPPY that I qualified to major in Psych that I didn't care that I had to take another, even harder stats mod (PL2132) after that. If taking PL2131 killed you, PL2132 would take you straight to the lowest level of Hell.
In uni we don't use the term "GPA". Instead we use "CAP" which means Cumulative Average Point. A perfect CAP score in NUS is a "CAP 5", which also translates to 5.0. I don't know why they want to make it 5.0 instead of 4.0 like most universities do, but I'm honestly like whatever because one thing I learned about NUS is that they like to intentionally make your life difficult.
We don't have a lot of projects, and if you do have projects, they're usually done in a group. They're usually presentations and don't require a lot of effort (in my opinion). In poly, presentations were taken very seriously and there's usually a proper dress code, but in uni (or at least in FASS) we just read off the notes on our phones with our Havaianas on.
We have midterms and finals every term which make up a large percentage of your overall grade. If you're good at mugging and eating books, you'll probably do well. I'm not the most studious person, which probably explains why my CAP isn't even enough to buy chicken rice.
4. What's NUS culture like?
NUS is very, very academic centric. I know they pride themselves on having students that are all-rounders with great character and all that, but honestly I think they place the importance of grades above all else. A lot of people here who get really good grades are exactly that - just good at grades. They don't need to work multiple jobs, they don't need to join a shit ton of CCAs, and they don't need to have soft skills or great character because ultimately only your CAP matters. Your CAP gets you a good job and a high salary, not your soft skills, character or portfolio - which is why presentations aren't taken seriously because who the fuck cares about how good you are at presenting? It's not gonna contribute to your grades hun.
It's really different from NTU where students work on projects that actually put their capabilities to the test. In NUS, you just need to know how to retain information in your brain, and you're good.
Psych is one of the most competitive majors in FASS, and everyone is just so good at studying. The bell curve is always very steep and that's what makes everyone so kiasu. Honestly I think it's not that bad in FASS, but my boyfriend who's in Biz says that everyone there basically looks out for themselves and would stab you in the back if you're not careful.
So as you can see it's very different from poly because of the bellcurve and overemphasis on grades in general. I don't really like that because I think it's such a backwards mentality for the uni to think that grades = success, because obviously it isn't.
I took a psychology diploma-plus back in poly and I remember how the modules I took often explored Psych out of the textbook through stuff like role play, learning how to conduct a counselling session, playing games, and relating concepts to real life. It wasn't even a full diploma but I learned so much more there than in my classes at NUS where I just read off the textbook and lecture slides.
What the f*** man. Seriously, IT MAKES MY BLOOD BOIL THAT ASIA'S TOP UNIVERSITY CAN BE SO TWO DIMENSIONAL!!!!!!!!
Let me calm down.
Ok.
Anyway, there are some modules I liked that encouraged critical thinking. This module called GES1041 was pretty fun and it touched on a lot of ethics and societal issues in Singapore. Tutorials were quite insightful because you could explore these sensitive topics in a safe space, and discussions could actually be related back to your own life. I loved philosophy mods too; philo mods make you rethink the reasons for your existence and you often leave the class thinking WTF MY LIFE IS A LIE.
5. What CCAs do NUS have?
In Hall, I joined 5 CCAs - 1 sport, 3 cultural, and 1 committee CCA. They were pretty fun and it was one of those rare things that I enjoyed about Hall. Outside of Hall, I joined a lot of camps as a committee member such as Arts O'Week and Arts Rag. I also took part in a volunteering trip to Myanmar. Thanks to these activities I made a lot of friends outside of Hall and gained many wonderful memories!
Final thoughts
I know I raged a few times throughout this blog post, and I apologise for the rants, but it's been something that I've been holding in for a long time. Some people ask me if I enjoy my time at NUS, and honestly - No. I don't think I gained much during my time here and the study culture is just depressing. I know NUS is one of the top universities in the world which is why it's so coveted, but they really lack in terms of building student character. I mean - just look at all the campus molestation cases in Singapore. So many of them are from NUS which makes you wonder WTF is wrong with these students are how are they even in such a prestigious university? Imagine all the other students who've done bad things in NUS but never got caught - they get a high CAP and graduate and get good jobs and have a good life even though they're pieces of shit. How are these students even in NUS????? How are they not caught? Why are some of them STILL IN NUS???????????? So yeah I think it's really telling of NUS' values and priorities.
If you're intending to apply to NUS, sure - go ahead. Just remember to stay true to your values and remember that grades aren't everything. Join a bunch of stuff outside of school to build your portfolio and take part in CCAs that are fun and beneficial. I'm really sorry if I made it sound like NUS is a really depressing place to be because honestly it's up to you to make your uni life fun and mine was a wreck because of the poor choices I made. Remember - grades don't define you. All the best in your uni life!
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