Life as an NTU undergrad... Life as an NTU undergrad

THE NTU MAGAZINE
MAR–APR 2014
NO. 15
IPRA GO
AWARD L2D0EN WORLD
13
HEY,
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&
GLOBAL ALLIANCE COMM
PRIX AWARD 2013
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CHIEF EDITOR
Dr Vivien Chiong
EDITOR
Eileen Tan
ASSISTANT EDITOR
Mabel Lee
WRITERS
Chrystal Chan
Lester Kok
Siddiqua Ovais
Winifred Tan
VIDEO PRODUCER
Ei Ei Thei
CONTRIBUTORS
Christopher Ong (Class of 2009)
Chua Wei Chong (Class of 2015)
Sam Chin (Class of 2012)
Zach Chia (Class of 2014)
Victoria Chang (Class of 2013)
DESIGN
Loo Lay Hua
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2 FYI 4 FEATURE CELEBRATE NTU! The big campus
party is back 5 FEATURE WORD ON THE WEB
Tweets from NTU hopefuls
6 FEATURE 5 THINGS YOU CAN DO AS AN NTU
STUDENT… Fruitful undergrad days ahead
23 FEATURE PREP TALK Winning advice from
students and a prof 24 FEATURE “I USED TO BE FAT”
Weighing in on weighty
issues 26 FEATURE GET MORE
MOOLAH Cash in on these
money-making tips
29 HOT SHOTS HEY, GOOD
LOOKING! Wearing their
hearts on their sleeves
32 FEATURE GET TO CLASS ON-LINE
Click to your classroom 33 THE P FILES
A BEAUTIFUL START Prof Timothy White
gets on course with e-learning
35 THINKING ALOUD 10 THINGS
I HAVE LEARNT THIS SEMESTER
From FML to $1 flights
36 UNPLUGGED DISRUPTIVE
PIONEER Educating the world
40 MY SPACE MICHAEL MAH’S
ROOM Cosy kingdom
HEY! CATCH US ON...
GET MORE FROM HEY!
When you see the
icon, you
can enjoy exclusive stories, videos
or photos via the desktop, mobile
and tablet versions of HEY! Online
at www.hey.ntu.edu.sg.
Is your favourite prof in
the hall of fame?
NTU has a new Teaching Excellence Academy and
the 12 who won the university’s top award for teaching
last year have been inducted into it as the first Fellows
who will be role models for other faculty members.
The Teaching Excellence Academy will adapt their good
teaching practices and drive initiatives for more effectivee
learning, including developing innovative teaching
tools such as an app for collaborative learning and an
automated assessment system to make teaching more
productive for engineering students.
Five of the 12 Fellows: (from left) Prof Vijay Sethi,
Assoc Prof Goh Wang Ling, Assoc Prof Roderick Wayland Bates,
Assoc Prof Goh Wooi Boon and Asst Prof Jung Younbo
Big bucks
It pays to be an NTU business graduate: Nanyang MBA holders on average see
their income more than double within three years of receiving their master’s
degree. In the latest Financial Times annual global MBA rankings, the Nanyang
MBA came in 12th for value-for-money, ahead of the world’s top five business
schools. The Nanyang Business School was also ranked among the world’s top
40 business schools for the sixth consecutive year.
Flight
of fancy
EXTRA
Video: NTU’s smart
quad-copters
It was plane awesome to see NTU’s flying drones make
their debut at this year’s Singapore Airshow. Built
and programmed from scratch, the 12 drones – or
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) – swooped and dived in
precise formation, wowing the crowd with a stunning
aerial display jazzed up with strobe lights and music.
Visitors also got to play interactive games with the
drones, such as remote-controlling a drone to chase a
car down a racing track. Watch the video to be amazed.
2
MAGICal cuts
Enthralled by the epic visual effects in sci-fi movies like
Star Trek and Pacific Rim? Now, you can look forward to
more of such films produced locally, thanks to NTU’s new
$7 million Future Studios Research Lab, housed within the
Multi-plAtform Game Innovation Centre (MAGIC). With its
state-of-the-art graphics processing equipment and artificial
intelligence technologies, the lab will help entertainment
and media companies produce high-quality films, animation
and games at a fraction of their usual budgets and within
tighter deadlines. It is now being used by a local studio to
produce The Boy and His Robot, a sci-fi film scheduled for
release this year.
.
HEY. it s PM lee!
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong spoke at the NTU Ministerial Forum
this year on Singapore’s progress. When touching on the promising
younger generation, he mentioned some NTU students: Sally Yap,
a PhD student helping to develop a vaccine for malaria, and the four
communication undergrads (below with Prime Minister Lee) behind
“The Real Reunion”, a social initiative that encourages busy families
to bond over meals. “Pursue your passion, aim high, go for your
dreams, act on your idealism, change Singapore, change the world,
and make this a more vibrant and interesting society,” urged
the Prime Minister.
CONGRATULATIONS...
BEATING THE ODDS
A disability like poliomyelitis is no hindrance to
sportsmanship, as demonstrated by Assoc Prof
Mu Yuguang. The biological sciences professor
clinched a Bronze medal for Singapore in a table
tennis team event at the 7th ASEAN Para Games
in Myanmar.
POWERFUL PIONEER
You have him to thank for not having to replace
the battery of your phone each time it runs out
of power. For his outstanding work in the 1980s
making lithium-ion batteries safely rechargeable,
Prof Rachid Yazami from the Energy Research
Institute@NTU won the Draper Prize, a prestigious
award given out annually to a very select few by
the US-based National Academy of Engineering.
NOT JUST A BLOCK OF WOOD
NTU was the biggest winner at the Shell Ecomarathon Asia 2014 in Manila. The diesel-powered
Nanyang Venture VI, nicknamed “Wooden Wonder”,
clinched three awards – two for Vehicle Design
and Safety and a Silver award in the Prototype
(Diesel) category. The Nanyang Venture III, an
electric-powered solar-assisted car, clinched the
Technological Innovation prize for its innovative
aerodynamism and unique electromagnetic clutch,
which eliminates energy loss. Kudos to NTU’s
engineering students!
Wiping
out
malaria
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
There’s new hope for the billions exposed
to malaria, one of the world’s deadliest
diseases. NTU scientists have discovered
a novel way to block the malaria parasite
from invading human blood cells. This
groundbreaking research, published in top
journal Nature Communications, paves
the way for a low-cost vaccine against
the disease, which could help wipe out
malaria in the long run. The researchers
have also developed a new type of mouse
with a human immune system and humann
red blood cells. When infected by malaria
parasite-carrying mosquitoes, it can be usedd
to understand our body’s reactions to the
disease and to test potential vaccines.
PHOTO: SHELL
3
Prof Bertil Andersson with students at last year’s Quad Party
The big
campus party
is back!
Come Celebrate NTU! on 11 March 2014. Now
N in its second
d
year, Celebrate NTU! is a special day for students, faculty, staff
and alumni to come together to commemorate the university’s
achievements.
Kicking off the festivities on campus will be NTU’s first
university-wide debate at 12.30pm in Lecture Theatre 19, where
faculty and students will engage in a battle of wits and words on
the relevance of exams.
At 2.30pm, NTU President Prof Bertil Andersson will deliver
the State of the University Address in the Nanyang Auditorium.
An annual highlight, Prof Andersson’s keynote speech will
touch on the university’s strategic directions and other exciting
developments in the year ahead. Come hear his vision for the
university, and also witness the inauguration of the Teaching
Excellence Academy and the Nanyang Awards ceremony, where
outstanding faculty, staff and students will be recognised.
After that, join the Quad Party and tuck into a sumptuous
buffet spread as you enjoy live music and dance performances
by NTU’s student clubs and hall jam bands. For an
adrenaline rush, drop by the exciting game stations like
gyrospin and wave surfing.
As night falls, let your hair down and boogie the night
away on the dance floor. Headlining this year’s party are
two of Timbre’s biggest bands, 53A and Goodfellas, as well
as popular club personalities DJs Andrew T and Zushan
and rapper ZY, who will be spinning chart-topping hits
through the night.
So mark 11 March on your calendar. You may even
catch a surprise guest performance or win yourself an
Apple iPad Air, Samsung Galaxy Note 3, travel vouchers
and more at the lucky draws!
4
NTU’s dance night
Feature
Word on the web
Overheard: NTU hopefuls
Overheard
pefuls on Twittersphere…
ILLUSTRATIONS BY CHUA WEI CHONG
@faizabd
Yap NTU Business &
Computer Engineering
I’m coming to you!
@babyghaibi
“mom, can I apply for
NTU Singapore later?”
“sure, why not?” I LOVE
YOU MAMA<3
@cookie_ joshi
I went for an open day
at NTU and was like
omg it looks so cool
@ThatsSoBella
I got e most exciting news today. I’ve been invited
for early admissions & scholarship applications
from NTU!!! *Squeals!!!*
@Safiuddinmcmphm
should’ve went for NTU open house
last Sat ~ Hais... #regrets
@Imbabyjill
Please NTU just
accept me then
I no need
headache lol!
@S3Xisanart
NTU NTU NTU
DIE DIE MUST ENTER.
NO NUS NVM ONE
@huzzy_fuzzy
Oh yeahh~~got ntu
letter alr! Muahhaa...
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
5
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Ope pecial
S
6
5 things
Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine
you can do
as an NTU
student at!!!
Set your sights on
becoming a heart
surgeon or a business
analyst? A chemical
engineer or a sports
journalist? A drug
researcher or a digital
animator? No matter
where your interest
lies, there’s plenty to
look forward to as an
undergraduate at NTU.
HEY! gives a sneak preview
by Mabel Lee, Chrystal Chan,
Christopher Ong, Siddiqua Ovais
and Victoria Chang
1. Use your iiPadd as a llearning
i bbuddy
dd
Get up to speed with your readings wherever you are with the
medical school’s broad use of e-learning. Whether you’re at the
school’s Yunnan Garden or Novena campus, tap your iPad to
easily download a variety of learning materials like voiceover
presentations, timetables, iBooks, pre-recorded lectures and even
interviews with scientists and clinicians.
2. Study in a simulated environment
Slightly nervous at the thought of injecting someone with a needle?
Try drawing blood from a synthetic arm with fake blood, or
interact with lifelike mannequins that can shiver, blink and mimic
the symptoms of heart attacks and other maladies. The school’s big
use of simulated patients (think trained actors portraying patients
with specific ailments), prosthetics and high-tech simulator models
means you get to train in safe but realistic environments. Learn how
to stitch a wound on an anxious patient, deliver bad news, calm
angry patients and treat them holistically during a minor surgery.
3. Meet real patients two months into the course
As early as the second month of your medical studies, interact
with real patients at polyclinics and Tan Tock Seng Hospital.
You’ll get the hands-on experience of working in an actual clinical
environment and studying disease progression and its effects on
patients. The school has the Family Medicine Academy at Bukit
Batok Polyclinic, which is equipped with a clinical skills laboratory
and specially designed consultation rooms where you can practise
examining patients.
4. Dissect a human eye… virtually
Be amongst the first few in Southeast Asia to virtually dissect a
body and study in-depth the various parts of the human anatomy
using the Anatomage Table. It offers a realistic life-size digital
rendering of the human body in 3D. At the medical school, you’ll
also get to study the workings of the human body using plastinated
human specimens – a first in Singapore.
5. Pick the brains of medical heroes
From left: Shona Woo School of Physical & Mathematical Sciences;
Henryk Abucewicz Tan School of Humanities & Social Sciences;
Brandon Teo College of Engineering; and
Yew Ying Teng School of Physical & Mathematical Sciences
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
Top-notch faculty members include Prof Dermot Kelleher,
the School’s Dean and Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at
Imperial College London; global immunology expert Prof Philip
Ingham, who has helped to develop a new anti-cancer drug;
and Prof Bernhard Boehm, renowned in the field of clinical and
experimental diabetes immunology.
7
ture
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Nanyang Business School
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Ope pecial
S
DID YOU KNOW?
f LKCMedicine’s five-year programme
is jointly offered by NTU and Imperial
College London, whose medical school
is ranked among the top 10 in
the world.
f The school’s curriculum is built
on innovative learning methods, with
a strong focus on grooming patientcentric doctors. Students will need
both good grades and a genuine
empathy for patients to excel.
1. Be taught by the world’s best
business professor
f By 2015, a seven-storey
Experimental Medicine Building will
be completed at NTU. A 19-storey
Clinical Sciences Building in Novena
will be equipped with social spaces
like learning studios, alcove clusters,
seminar rooms and student lounges.
The Novena campus is located
directly opposite Tan Tock Seng
Hospital, making it easy for students
to access clinical settings.
2. Get a head start in your career
Prof Vijay Sethi fended off tough competition
– 221 professors from leading institutions
like Harvard Business School and London
Business School – to be named the Economist
Intelligence Unit’s Business Professor of the
Year in 2013. Here’s your chance to share a
classroom with him.
Complete an honours Business or
Accountancy degree programme in just three
years and get a head start in your career while
your peers are still sweating out their finals.
Graduates from the school’s Accountancy &
Business double degree programme are also
very employable. In 2012, the first batch of
graduates from this combined programme
secured 100% employment.
3. Earn a degree well-regarded by the Big Four
Recognised by the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority and
Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Singapore as a professional
accounting qualification, the Bachelor of Accountancy degree will help you
get your foot in the door with the Big Four accounting firms. The Nanyang
Business School is also acclaimed for its accounting research: it ranked fifth
in the world in last year’s Brigham Young University Accounting Research
Rankings, with Prof Tan Hun Tong retaining his crown as the world’s top
accounting researcher for the third year running.
4. Become an IT cum biz whiz
Technical skills and business sense make for a winning combination – just
think the late Steve Jobs. With the new double degree programme in Business
(Information Technology) and Engineering (Computer Engineering), you’ll be
well-equipped to follow in a genius’s footsteps.
5. Crack (business) cases like Sherlock Holmes
Winning at prestigious global competitions is elementary to the school’s
undergrads. The ones they’ve come up trumps at in recent years include
L’Oréal Brandstorm and the McGill Management International Case
Competition. You can get cracking here, too!
8
Renaissance Engineering Programme
1. Get an enriching overseas experience at world-class universities
Take your pick and spend a full year studying at either Imperial
College London or University of California, Berkeley. Students
nts who
choose Imperial will be near key industry players like Rolls-Royce
-R
Royce
and IBM in London, and benefit from the famed university’s
y’s’s
connectedness to Europe, while those at Berkeley will find
the enterprising vibes of Silicon Valley highly infectious.
2. Rub shoulders with start-up stars in Silicon Valley
Third-year students under the Renaissance Engineering
Programme who choose the UC Berkeley path will read
two highly popular entrepreneurship courses unique
to the American university. Develop a business case for
your start-up and be inspired by guest speakers like CNN
NN
Hero Captain Budi Soehardi and Drew Houston, the founder
nd
der of
Dropbox. Students will also have internships in Silicon Valley,
ey home
to the world’s technology giants like Google, Facebook, Apple, Yahoo
and Pixar. Fancy being the next Mark Zuckerberg?
3. Build a remote-controlled vehicle from scratch
The Build and Test Project is much talked about by the
programme’s students. In your first semester, test your
creative juices by putting together from scratch a remotecontrolled car, submarine or boat, and enter it in a race with
your peers. Such hands-on, or “experience-based”, learning, is
a mainstay of Singapore’s top engineering programme.
4. Pick from a list of comprehensive scholarships
That is, a diverse range of scholarships awarded by NTU, the
government and local and foreign MNCs. The university’s
bond-free Nanyang Scholarship, for example, pays your
tuition fees and provides perks like an allowance of $6,000 per
academic year, a one-off $5,000 travel grant for overseas study
or attachment, and a computer grant.
5. Be guaranteed accommodation on campus
DID YOU KNOW?
f Pop superstar Stefanie Sun, who
has sold over 10 million copies of her
albums, is arguably the school’s most
famous alumna.
f Nanyang Business School
graduates get a very respectable
starting salary – for instance,
the top 10% of Bachelor of Business
graduates received an average
monthly pay of $11,710, according
to a 2013 survey.
f Big employers who regularly
hire the school’s graduates include
Unilever, Shell, P&G, DBS Bank,
Citibank, Samsung, JP Morgan,
Goldman Sachs and General Electric.
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
All students will get to stay in an NTU hall of residence, which
Life's great at
is equipped with comfortable meeting rooms for discussions.
The upside of having all your peers as hall mates? When you need UC Berkeley
a study buddy or are stumped on
homework, you can easily consult a
classmate living next door. Hall life will
DID YOU KNOW?
naturallyy be vibrant!
f This elite programme offers
ttop students a dual degree –
a Bachelor of Engineering Science
aand a Master of Science in Technology
Management
– in just four and
M
a half years.
f Renaissance Engineering
PProgramme students will get to
sstudy a range of multidisciplinary
ssubjects from engineering and
bbusiness to the liberal arts. The
pprogramme aspires to nurture a new
wave of engineers with the potential
w
tto develop into outstanding
CChief Executive Officers or Chief
TTechnology Officers.
9
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School of Chemical & Biomedical Engineering
Ope pecial
S
1. FFoster your passion in all areas
s
of science
If yo
you love physics, chemistry, biology
and mathematics, look no further than
the School of Chemical & Biomedical
Engineering, which offers students
the chance to draw from each area of
science and maths to solve real-world
problems. Keen to fight super bugs or
make super drugs?
2. Be an expert on food
With the new second major in Food
Science & Technology, you’ll find out
how food is made, how to make those
morsels tastier and even invent new
food products. You’ll also be taught by
renowned professors from Wageningen
University in the Netherlands, which
boasts one of the top Food Technology
programmes in Europe.
3. Use your microscopic vision for good
Here, you will gain a “superpower”
– the ability to identify and observe
microorganisms and nanomaterials, as
well as learn from professors who’ve
biochemically engineered bacteria to
kill superbugs that cause infections in
the body.
4. Get valuable industrial experience
During the second semester of
your third year, you will undergo
attachments with local or overseas
firms in manufacturing or R&D sectors.
With the opportunity to intern at
companies such as Shell, ExxonMobil,
Pfizer, 3M and DuPont, your industrial
attachment will go a long way in
prepping you for your future career
with one of these companies.
5. Be one of the pioneers in
a rising sector
The field of biomedical engineering
is said to be a sunrise industry, with
investments flowing in at a steady rate.
Already, Singapore has poured in
$2 billion and the figures are set to
rise. As a student at this school, you
will be at the forefront of a rapidly
growing industry, and who knows,
you might find yourself at the top
faster than you can blink.
DID YOU KNOW?
f The school is ranked 25th in
the 2014 Quacquarelli Symonds
(QS) World University Rankings by
Subject for Chemical Engineering.
f Last December, the school
played host to the International
Bone-Tissue-Engineering Congress,
a prestigious congress that was
held outside Europe for the
first time.
Your food will never
taste the same again...
10
School of Civil & Environmental Engineering
1. Get that top-of-thew feeling
world
A a school with a stellar
At
rreputation, you are sure to
ggo further, faster. Civil &
Structural
Engineering is one
S
of
o the 10 NTU disciplines to be
ranked
in the world’s top 30,
r
sitting
at 21st place in the 2014
s
QS World University Rankings
by
b Subject.
2. Chart a fine course
DID YOU KNOW?
f The school counts amongst its
alumni Chang Long Jong, Deputy
CEO of MediaCorp and the man
behind stars like Zoe Tay and Joanne
Peh; Er Dr Lee Bee Wah, Member
of Parliament and President of the
Singapore Table Tennis Association;
and Singapore’s top woman cop,
Zuraidah Abdullah, the first woman
to be promoted to the rank of Senior
Assistant Commissioner in the
Singapore Police Force. Who says civil
engineering graduates don’t have
diverse interests and talents?
Here, the world is your
playground. With the push
towards greener, cleaner environments, you can help shape the
design and construction of green buildings that consume less
energy, finding cheaper ways of producing clean drinking water
and even pioneering ways of combating environmental threats.
Look to the high seas as a graduate of the Maritime Studies
programme and get the chance to join
international shipping lines.
3. Land a job within six months of graduation
Benefit from NTU’s close links with the
“green” industry. With strong support from
its partners, NTU has not only clinched
more than $1 billion in funding for research
in the area of sustainability, but has also made
it possible for you to study and do projects
with some of the leading names in industry.
It is no wonder then that almost every fresh
graduate of the school secured
a job within six months of
graduating.
4. Spend a semester in Norway
Want to travel to see the world even as
you study? The school’s Maritime Studies
programme, jointly conducted by NTU and
the BI Norwegian Business School, will take
you all the way to Norway for a semester.
Learn from the best in the maritime industry,
pick up cross-cultural skills and maybe even see
the Northern Lights. And take the opportunity to
backpack when you’re there!
5. Create an underwater city
When it seems you are running out of space, look beneath the
surface. Underground developments have captured Singapore’s
imagination, and at this school you’ll have the chance to really dig
deep. The school’s research initiatives and projects in underground
and rock engineering and protective technologies are paving the
way towards the building of super structures to house equipment
and even people, below land and sea.
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
11
School of Computer Engineering
ture
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Ope pecial
S
DID
IDD YYOU KN
KNOW?
Student Pan
Zhengxiang,
a savvy app
creator, has
even got
Andy Lau’s
attention
f In 2013, over 90% of computer
engineering graduates and 92%
of computer science graduates
were employed within six months
of graduation.
f Under the Intelligent Nation
Masterplan, Singapore intends
to invest heavily and create an
additional 55,000 jobs in the
Infocomm industry by 2015. What
this means: the need for talented IT
professionals is increasing, and the
school’s very relevant programmes
will give you a head start.
1. Master the ins and outs of IT
Tan
Chade-Meng
with Obama
This is the place to equip yourself
with specialist skills in software,
hardware, system integration
and interfaces, and keep in
touch with technology trends
to understand their application
in the industry. Build and
programme a robot, design the
next massive multiplayer online
game like World of Warcraft,
or learn how to stay ahead of
hackers by understanding IT
security and its role in computer
networks.
2. Become a future millionaire or
a technology pioneer
The school’s illustrious
graduates include
Marcus Cheng,
whose IT company
ACCLIVIS reaped
$15 million in its first
year of operation;
and Wang De Rong,
the only Singaporean
to be recruited from the
Asia-Pacific region to work
at Microsoft’s main campus in
the United States. Don’t forget
Google pioneer and Jolly Good
Fellow Tan Chade-Meng –
award-winning engineer and
12
New York
Times bestselling author.
He is the first
Singaporean to
be hired by the
technology giant.
3. Make a mark here and abroad
Be inspired by enterprising
seniors like Pan Zhengxiang,
who invented more than six
technological innovations when
he was a final-year student.
Amongst them is the Eco iPledge,
a free mobile application that
uses augmented reality to rally
residents to make digital pledges
to keep Singapore clean. The app
is Asia’s first community-based
augmented reality app to promote
environmental friendliness, and
was launched by Prime Minister
Lee Hsien Loong last year. Follow
in Zhengxiang’s footsteps – his
industrious streak and solid
training at the school also saw him
become the first Singaporean and
Asian to be selected as Senior Vice
President, Publicity and Outreach
Specialised Agency of Google’s
Executive Board at Harvard
University’s National Model
United Nations.
4. Work at some of
the “happiest companies”
in the world
Get your foot in the door
by interning at big-league
companies like Google and
Facebook, or leading banks
and financial companies like
Citibank, Standard Chartered
and Merrill Lynch. Microsoft,
Lucasfilm and Procter &
Gamble are also some of the
big names who’re known to
hire the school’s graduates.
5. Earn big bucks upon
graduation
The school’s graduates are
amongst the highest-earning
fresh NTU hires. The average
gross monthly salary for
holders of the double degree
in business and computer
science is $3,615, while the
top earner overall last year is
a computer science graduate
drawing $11,700 monthly as a
software engineer.
School of Electrical & Electronic
nic Engineering
1. Carve out a name for yourself
Here’s a solid fact: both the Electrical &
Electronic Engineering and Information
Engineering & Media programmes are
endorsed by the Engineering Accreditation
Board of the Institution of Engineers
Singapore. The two degrees are also
recognised under the Washington Accord,
an international accreditation agreement for
professional engineering academic degrees.
What this means: you’ll be recognised as a
qualified engineer when you graduate from
this school and be highly-regarded by potential
employers worldwide.
2. Get out of this world
There is space to excel at Singapore’s first school
with an undergraduate satellite programme. Lastt
November, the school made headlines again when
en
it successfully launched Singapore’s first student-built satellite into
space. The solar-powered satellite, VELOX-PII, has been orbiting
some 600km above Earth, testing hardware and software designed by
the students.
The school’s Satellite Research Centre also shot to fame in 2011
when it designed and launched the first made-in-Singapore satellite,
X-SAT, into space. What’s next: another student-built satellite,
VELOX-I, will be sent into space this year.
3. Engineer solutions for real-life problems
At this top engineering school, you’ll learn how to tackle complex
engineering problems faced by the world today, and work
alongside eminent professors and researchers who are geared up
to revolutionise everything
from integrated circuits, cyber
security, robotic implants and
neural prosthetics to power
and clean energy. For instance,
you may learn how to create a
technology that lets you switch
television channels by simply
thinking (that is, using your
brainwaves)!
VELOX-I
DID YOU KNOW?
f The school is ranked 10th in
the world in the 2014 QS World
University Rankings by Subject for
Electrical and Electronic Engineering,
jumping 26 places since 2011.
f Globally recognised for its
quality research output, the school
consistently attracts about $65
million of research funding every
year. Its research outcomes appear
in about 650 academic journals and
400 conference papers annually.
4. Gawk at the school’s revolutionary inventions
An ultra high-speed wireless chipset; a touch-sensing technology
that transforms any hard surface into a touch screen; a new
revolutionary graphene-based sensor that is more sensitive to light
than the ones found in today’s cameras… these are just some of the
impactful inventions that have come from this school.
5. Sharpen your business edge
The school’s new engineering programmes offering a second
major in Business will not only help you master the applications
of engineering, but also develop your business sense. Having
both technical and business perspectives will definitely give you
a competitive edge in the job market, and open doors to exciting
career routes in future.
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
VELOX-PII
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This NTU invention,
Ree-Trakt, is helping
patients around the
world
Ope pecial
S
DID YOU KNOW?
f The School of Materials Science &
Engineering is home to the world’s
first completely-dissolving heart
stent; Ree-Trakt, a medical tool that
helps surgeons better control soft
tissue during operations; and LipoLat,
a novel way of fighting glaucoma
through painless jabs.
Here, you’ll get to dabble in
all manner of materials, from
aerospace and biomedical
engineering to clean energy,
consumer products, electronics,
manufacturing, petrochemical,
semiconductor and defence
technologies.
University, and World Cultural
Council special recognition
award winner Prof Zhang Hua,
whose work on the synthesis of
hexagonal close-packed gold
nanostructure is considered
one of the most important
fundamental advances in
materials science and chemistry.
2. Be a business-savvy engineer 4. Think out of the lab
A new Engineering with a
Second Major in Business
programme lets you select from
11 Engineering majors and 4
Business tracks in Accounting,
Finance, Marketing and
Operations Management. With
solid grounding in engineering
and business by the time you
graduate, you’re sure to make an
impressive start at work.
3. Learn from the best
It’s the path less-travelled that
leads you to a new discovery.
Be inspired by the likes of
Prof Subbu Venkatraman,
the School’s Chair, and NTU
Provost Prof Freddy Boey, both
trailblazers in the biomedical
services sector with their
inventions used around the
world. Here, you’ll also have the
chance to work with top minds
like Prof Bo Gunnar Liedberg,
a pioneer in biological and
chemical sensing previously
from Sweden’s Linköping
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f The school has launched about
10 spin-off companies, despite being
a young faculty.
f This is your chance to study at
the largest materials institute in
the world, ranked 8th worldwide
for Materials Science in the 2014 QS
World University Rankings by Subject,
making it the top engineering school
in NTU.
Want to see if your idea can make
a difference? Test it in the real
world. With annual innovation
challenges and industry-linked
final-year projects, there are
opportunities for you to go from
researcher to entrepreneur.
Among the school’s research
breakthroughs are super biomaterials, the world’s slimmest
capacitor for brighter camera
flashes on mobile phones, and
materials that could lead to
energy-efficient solar cells.
5. Join top names in the industry
An industry-relevant curriculum
and close ties with market leaders
like 3M Asia-Pacific,
ExxonMobil, Rolls-Royce
Singapore and Robert Bosch
(SEA), mean you can be in
the right circles for your career.
Whether you turn an internship
into a job opportunity or opt
for a management trainee
programme, it’s all about the
company you keep.
The prolific duo behind
innovative life-saving
inventions like stents that
unclog blocked blood
vessels and a device that
can fix a broken heart.
PHOTO: THE STRAITS TIMES © SINGAPORE PRESS HOLDINGS LIMITED. REPRODUCED WITH PERMISSION.
1. Lay hands on all the cool stuff
School of Mechanical
anical & Aerospac
Aerospace Engineering
1. Build your own robot
The sky’s the limit at the
School of Mechanical &
Aerospace Engineering,
home to impactful
innovations like the world’ss
first flexible endoscope
with small robotic fingers,
solar-powered cars and
unmanned aerial vehicles
that can execute complex
aerial manoeuvres such
as writing calligraphy and
flying in formation within
inches of one another.
Ranked 6th globally in
robotics research, the school
is also behind Singapore’s
first human-size robot,
NASH (NTU Advanced
Smart Humanoid).
2. Win a championship driving
your “own” car
Zip along race tracks with an
eco-friendly car you helped
build from scratch. Since
2009, the school’s eco-cars
have performed well in several
international competitions,
most recently bagging another
four awards at the Shell Ecomarathon Asia 2014 in Manila.
The Nanyang Venture VI team
raced their diesel-powered
car made of wood, while the
Nanyang Venture III team
revved an electric solar car.
Va va vroom!
3. Fly overseas to work for
global aerospace companies
Top students of the Aerospace
Engineering programme
can do exclusive overseas
internships at brand-name
companies for increased
exposure to the global
aerospace industry.
Think companies like
The German Aerospace
Center, Fraunhofer EMI,
Rolls-Royce and ST Aerospace.
Experiencing how engineering
problems are tackled in
different parts of the world
will certainly boost your resume.
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
4. PiPickk from
f seven differentt
specialisations
Whether it’s Aeronautical
Engineering, Manufacturing
Engineering, Energy and
the Environment or Naval
Architecture & Marine
Engineering, you’ll find
your forte on this versatile
engineering programme.
The school’s wide variety of
specialisations also means you’re
likely to find a major that suits
your interests and needs.
5. Be a top-earning engineer
According to the latest Graduate
Employment Survey, published
by the Ministry of Education,
NTU’s fresh Aerospace
Engineering graduates earn a
mean gross monthly salary of
$3,536, the highest amongst
all engineering
programmes in
Singapore.
Not bots about it –
it pays to be an NTU
aerospace engineering
graduate
DID YOU KNOW?
f NTU is the 12th best in the
world for Mechanical, Aeronautical &
Manufacturing Engineering, according
to the latest QS World University
Rankings by Subject.
f This May, the school will launch
its Additive Manufacturing Centre,
equipped with the latest 3D printing
machines that can print metal parts
and even living cells.
f The school’s Aerospace
Engineering degree programme is
the first and onlyy one in Singapore.
gp
Plane impressive!
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School of Art, Design & Media
Ope pecial
S
1. Learn from the makers of your favourite movies
and TV shows
With artists and creative thinkers from all over
the world, the faculty is a United Nations of artistic
excellence. This includes the likes of Malaysian-born comic
artist Sonny Liew, who has collaborated with the Marvel Comics Group;
Benjamin Seide, who worked on visual effects for the hit HBO fantasy drama
series, Game of Thrones; Academy Award-winning filmmaker Ben Shedd; and
d
Hans Bacher, a legendary illustrator famous for his work on Disney movies
like Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King and Mulan. The school’s Chair, Prof
Vibeke Sorensen, was also formerly a consultant for Disney.
2. Loll on a sweeping grass roof
Featured in numerous international
design publications, the school’s iconic
building has been the talk of the global
grapevine since its conception. It even
made it to the Buzzfeed community’s
list of “10 uniquely stunning college
campuses from around the world”,
alongside the likes of the University
of Oxford and University of Glasgow.
The heart-shaped building also won the Building &
Construction Authority’s Green Mark Platinum Award,
the highest honour for a “green building” in Singapore.
Watch the NTU corporate video to see stunning aerial
views of this building.
3. Stretch your creativity in an artistic environment
You’ll find something new and colourful to check out all
the time, from student-decorated lockers and art gallery
exhibits to a library stocked with art books and comics from the
likes of Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman series. Even the students are visual standouts
in their striking sartorial choices, with both years’ winners of the Nail That Unique
Style competition amongst them. The school also has its very own gallery, a unique
exhibition space fitted with high-tech systems like museum track lighting and
climate-controls to safely present sensitive and valuable works of art.
4. Embark on your own “statement pieces”
Depending on your chosen specialty, the skills you learn will enable you to do
anything from setting up your own art installation to directing your own short film or
writing a screenplay. Every year, graduating students participate in the “ADM Show”,
where their artworks are publicly exhibited, marking their transformation from varsity
students to professional artists and designers. Even as an undergraduate, aspiring
film producer Cindy Khoo made her way to the Cannes Film
Festival & Market in 2011 to network with potential
distributors of her short films. The school introduces
new modules every year, most recently courses in
3D film production.
5. Dabble with state-of-the-art tools
Here, you can use modern equipment inside
studios for hands-on work, digital creation
laboratories, media studios and open workshop
spaces. Many of these facilities are used by today’s
industry practitioners to do motion-capture, record
high-quality sounds and design products.
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Art, fashion and
tech on the school
runway
DID YOU KNOW?
f This is Singapore’s first
professional art school offering
degree courses in art, design
and media.
f The school’s graduates include
Sarah Choo, who won Singapore’s
biggest photography award, the ICON
de Martell Cordon Bleu, and Long
Yinghan, who has created visual
effects for Hollywood blockbusters
like The Avengers.
f Other alumni have joined major
advertising agencies like BBDO, while
a good number have started their
own companies producing films and
advertisements for government
ministries, statutory boards and
major beauty brands.
f Who is attending or has attended
school here: son of celebrity couple
Edmund Chen and Xiang Yun; son of
local character actor Zhu Houren; and
daughter of former Education Minister
Dr Ng Eng Hen.
School of Humanities & Social Sciences
do a second major in Business at the
Nanyang Business School. Psychology
majors can also take up a second major
in Biological Sciences. The school also
offers a new interdisciplinary minor,
Global Asia.
4. Be inspired by head-turning
professors
1. Get on with that book you’ve
always wanted to write
DID YOU KNOW?
f Despite being a young school
formed only in 2004, the school is
already ranked amongst the world’s
top 100 in various international
subject rankings. The school made
big strides in the 2014 QS World
University Rankings by Subject, with
English Language & Literature moving
up 38 spots to be ranked 46th.
Political & International Studies is
ranked 35th, and Linguistics, 42nd.
f The multidisciplinary nature of the
school’s programmes mean that its
graduates are well-equipped to work
for big names in various industries,
such as Citibank, Forbes Research,
Procter & Gamble, Singapore Press
Holdings, the Ministry of Education
and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Aspiring novelists, screenwriters and
playwrights can look forward to learning
about the craft of writing through the
school’s Creative Writing Programme.
Build your writing portfolio and work
on that collection of short stories,
poems or plays for a whole semester
when you take the Advanced Creative
Writing course. Learn more about style,
structure, characterisation and the
publishing process from visiting local and
international writers like Singaporean
poet Boey Kim Cheng and awardwinning Malaysian novelist Tash Aw.
2. Become a strong thinker
Engage in a greater contemplation of the
world when you take the school’s newly
introduced degree in Philosophy. You’ll
develop a sophisticated sense of logic,
and maximise your capacity for rigorous
reasoning with modules like Logic and
Paradoxes and Moral Philosophy. In
line with a rapidly developing world, the
programme will help you understand
different global perspectives as it
intersects with other disciplines like
mathematics, physics, biology, economics
and psychology.
Meet Asst Prof Suzy Styles, an expert in
psycholinguistics who left the world of
nuclear physics for humanities when she
realised spinning electrons in radioactive
isotopes were not her thing. Or be
inspired by Asst Prof Leong Kaiwen, the
four-time junior college dropout who
obtained three masters’ degrees and
a PhD in economics from Princeton
University by the age of 31, and Asst Prof
Patrick Williams, who was honoured
with the inaugural Nanyang Education
Award (College), a top award for teaching
excellence presented by the university
last year.
5. Get a head start with that major
you’ve always been passionate about
Under the school’s four-year direct
honours programme, students do not
have to go through the hassle or panic of
a selection process of their major. Apply
directly for your desired
major – English,
Public Policy and
Global Affairs,
Sociology,
Linguistics
and
Multilingual
Studies,
Psychology,
Philosophy
or Chinese –
when you enter
university.
One of our
fav profs...
3. Boost your resume with
a second major
Outstanding first-year students will have
the opportunity to take a second major
in any of the eight major disciplines
within the School of Humanities &
Social Sciences, or pursue one at NTU’s
communication or art, design & media
schools. Economics majors can opt to
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
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Wee Kim Wee School of Communication & Information
Ope pecial
S
DID YOU KNOW?
“I am reporting ‘live’ from
Newsplex Asia, an integrated
N
newsroom of the future…”
f In Communication & Media Studies,
NTU is ranked 6th in the world in the
latest QS World University Rankings
by Subject, jumping an impressive
17 spots within two years to become
number one in Singapore and the
Asia-Pacific.
f Graduates of the school can
take on jobs ranging from movie
directors and film producers to
international correspondents,
editors and advertising agency
creative directors.
f Famous alum include awardwinning journalists like The Straits
Times’ Deputy Foreign Editor Chua
Chin Hon and TODAY’s Associate
Editor Loh Chee Kong. Actress
Joanne Peh and beauty queen
Faraliza Tan also studied here.
4. Intern at leading media agencies
and companies
1. Report breaking news in a
simulated state-of-the-art newsroom
Aspiring journalists will get to do their
assignments in Newsplex Asia, dubbed
the newsroom of the future. The 60seat glass-walled room is the first of its
kind in Asia. Created with WAN-IFRA
(World Association of Newspapers
and News Publishers), this news hub
also trains journalists from Singapore
and the region, so you’ll get to work
alongside savvy media professionals.
2. Satisfy your curiosity in all areas
of the media
The only full-fledged Communication
school in Singapore, it offers the
broadest range of media-related
curricula. From broadcasting to
journalism and advertising to public
relations, communication research
and information studies, students can
learn about it all under one roof. Can’t
decide which area to major in? Go for
an inter-disciplinary concentration,
which allows you to pick and choose
subjects to suit your needs.
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3. Indulge that love for travel
You can travel the world as a student
with overseas training modules specially
designed for communication students.
There’s the Go-FAR (Going Overseas For
Advanced Reporting) programme, the
SOJOURN (Short Overseas Journalism)
practicum, the ISCM (International
Strategic Communication
Management) course for
PR/Advertising majors,
and the Wee trip, an
overseas community
involvement
expedition organised
by students from
the Communication
& Information Club,
all sponsored by the
Wee Kim Wee Legacy
Fund, which also goes a long
way to assist students who qualify for
overseas exchange programmes and
internships. Think countries off the
beaten path like North Korea,
Bhutan, Pakistan, Turkey
and Spain.
MTV Asia, Disney, Universal
Studios, Golin Harris International,
Ogilvy Public Relations, Thomson
Reuters, The Straits Times… you’ll
get the pick of the crop as an NTU
communication student. The school
requires every third-year student
to undergo a six-month internship
at companies like these – you won’t
just be the coffee boy or girl but the
bright-eyed intern that could be
offered a full-time job at the end of
your stint.
5. Make the news
The school’s students
constantly make
newspaper headlines
with their final-year
projects, such as the
four who came up
with humorous but
extreme ways to deal
with people too engrossed
in using their mobile phones even
when in the presence of friends or
family. Other groups have attempted
to raise awareness about recycling
electronics and the need to reduce
food wastage.
School of Biological Sciences
School of Physical &
Mathematical Sciences
1. Discover a cure for cancer
Follow the lead of Acting Chair Prof Peter Preiser, who recently
made headlines globally for his breakthrough research in human
malaria. Prof Preiser and his team developed a new breed of mouse
– the first to have a human immune system that can be infected by
human strains of malaria, and potentially the key to discovering a
new treatment for the disease. Perhaps you’ll make similar headway
into cancer research here...
You’re in for a
magical time!
2. Work alongside a world-famous structural biologist
Internationally feted for her work on chromosome biology, Prof
Daniela Rhodes, a Fellow of the Royal Society in the United
Kingdom, enjoys helping budding young researchers like you
become passionate about science. Seize the opportunity to be
mentored by a leading scholar who obtained her PhD under the
guidance of 1982 Chemistry Nobel laureate Aaron Klug.
3. Cut across disciplines
Find your niche in the leading biomedical hub that is Singapore
with a programme that gives you both an honours degree in
Biological Sciences and a second major in Chemical Biology. With
the guidance of experts from the School of Physical & Mathematical
Sciences’ division of Chemistry and Biology Chemistry, you’ll soon
be solving complex biological problems with the aid of chemical
tools you designed.
4. Prep yourself for a rewarding career
Passion pays at the School of Biological Sciences. According to a
JobStreet survey last year, biotechnology research scientists have the
second-highest average starting salary amongst all fresh grads in
Singapore. You can be one of them, too.
5. Have fun with Freud
Always wanted to read someone’s mind? The Biological Sciences
with Psychology Major programme lets you learn all about human
emotions, behaviours and thoughts. Study topics like forensic
psychology of crime, and benefit from additional career paths in
public affairs, advertising and the media industry.
1. Be inspired by young superstars of science
With more than half of NTU’s 31 National Research
Foundation Fellows – the best young talents from
top international varsities – based at the school, you’ll
have no shortage of mentors to introduce you to a
wide range of subjects like quantum physics and
green and medicinal chemistry.
2. Make things disappear like magic…
... just like Asst Prof Zhang Baile. He may not be
Harry Potter, but Asst Prof Zhang, named one of the
“20 Super Cool People” at the TED2013 conference
in California, invented his very own invisibility cloak
from cheap natural mineral. Recognised as one of the
top 10 university innovations by the Times Higher
Education, it bends light to make objects, like a coin,
invisible to the human eye.
3. Study in facilities modelled after Oxford’s
Fun fact: the Chemistry & Biological Chemistry
building is modelled after the University of
Oxford’s largest research facility, the Chemistry
Research Laboratory. And the school’s connection
to prestigious international institutions doesn’t end
there: several alumni have gone on to graduate studies
at places like Harvard University, Stanford University
and London School of Economics.
4. Tinker to your heart’s content
Apply scientific solutions to a real-life problem of
your choosing in the new Making and Tinkering
course, available this May. With the latest equipment
such as 3D printers, work with students from other
disciplines to turn your solution into reality and then
prove it is a winning creation before a panel of judges.
5. Master the earth
DID YOU KNOW?
f Bayer AG, the Lonza Group and
Roche are some of the leading
companies that look to the school for
fresh hires.
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
As part of the new undergraduate programme,
Environmental Earth Systems Science, venture abroad
on field trips to exotic locales like Bali and be trained
to tackle the major issues of our time, including
the impact of humans on the environment, climate
change and management of natural resources.
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Ope pecial
S
This building is
modelled after
Oxford’s chemistry lab
DID YOU KNOW?
f The curriculum and standards
for the various disciplines offered at
the school are modelled after worldclass varsities like Yale University,
University of California, Los Angeles,
Cornell University and University of
Cambridge.
f At a truly interdisciplinary school
like this one, you’ll find the likes of
mathematicians making an impact
in computer science and physicists
dabbling in financial engineering.
f The school counts a Nobel
laureate amongst its faculty:
Nanyang Visiting Professor Rudolph
A Marcus, 91 this year, won the
Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1992.
1. Nurture your passion for teaching
Here, you’ll learn everything about becoming an
effective and engaging teacher: from tried and
tested teaching methods to important language
and voice presentation skills. Under the
National Institute of Education, which has
over 60 years of history working with the
Ministry of Education and Singapore’s
schools, you’ll be well-trained to inspire
young minds.
2. Be both a professional and a student
The Arts (Education) and Science (Education)
undergraduate degree programmes are designed
to not only grow your potential as a teaching
professional, but also build your strong foundation in
education. This means that after you graduate, you’ll
be ready to further your studies with a higher degree
in your chosen discipline, or to excel in careers in
both education and academic-related fields.
3. Pick from different career tracks
Three possible routes: teaching, leadership or
senior specialist, where you can progress to
become a master teacher or school principal.
4. Do your practicum… overseas
As a student teacher, you’ll get to spend time in
schools learning the ropes of the school process
from experienced teachers. With the institute’s
strong collaborations with overseas universities, you
will get chances to fly abroad to study at its partner
universities in the United States and Europe, and
benefit from their best educational practices.
5. Be a sports star
A better life in 3D
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The sharpest
Th
h p
a
and
fastest
come here...
f
The four-year direct honours Sport Science &
Management programme is the only sports-related
degree offered by a Singapore university. With the
government pouring millions of dollars into the
sports industry, and the opening of the Sports Hub
this year, the programme’s strengths in physiology,
biomechanics, sport management and coaching
will make your education very relevant.
DID YOU KNOW?
f NTU is ranked 1st in Asia in the
2014 QS World University Rankings
by Subject for Education.
f The National Institute of Education
takes effort to encourage altruism
as part of its curriculum. Student
teachers, for example, will take
part in Group Endeavours in Service
Learning projects, where they offer
community services in Singapore via
different social initiatives.
f Sport science & management
undergrads in the limelight include
Tan Si Lie, who bagged Singapore’s
first medal at the prestigious Indoor
Archery World Cup in 2013, and
Dipna Lim-Prasad, Singapore’s first
female track Olympian in 36 years.
NEW IN NTU!
Four exciting programmes will be offered during the academic
year from August. Will you be part of the pioneer batch?
Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Environmental Earth
Systems Science
Dig deep into the mysteries of the planet with this
programme, the first of its kind in Singapore.
Learn how to think like an earth system
scientist, and uncover the connections
in the earth system and their
important roles in maintaining a
sustainable human society. Take
classes in weather and climate,
oceanography, hydrology and
ecology, and study the scientific
effects of environmental problems
like climate change and natural
hazards on humans.
Be taught by some of the world’s
best “rock stars”, geologist Prof Kerry Sieh
and tectonics expert Prof Charles Rubin, and go on
“Rock star” field courses overseas, such as an introductory field
Prof Kerry Sieh trip to Bali at the end of your first year of study.
Under this unique programme offered by NTU’s
Division of Earth Sciences at the School of Physical
& Mathematical Sciences, you’ll also get to read
specialisations like Geosciences, which could
land you an exciting job in natural and resource
exploration, water resource management and
geotechnical consulting; or Society and Earth System,
which will prepare you for a career in fields like
environmental and urban planning.
Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Philosophy
Want to be a famous philosophy graduate like
former US President Bill Clinton?
Under NTU’s new Philosophy programme by
the School of Humanities & Social Sciences, you’ll
hone your critical and philosophical thinking skills
that are transferable and applicable to a host of
career paths and industries.
Read unique courses like Philosophy of Science,
Philosophy of Technology, and Philosophy and
History of Great Ideas, all of which are aimed at
raising your level of innovative thinking on different
areas like technology, business and public policies.
All students complete a final-year project to
stretch their creative thinking. They will also have
the option to take up a second major or a minor to
bolster their knowledge and make them more wellrounded graduates.
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) with a Second
Major in Business
Get the best of both worlds with this rigorous
double major programme in Engineering and
Business, which lets you choose from a range of
11 exciting engineering majors and four specialist
tracks in Business.
In the first two years, engineering students will
read Business foundation modules together with
the ones in their specific Engineering major, and
even attend business classes with their peers at
the Nanyang Business School. At the end of your
second year, zoom into your specific interests and
career goals by opting for one of four Business
tracks: accounting, finance, marketing or
operations management.
Graduates of this dual programme will be
highly valued for their mix of business leadership
and credible engineering pedigree. This means
getting a distinct competitive edge and market
value over your peers, and receiving more career
opportunities in diverse industries.
Second Major in Food Science
& Technology
What goes into the food we
eat? How do we keep food
fresh for a longer time, and
make it taste better? Learn
all about food processes
and manufacturing from an
industrial point of view, and
discover the significance of
food science and technology
and its possibilities in combating
malnutrition, reducing food waste and improving
sustainability.
Students will also have opportunities to
intern at big food companies, and be taught
by renowned professors from Wageningen
University, one of the world’s leading teaching and
research centres in food science and technology.
This new programme is jointly awarded by
NTU and Wageningen University from the
Netherlands, and is open to top students reading
undergraduate degrees in Biological Sciences,
Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, and
Chemistry & Biological Chemistry.
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22
Feature
F
Prep talk
Winifred Tan gets insider tips on how
to tackle that admissions interview
Tip 1: Be yourself
Seniors say…
“My interview was
more of a friendly chat with
two professors on my life experiences,
projects I’ve been involved in and what
I hope to achieve. My advice to
NTU applicants? Be true to yourself and
communicate what you
really feel and want.”
Gabriel Chee
University Scholars Programme
“For certain questions that
test creative problem-solving,
interviewers are more interested in the way
you think rather than whether you can
give an accurate answer.”
Sharmaine Wong
Renaissance Engineering Programme
“Medicine applicants are
divided into groups and have to go
through eight rounds of multiple
mini-interviews. Each session was timed
and focused on a different theme, which
compelled us to be succinct in our answers.
Don’t be afraid to get ‘grilled’;
the interviewers genuinely want to
get to know you as an individual.”
Lavisha Punjabi
Medicine
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
Find out more about the course or programme you’re applying
for, either by reading up online or talking to your seniors, suggests
NTU scholar Sharmaine Wong. And think about what you hope
to achieve at university.
“The aim of the admissions interview is to determine whether
you’re qualified and ready to pursue the programme. It is
therefore important that you be yourself, and not someone who
you think will fit in,” advises Prof Tan Ooi Kiang, Director of NTU’s
admissions office.
Tip 2: Be appropriately dressed
On the day of the interview, show up punctually looking smartly
dressed, unless you want to give the impression that the interview
is just a means to an end for you to land a spot in university.
“I once met an applicant who turned up in his soccer jersey so
that he could rush for a soccer game after his interview,” says Prof
Tan, citing a negative example.
Tip 3: Speak confidently about your
achievements
During the interview, answer questions succinctly and speak
confidently. This is where it pays to know your “selling points”.
But steer clear of reciting answers, cautions accountancy
and business undergraduate Gabriel Chee. “Preparing for
common interview questions is not about memorising a set
of ‘standard’ answers. It’s a way of spurring yourself to think
about your motivations and reflect on what you want out of
your university education.”
“I was quizzed on why I wanted to study aerospace
engineering and whether I held leadership positions in school,”
recalls CN Yang Scholar Chen Ningjia. “Some of my friends
were asked to solve science questions.”
Interview questions typically cover three aspects: your
personality, technical knowledge, and creativity and problemsolving skills.
Tip 4: Ask questions
As Sharmaine puts it, a good interview is “both interrogative
and informative”.
Interviewers will often take the time to guide you through the
programme’s expectations and address your queries, so use these
opportunities well.
Explains Prof Tan: “Here’s your chance to discuss your goals
with your future mentors in a friendly setting.”
23
Feature
" I used to be Fat"
Tips for fighting obesity, from
a beauty queen – who once almost
tipped the scales at 100kg – and a
health communications researcher
by Chrystal Chan
Kylie Yuen shops for groceries
differently from most of us. Whenever
she picks up an item, she flips it over to
study the ingredients list, and if she sees
something that isn’t naturally-derived,
she puts it back on the shelf.
“I make sure I check the nutrition
labels of everything I buy. As long as
there is an ingredient I don’t recognise
or can’t pronounce, I don’t touch it,”
says the svelte business student, who
was crowned Nanyang Business School
Queen last year.
Kylie hasn’t always been this
meticulous, however. Just four years
ago, she was twice her current size and
ate whatever she wanted. This meant she
spent most of her teenage years hiding
in baggy polo tees and bermudas.
The wake-up call came one day
in 2010 when she stepped on the
weighing scale and noticed that her
weight was dangerously close to hitting
the 100kg mark.
“I got a shock when I saw I was 99.7kg.
I decided I could not allow myself to
reach 100kg, so I set my heart on losing
weight,” recalls the first-year undergrad.
Rather than relying on slimming
products, Kylie researched online to find
the most efficient way of losing weight
and began recording her progress on a
piece of paper that she pasted in front of
her weighing scale to keep her on track.
Kylie credits most of her 45kg weight
loss to her diet, which includes lots of
vegetables and no processed food. She
abstains from candy, junk food and fast
food, opting for healthy alternatives like
fruits when she craves something sweet.
“If you freeze a very ripe papaya, it
will taste like ice cream,” she says.
24
Good moves
Regular exercise also helped
tremendously when she was
trying to lose weight. Every day,
after school, she would take a
half-hour jog around her home.
“I think every little bit counts
when it comes to exercise. I
climb the stairs instead of taking
the lift, or walk to school from
my hall instead of taking the
bus,” she says.
Her dramatic weight loss has
changed her life for the better.
Not only did she clinch second
place in The New Paper New
Face 2012 contest, which has
launched the careers of many
models and celebrities, she is
more confident now, and unlike
before, not self-conscious about
her looks.
“I feel people are kinder to
me now, but that’s probably
because I am more sociable and
nd
receptive to others, so I feel that
hat
people are friendlier,” she adds.
s.
Kylie admits that she should
d
have started adopting healthy
habits at a younger age.
“I was a fat kid because my
grandparents loved to spoil me
and would give me all the good
od
food,” she says.
“I think, for kids these dayss
and even many of us, it is easyy to
put on weight, because we lead
d
such busy lives. Many of us eat
at
out often and don’t really havee
time to exercise.”
Her sentiments are echoed by
Assoc Prof May Lwin, who has
as
conducted numerous research
h
projects on childhood obesityy
and health communications.
“Childhood obesity is a
growing issue in Singapore
and worldwide, because the
sedentary lifestyle is getting
more prevalent amongst the
young. And with so many digital
distractions, kids have less
reason to go out and play,” says
Assoc Prof Lwin.
The Wee Kim Wee School of
Communication & Information
professor has made great strides in
her research, recently developing
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
a mobile game application called
My Pet Fitness that can motivate
kids to go out and exercise.
To bring up their virtual pet,
players have to raise in-game
money for pet food and other
necessities by doing physical
activities such as walking or
jogging, which creates and
sustains the motivation to
work out.
“You can’t force kids to
exercise, so any way to get them
moving should be encouraged.
What’s more, these days, there
are a lot of processed ingredients
and junk food in meals, which
unfortunately, contribute
more calories and less of the
good stuff, like vitamins and
minerals,,” she says.
y
RRead
eadd bbefore
eforre yo
ef
youu ea
eatt
Assoc Prof Lwin has also
done extensive research
on health education and
communication, such as
studying how food packaging
can influence eating decisions.
“When grocery shopping,
it’s best to read the labels of
the products you are thinking
of buying carefully, to find out
what’s actually in them, as food
packaging can be deceiving,”
she advises.
“For example, a packet that
has a picture of strawberries
may mislead you to think that
the food item inside it has
strawberries when it merely
contains pink food colouring,”
she explains.
Assoc Prof Lwin’s research on
deceptive food packaging has
been shared with the Health
Promotion Board and AgriFood & Veterinary Authority of
Singapore.
“By
“B
By identifying
types of
the ty
misleading or
misle
unhelpful devices
unhel
by food
used b
companies out there,
comp
authorities can
the au
determine effective
determ
labelling guidelines
labelli
hopefully reduce
and ho
these kinds of
the incidence of th
food packaging,” she says.
The next time you shop,
don’t be swayed by the pictures
on food packaging or the
discounts offered, and instead
be proactive about selecting
healthier options, suggests
Assoc Prof Lwin.
25
Feature
get more moolah
Final-year student Zach Chia explores the different ways to get
dough as a student, whether it’s financing your education, earning an
allowance, growing your income or even boosting your CV
While government loans and grants can help pay
for your school fees, they may not be able to cover
your daily expenses or the cost of overseas study
trips. Here are some ways a student like you can get
more bucks for your bank (account).
Bursaries
You can apply for a bursary if the per capita
income of your household is $1,700 or less. Per
capita income is computed by dividing the gross
household income by the number of people in
the household.
Bursaries are tenable for a year and provide you
with money to tide you over the school year.
The sum given ranges from $800 to about
$2,900, depending on the awarding entity, with
the money usually dispersed in two trenches, in
November and March. No repayment is required.
The application window opens after you have
matriculated. It’s open every academic year, so
everyone who qualifies financially can apply.
Scholarships
From the Nanyang Scholarship
to the College Scholarship and
LKCMedicine Scholarship,
the list runs long. And you
may not know that some
scholarship options are
open to you after you have entered NTU. These
one-year scholarships are awarded based on your
performance at university, both academic and
non-academic, and have values ranging from
$3,000 to $15,000 per academic year.
Recent biological sciences graduate
Darren Lim, a recipient of the CJ
Koh Scholarship and Tan Sri Dr
Runme Shaw Scholarship, says:
“Being bond-free, these scholarships
give me the freedom I want, and
have helped to fund my hall fees,
overseas exchange at Karolinska
Institutet in Sweden and
internships in Singapore and Shanghai.”
Eligible freshmen can submit their application
in July. Candidates shortlisted by the evaluation
committee go through an interview.
26
Loans
Some 7 in 10 students go abroad at
least once during their studies at NTU.
The intangibles that global exposure
brings are very beneficial in the long term.
Students wondering how to finance these
opportunities can turn to various schemes and
loans to help defray the cost of going on exchange
or other immersion trips in addition to
their tuition fees.
Did you know?
NTU’s overseas programmes include
exchange, summer school,
work-study schemes, internships and
attachments and research programmes,
including Final Year Projects
(students from the School of Biological
Sciences, for example, are able to conduct
their final-year research overseas and get
a loan to do so).
Growing your pocket money
What if you want to make some pocket money
while you are studying?
Work on campus
Tiffany Goh, a third-year sociology
student, worked part-time at
NTU’s Centre for IT Services last
semester, bagging not just spare
moolah but some work experience.
“Besides being in a job to earn a bit
of pocket money, I also had a taste
of what it might be like to enter the workforce. It
forced me to be disciplined – to be punctual for
work, meet deadlines and take instructions from
colleagues with different working styles. It was
an enjoyable experience and I would recommend
such part-time work to any student who can
afford the time.”
Undergraduates under NTU’s work-study scheme
can work up to 14 hours a week during the semester
and 44 hours a week during semestral breaks.
At the website, look for
StudentLink to search for jobs
that pay by the hour. There are
many different jobs, some ad
hoc, others regular, and the
money also comes rather quickly
once you have completed the
administrative work.
Volunteer for
experiments
or surveys
Some schools,
like the School
of Humanities
& Social
Sciences, often
need subjects for research
experiments. Give under 30
minutes of your time to bag
some quick cash or shopping
vouchers. It’s a nice way to help
with research – think economic
risk response, linguistic ability
and creativity, change in muscle
makeup based on diet and
lifestyle, etc.
Making $avvy
moves for your CV
Or maybe you want to try
a pushcart store. The NTU
Students’ Union runs a U-Flea
Market every two months; you
pay a rental fee of $30 and have
two full days to make a killing in
the student market.
Research and earn
If you score well in
your studies, you may
be invited to take part
in the Undergraduate
Research Experience
on CAmpus (URECA)
programme and earn
the coveted title of
NTU President Research Scholar
– plus some income. URECA
is designed to get top students
to take part in research and
consider a research career.
“URECA coincided with what
I wanted – hands-on research
experience, on top of the usual
curriculum,” says Darren, who
was on the programme for two
years and has done research in
both Singapore and Sweden.
Maybe you want more. Not
just money for tuition fees and
pocket money, but something
that also looks good on your CV,
such as a business you started
and ran while at university.
champions in the CIMB
ASEAN Youth Stock Challenge
in 2012, and got a “safe
environment to practise trading
strategies”.
Together with his course
mate, third-year computer
engineering student Randall
Ong won the CIMB Securities
Youth Challenge two years ago,
which came with a $10,000
prize, allowing him to beef
up his trading portfolio and
“reaffirm” his trading strategies.
He adds: “It helps because
employers can see that you won
in a competitive setting and
that it’s quite an achievement.”
Says third-year business
student Kay Woo, who was a
runner-up in the annual CP
Marketing Challenge: “The
greatest joy from joining
competitions is learning from
other teams putting their best
foot forward to make sure they
come out at the top.”
Be a boss
Sometimes, you
need to spend
money to make
more money,
but it can pay
off. The Nanyang
Technopreneurship
Centre runs a Minor in
Entrepreneurship programme
that provides both theory
and practical experience –
a great way to get your own
little thing off the ground with
some guidance.
If you already have a workable
idea or product that you want to
turn into a business, approach
NTU’s Nanyang Innovation and
Enterprise Office about setting
up your firm at the centre.
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
Join competitions
Check your NTU email
account – you’ll regularly
see announcements for
competitions, from trading
or business case competitions
to science and essay contests.
Many of these offer great prizes,
too. It’s a really smart thing to
do – you get good money if you
win, gain practical experience
and boost your CV.
Many enterprising students
take this route. Recent Nanyang
Business School graduate Aaron
Bay, a management associate
at Keppel Corporation,
and his team were national
27
28
Hot Shots
HEY , GOOD-LOOKING!
What plans did NTU students make for Valentine’s Day?
PRISCILLA LAM ACCOUNTANCY
“It’s important that I spend
the day making meaningful
conversation with the people
who matter.”
“If I don’t find
a date for Valentine’s
Day, I’d hang out with
my friends and show
them some extra love.
If I were to go out
with a girl, I’d ask to
meet at Clarke Quay.
We would take a
leisurely walk by the
Singapore River, go to
a tapas restaurant, and
enjoy a glass of wine
in the sunshine.”
BEL GOH AEROSPACE ENGINEERING
“I’d take my girlfriend somewhere
close to nature, like a park with
a lot of greenery, or a beach
with a pleasant view.”
ROBERT NILSSON COMMUNICATION
NATALIE TEOW HUMANITIES
“I have a late-night date
with my mum and dad,
after dining with my
boyfriend at Raffles.
I’m very close to my
parents and want to
express my affection
for them, too.”
EUNICE SEOW HUMANITIES
“I’ll be chilling out in a
quiet café in East Coast,
eating Japanese food.
I don’t typically make a
fuss about Valentine’s
Day, as I believe you
can show appreciation
for your loved ones all
the time, and not just on
special occasions.”
S
PHOTOS: CHRYSTAL CHAN
CARLOS JAVIER MARTONO BUSINES
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
“I’m an exchange
student from the
Netherlands, so
unfortunately, my
girlfriend is back
at home. Next best
thing: a relaxing
getaway to Bali with
my buddies!”
29
30
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14
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31
31
Feature
Get t0 class on line
Chrystal Chan discovers the allure of e-learning and the draw of NTU’s
first fully online classes on open learning platform Coursera
Picture this. You’re reviewing
your class material when
you realise you are unsure
about what your professor is
talking about so you decide to
post a question online. In no
time at all, you get responses
to your question from your
classmates… in Africa and the
Netherlands. Welcome to the
new age of online learning.
This is a reality for more than
18,400 students worldwide, all
of whom have started on NTU’s
first-ever Coursera course,
Beauty, Form and Function:
An Exploration of Symmetry,
conducted entirely online since
17 February. Students who “log
on to class” via the Massive
Open Online Course (MOOC)
platform will see a video of the
professor conducting a lesson
in one of NTU’s specially-built
interactive classrooms, in this
case, Prof Tim White from
NTU’s School of Materials
Science & Engineering.
“Contrary to popular
belief, virtual classes are quite
personalised. I can see my
students via webcam, whereas in
a typical lecture you can’t see the
guys at the back,” says Prof White.
32
includes keystroke identification
to check that you’re really taking
the class. Matriculated NTU
students can take the course on
the Signature Track for free.
Current and prospective NTU
students who take the courses
can earn credits that count
towards their NTU degree.
Since each course is worth three
Academic Units (AUs) and takes
about eight weeks to complete,
it is a boon for those planning to
finish their degree programme
in a shorter time. Prospective
NTU students, for example,
would be able to clear at least
one module before they even
begin their freshman year.
“I really like the idea that
you can go to class at home
or anywhere, because it saves
travelling time. I’d like to try it
out since I can offset my AUs
as well,” says
Natalie Teow,
QUICK FACTS
a second-year
where all the students for
Chinese major.
1. Using ZeeMaps, you can see
Three more
a course are logging in from.
student’s paper will be
courses taught by
one
–
rs
rade
co-g
are
ents
Stud
2.
marks will be averaged.
top professors are
marked by three others and the
w
in the pipeline
fello
ch
whi
,
time
any
3. Students can ask questions
answer.
– Chinese
can
ld
wor
the
nd
arou
from
coursemates
philosophy,
be
may
you
,
trip
eld
fi
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4. If your class assignment inclu
e.
e-commerce and
ther
ally
actu
you were
asked to take a “selfie” to show
technology, and
Ng, co-founder of
natural hazards.
5. Stanford University’s Andrew
d
mpe
NTU’s reva
Coursera, was so impressed with
“We’re hoping
er
bett
e
wer
studios that he claimed they
to plough back
than Stanford’s.
the knowledge
we gain from
conducting online classes into
All classes offered on
our mainstream courses to make
Coursera are free. Those who
them even better. Under a fiveopt for the Signature Track will
year plan, we will roll out even
receive a “verified certificate”
more online courses, so it’s
jointly issued by Coursera
quite exciting,” says Prof Kam
and NTU for US$29. The
Chan Hin, Associate Provost
Signature Track uses a “verified
for Undergraduate Education.
certification” process that
“Personally, I really love
the idea that we’re going to be
teaching people in Africa and
the Bahamas. I think that’s really
fun,” he adds.
More than 38,400 students
worldwide have registered for
NTU’s first two MOOCs. The
second course, Introduction
to Forensic Science, starting in
May, has over 20,000 sign-ups
and is still accepting applicants.
“I’ve actually been wanting
to take the forensic science
module as I think it’s quite
interesting, but I’ve heard that
it is quite content heavy, so
that has been putting me off
from taking it together with
my regular modules. But now
that it is available online, I
might consider signing up for
it,” says graduating mechanical
engineering student Karl Tay.
b Christopher
by
Chr
hrisstto
oph
pher
er O
Ong
ng
Spurred by the Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)
and bird flu outbreaks of the
early 2000s, Prof Timothy
White pioneered NTU’s first
comprehensive online course,
Symmetry and Crystals, in 2007.
It proved a hit with students.
Today, the course is the
inspiration for NTU’s first foray
into Massive Open Online
Courses (MOOCs) on Coursera
– Beauty, Form and Function: An
Exploration of Symmetry, where
students learn how to identify
symmetrical forms and appreciate
their importance in nature, art,
architecture and everyday life.
The School of Materials
Science & Engineering professor
shares: “After the bird flu and
SARS scares, we started Symmetry
and Crystals to see how we
could use online learning in the
event that undergrads could not
attend classes.”
“The course was initially
delivered both online and in
person via tutorials. Later on,
while we still offered students the
option of coming for classes, we
found that most of them preferred
attending online tutorials.”
As an educator, Prof White
weighed the merits of breaking
with the old model of one
professor standing in front of a
group of students. He saw that
online tutorials helped students
“get through the fluff quickly”
– they would take the initiative
to answer the simpler questions
posed by their peers via the group
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
chat function, allowing him to
focus on the difficult ones.
“We could cover over 50
questions in an online session
versus 10 to 15 questions in a
regular tutorial.”
Although the course ended
when Prof White returned to
his native Australia in 2009, the
online learning pioneer was
handed the opportunity to build
on the foundations he had put in
place when he returned to NTU
three years later.
“We could cover over
50 questions in an
online session versus
10 to 15 questions in a
regular tutorial.”
On 17 February, Beauty, Form
and Function: An Exploration
of Symmetry opened its virtual
classroom doors. NTU’s first
MOOC has attracted more than
18,400 enrolments from over
100 countries and Prof White
is excited by the prospect of
reaching out to learners from
the furthest corners of the globe,
including Bolivia, Sudan and the
Netherlands Antilles.
He adds: “With the use of a
webcam, I can offer a learning
experience that is one-to-one and
personal, instead of one-to-many
in a packed lecture theatre with
200 students.”
There are even recorded
interviews with experts – from a
geomancer named Master Lim
to the director of the Singapore
Botanic Gardens – offering
insights into the exquisite patterns
found in crystals and flowers.
More importantly, Prof White
hopes that students will make
full use of social media and form
online study groups with others
interested in the same area of
specialisation.
“We’ve created spaces on
Facebook, Twitter and Coursera,
where students can discuss the
course material. For Coursera
courses, a thought-provoking
question typically receives
between 50 and 200 responses,
so this is a good opportunity for
peer learning.”
He adds: “Students are often
better than their professors at
explaining concepts to their peers,
and the best part is that explaining
something to someone else is a
fantastic way to learn.”
Second-year aerospace
engineering student Cheng Shi
Wee has enjoyed the MOOC
experience, describing it as “fun
and interactive”.
He enthuses: “I like how I can
talk to students from across the
globe, which makes me feel that
the world has become smaller.
And I can view the lectures and
do the quizzes in my own time. In
fact, I don’t need to leave my desk
to complete this course.”
33
Advertorial
No strings attached
It happens. With every New Year’s resolution comes a decision to get fit and
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schedule getting in the way of regular gym or class attendance.
Thankfully, not every fitness centre out there demands you pay a hefty
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Just a stone’s throw away from Somerset MRT station at Orchard Central,
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for a workout can pick a class they would like to join and pay only for that
session. Customers are not required to apply for membership or take up a
package so they can drop in whenever they have a free hour to spare.
As tempting as that sounds, it’s best to reserve a spot via email before
heading down in case the class you want is full for that particular time
slot. The most popular class is Zumba, which takes up to 25 students per
session, per instructor.
Classes are affordable, at $15 for an hour of Zumba and $30 each for
the capoeira and the ladies kickboxing classes, less than the price of a meal
from a fancy restaurant.
Now this is a fitness centre even commitment-phobes will warm to.
Zesty Kickz is at #05-31, Orchard Central. For more information, visit www.zestykickz.com.
Advertorial
Be cool!
At Singapore’s only Olympic-size ice rink on Level 3 of JCube,
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The regular adult admission rate for a two-hour session at The Rink is
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* Each lesson involves 30 minutes with a qualified coach and two hours of
practice. The course fee is $107 per skater per level for group bookings by
schools/universities.
**The Student Pass for tertiary students (aged 18-22) is priced at $105.
34
Thinking Aloud
10 things
I have learnt this semester
by Andrew Duffy
Andrew Duffy is an
Assistant Professor
at the Wee Kim
Wee School of
Communication &
Information. He has
previously written for
The New Paper and
The Straits Times.
Professors – as any student will agree – don’t
know everything. Luckily, some of the best
teachers are my students, but I can also, if
desperate, learn from colleagues as well. In fact,
just by being on campus, wisdom seeps into
my brain by osmosis. The point is that going to
university should inculcate a desire for lifelong
learning, and it has certainly worked for me. Here
are 10 things I have learnt this semester.
1. The meaning of “FML”.
I “arrowed” a student for a
task and she said: “Great,
FML.” I guessed she
meant: “For Me? Laughs!”
I was wrong. I visited Urban Dictionary and
found out it’s something to do with lighthouses.
So now I know.
2. Students obsess about GPAA
The
until they go on exchange. The
purpose of GPA, or Grade
Point Average, is to secure
a place on exchange, so
when that’s done, all’s
good. This also explains
the exchange students who
arrive in Singapore and
for whom GPA seems to
stand for “Goback-Packing
Allthetime”.
3. Campus bus routes change at the
weekends. So I had a surprisee visit to the
Pioneer MRT station. That’s fi
ne, but the
fine,
driver made me get off the (air-conditioned)
ir-conditioned)
bus, walk down the (not air-conditioned)
onditioned)
road and stand in the (hot) sun,
un, before
ggetting back on the bus again.
4. Istanbul is the capital of moustache
transplants. I learnt this from a student preparing
PHOTO: PEARLY TAN
for a travel-writing trip to Turkey. Apparently,
Turkish CEOs do not command respect unless
they have a luxuriant moustache. If they can’t
grow one, they go to Istanbul and return with a
massive mo. Who knew?
5. Some scientists know more about rock
music than science. I joined a team of
biochemechanicalcomputerengineericists at an
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
NTU pub quiz where faculty pit their brains
against one another. Who sang “And the last
thing I see is my heart, still beating…”? They
knew.* How many elements in the Periodic
Table? Not so sure...**
6. Brad Pitt can do my job. As NTU embraces
online courses, who knows, one day lecturers
may not be needed. We just write the lectures
and NTU could video Brad delivering them. I
am OK with this. I am even prepared to swap my
salary and house with Brad. So, Brad, give me a
call. Angelina still has my number.
7. You can fly to Bangkok for $1 return. This
came up in a big lecture theatre when I asked
a student what she had bought recently, and
why, and she said: “A return flight to Bangkok,
because it was $1.”
8. Getting a $1 flight to
BBangkok does not make you
popular. I gathered this
from the looks of envy,
hatred and resentment
from the other 163 people
in the room. Me included.
9. Students are not
ro
On Valentine’s
romantic.
Day,
Day some of my students
were d
dressed with angel wings
and devil’s
horns… but none
d
admitted
to a date. So I never
admi
found
foun out whether the angels
or the
th devils had the best time.
10. I need a haircut. I learnt
this from two students who
randomly serenaded me with a
guitar and an improvised ditty about my shaggy
head. Some things you can’t just tell someone –
you have to put it in a song.
So, here are 10 valuable lessons. My life is richer
for knowing them. I share them in the hope that
yours will be, too.
* Meat Loaf ’s Bat Out of Hell.
** There are 98 naturally occurring elements, and 16 more have been
synthesised. Plus two unofficial elements that may have been synthesised.
So the answer is 98, 114 or 116. Unobtanium is not one of them, by the way.
35
Unplugged
DISRUPTIVE
PIONEER
Anyone with an Internet connection can now take two of
NTU’s most popular courses on Coursera. Lester Kok visits
its co-founder, Andrew Ng, an associate professor at Stanford
University, at his Mountain View office in California to find
out about the next frontier of education
Who are the ones taking
Massive Open Online Courses
(MOOCs)? At Coursera, we
are getting the most traction in
professional education. More
than 75% of Coursera users
already have a bachelor’s degree.
The old model of education –
where you go to university for
four years and spend the next
40 years coasting along on that
education – makes little sense
in today’s world. All of us need
regular infusions of knowledge
in order to stay current. Online
courses – the kind that you can
take from top universities and
from the convenience of your
own home – are bringing many
adults back into the higher
education system.
One unique feature in Coursera
is the Signature Track, where
a student can get a signed
certificate from Coursera and
its partner university. How do
you make sure students don’t
cheat? We use a few methods
to verify their identity. First,
36
we ask the student to hold their
government-issued identity
card to the webcam, so we
can capture their picture and
their real legal name. Next is
to check their typing rhythm,
which is fairly unique, just
like fingerprints. No matter
how hard I try, I will have a
very hard time typing like
you do. It is almost hardwired
into our brains through many
years of habitual typing, as my
own research has found. The
verification process we use is so
stringent that it poses an even
bigger deterrence to cheating
when compared with the
situation at most universities’
on-campus classes.
Since top universities are
offering courses online, why
should one attend university?
For most 18-year-olds, between
choosing to stay at home
to take a free online course
and attending a university to
take courses conducted on
its campus, the latter option
“Increasingly, more
employers are taking
Signature Track certificates
seriously. We are starting
to see employers asking for
MOOC credentials in their
job descriptions.”
would be much more attractive.
I’d advise all young people to
attend university – there is no
substitute for the residential
experience, which can enrich
you in so many ways. For NTU
students, they can attend campus
classes and take MOOCs. I think
MOOCs can help universities
to improve their on-campus
education by increasing access to
their courses so more students
can take them.
PHOTO: LESTER KOK
What
Wh
att a
are
re some
som
omee ne
new ttrends
rend
ds ffor
or
MOOCs?? IIncreasingly,
MOOC
i l more
employers are taking Signature
Track certificates seriously. We
are starting to see employers
asking for MOOC credentials
in their job descriptions. A few
universities have started to issue
guidelines to students, teaching
them how to use MOOC
credentials when applying for
university. NTU is one of the
pioneers here. While several
universities have started to
offer credits for MOOCs hosted
on Coursera, NTU has gone
further by allowing those taking
its MOOCs to offset academic
credits during university
admissions, which means a
prospective student can chalk
up course credits even before
entering NTU.
Where do you see MOOCs in
the education sector? I think
the biggest impact of MOOCs
in the near future would be
in continuing education,
where there is a huge need
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
for online learning. In the
United
and,
U
i d States
S
d to a lesser
l
extent, Singapore, there is a
gap between what employers
are looking for in terms of
skill sets and the skills workers
present. MOOCs fill that void
fairly nicely.
How do you see the future
of learning? The future will
increasingly be one where you
learn your entire life. If you
want to learn a new subject or
how to speak better publicly,
for example, you can take a
high-quality course at your
own convenience. That is what
MOOCs offer.
You have visited many
universities in the course of
your work. What about NTU’s
foray into online education
most impresses you? One
of the things I really admire
about NTU is the work done
on blended learning. NTU is
one of the most advanced in
blended learning, or the flipped
classroom, which is having oncampus students
consume online
d
li
content and use the classroom
time for deeper discussion.
Last year, you were listed by
TIME magazine as one of the
100 most influential people in
the world for “bringing elite
education to everyone”. Tell
us more about your childhood.
I was born in the United
Kingdom and raised in Hong
Kong. When I was eight years
old, I moved to Singapore where
I attended Anglo-Chinese
School (Primary), Raffles
Institution, then Raffles Junior
College. I left junior college
after nine months there to study
computer science at Carnegie
Mellon University. I was on
the Singapore International
Mathematical Olympiad
team and now teach artificial
intelligence, so I guess you could
say I have always been interested
in science, mathematics and
the potential of technology to
change the world.
37
COLLABORATE.
INNOVATE.
INTEGRATE.
CLAIM YOUR PLACE AMONG
EXCELLENT COMPANY.
Brandon Teo
College of Engineering
AM
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PLIFY
PA
RSH
RTNE
IPS
To excel in a global workplace, you need connections and skills beyond the
ordinary. With an education at NTU, you’ll be more than ready. We team up
with over 400 academic and industry partners on our cosmopolitan campus to
bring you a truly interdisciplinary and global education. From the classrooms
of Imperial College London to the laboratories of BMW and Rolls-Royce, you’ll
discover what it takes to be the next mover and shaker in the global village.
Take your potential to the next level. Join NTU today.
www.ntu.edu.sg/admissions
giveaways
20% OFF
+ FREE
Win Divergent movie tickets
your total bill
Osmanthus Jelly Dessert
(worth $3.60)
We have 30 pairs to give away!
PHOTO COURTESY OF WWW.MAKEYOURCALORIESCOUNT.COM
when you flash your NTU student card!
Valid only on weekdays from 11.30am–2.30pm at Dian Xiao Er, Jurong Point 2, #03-26/27.
Present this original coupon along with your NTU matriculation card to enjoy the discount and
complimentary dessert. For dine-in only. Not applicable with other promotions, discounts or set
menus. One redemption per table. Valid till 31 March 2014. Coupon is not exchangeable for cash.
Win an 8-piece sample set
from Kiehl’s
75 sets (each worth $40)
up for grabs!
Each set includes
5ml sachets of Ultra Light
Daily UV Defense SPF
50 PA+++, Acne Blemish
Control Daily Skin Clearing
Treatment, Ultra Facial OilFree Cleanser and Rare Earth
Pore Minimizing Lotion.
Simply state whether this is true or false:
Students can earn an income under NTU’s
Undergraduate Research Experience on
CAmpus (URECA) programme.
Email your answer, with “Divergent” as the subject line, along with your full name, school/year of
study or graduation, contact number and email address, to hey@ntu.edu.sg by 16 March 2014.
Winners will be drawn from among contestants with the correct answer. Multiple entries
from the same person will not be accepted. All prizes are to be collected from the Corporate
Communications Office, NTU.
Win a Zumba fitness
package worth $150!
Free for 10 lucky readers – 11 sessions of instructor-led
Zumba workouts at Zesty Kickz
To win, write in to hey@ntu.edu.sg, with “Kiehl’s giveaway” as the subject line, along with your
full name, NTU school/year of study, contact number and email address, by 20 March 2014.
Multiple entries from the same person will not be accepted. All prizes are to be collected from the
Corporate Communications Office, NTU.
40
pairs of ice-skating
passes to be won!
Grab your friend and skate for
2 hours at The Rink at JCube for free
Inclusive of skate boots rental.
Simply answer
this question:
Name a free online
course that NTU is
offering on Coursera
this year.
Email your answer, with “Zesty Kickz giveaway” as the subject line, along with your full name,
school/year of study or graduation, contact number and email address, to hey@ntu.edu.sg
by 31 March 2014. Winners will be drawn from among contestants with the correct answer.
Each Zumba fitness package is valid for a year. Multiple entries from the same person will
E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
not beHaccepted.
Each pair
worth $35
Valid for redemption in April, May or
July 2014 (Monday to Thursday).
Not valid on the eve of Public Holidays
and on Public Holidays.
To win a pair, send an email with “Ice skating” as the subject title, along with your full name, NTU
school/year of study, contact number and email address, to hey@ntu.edu.sg by 23 March 2014.
Winners will be drawn from among the names of NTU students who participate. Multiple entries
from the same person will not be accepted. All passes are to be collected from the Corporate
39
Communications Office, NTU.
At Officer
Cadet School,
where I met
Bolong
These bracelets are souvenirs
from the university orientation
camps I went to – the psychology,
hall and Union camps
We like listening to
covers of the latest hits,
and Bolong has a thing
for indie music
My friend, a
designer, model and
breakdancer, did this
sketch of me
This wooden table doubles
up as a box – it’s super
handy because we can
stash our stuff in it
I was surprised to find this picture
of m
me being crowned UOC’13 King
on the cover of HEY!
A vinyl disc of Bolong’s
favourite band, Local
Natives. His friend
who went to the US
for exchange specially
shipped it back for him
This carpet makes
us feel like we’re
walking on grass
EXTRA
Video: Room
at the top
My Space
If there ever were an awards ceremony for
Best Roommate, Michael Mah (left) would be
a shoo-in for the grand prize.
“I always miss my alarm in the morning,
and because it keeps ringing, it will wake
Michael up, but he never gets annoyed. He
just comes over and wakes me up, so I always
make it to class on time,” says his roommate
Bolong Chew. “He also keeps our room in
mint condition!”
The duo met while doing National Service
and bonded quickly, thanks to the many
mutual friends they had. When they found
out they were coming to NTU, they decided
to room together.
40
With their different schedules –
Michael is studying psychology while
Bolong is a business major – and heavy
involvement in school-related activities,
they don’t always get the chance to chill
out in their dorm together, but when they
do, it’s usually a blast.
“A day before the exam results were
released, we invited some friends over to
hang out and have some fun. It was kind
of like a last hurrah before our results
came out,” recalls Michael.
“Luckily, our results turned out fine, or we’d
need another party to drown our sorrows,”
adds Bolong with a laugh. – Chrystal Chan
H E Y ! M A R– A PR 2 0 14
PHOTOS: SAM CHIN
.
Michael mah s room
REPUTABLE.
ADAPTABLE.
FLEXIBLE.
AN NTU EDUCATION
IS PRIZED GLOBALLY.
Shaun Tan
Kylie Yuen
School of Electrical and
Electronic Engineering
Ng Shi Yao
School of Humanities and
Social Sciences
Nanyang Business School
AM
EARN
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N
I
PLIFY
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Get a balanced, well-rounded education
at NTU that prepares you for a dynamic
working world, and impress with
qualities valued by employers. Design
a curriculum that supports your diverse
interests. However you choose to shape
your study, one thing is certain — as a
graduate from the university, ranked 41st
internationally, you’ll be given recognition
wherever you go. Join NTU today.
www.ntu.edu.sg/admissions
WELL-READ.
WELL-TRAVELLED.
WELL-ROUNDED.
AND WELL-RECEIVED
BY EMPLOYERS.
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School of Humanities and
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School of Physical and
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IVERS
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At NTU, you’ll have one of the most holistic educational
experiences the world has to offer. On top of a balanced
curriculum that develops hard and soft skills, we place great
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the globe. 7 in 10 undergraduates get to go overseas for
Z[\KPLZPU[LYUZOPWZÄLSK[YPWZJVTWL[P[PVUZHUKTVYL
With an unparalleled edge, 97% of NTU graduates receive a
job offer within four months of graduation. Give yourself the
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