An Inside Look into Yale NUS College, Singapore

Our UAC intern, Mala Swaminathan, attended a weekend event in May 2013 to introduce Yale-NUS  and had this to share:

      The Yale NUS College (YaleNUS) orientation for parents, counselors and 60 admitted students was held at the Ngee Ann Kongsi Auditorium at the Education Resource Centre on the NUS campus.

      YaleNUS is the first liberal arts college in Singapore and it is a collaboration between Yale University and the National University of Singapore. A total of 11,000 applications were reviewed for the year 2013-2014 of which 4 % of students were accepted. Currently, the student population is 2/3rd Singaporean and 1/3rd international and the college will eventually have a student body of 1,000 and a faculty of 100.

    The campus is adjacent to the NUS’s University Town and has well-equipped classrooms,a great library with rare books from Yale University and state of the art computer rooms. The college is fully residential and all the students can enjoy a comfortable residential life with study spaces, sky gardens, butteries and informal student run eateries. Tuition per semester will range from 7,500 Singapore dollars for Singapore citizens to 15,000 dollars for foreign students, or from $6,000 to $12,000.

      YaleNUS is looking for students with an ‘extra something’ –students who could add to the college community, students who are articulate, interesting and well rounded individuals. While the admissions office does not specify an exact IB or SAT score, they go through a holistic process by considering every aspect of an application. Good academic performance and rigorous coursework are qualifying factors in applying to YaleNUS. Admissions for IB students would consider a student's transcript from Grades 9 to 12 and a student's predicted grades.  Offers are not strictly conditional; however, a discrepancy between predicted grades and final grades can lead to the student’s admission status being revoked. Once the application has been completed online and all the relevant documents submitted, the admissions officer interviews all candidates after which a final decision is made.

      There are three aspects to a degree from YaleNUS:
      - Common/Core Curriculum
      - Pure Electives
      - Majors (15 majors including a double degree in law)

      Students will take a common curriculum in the first year, including courses on literature and humanities, philosophy and political thought, scientific inquiry and social institutions, before selecting a major.Class sizes are limited to 18-20 students. Students, all of whom will be required to live on campus, will also have the option of pursuing a combined undergraduate degree with law, with the law component taught through the N.U.S. law school, or combining an undergraduate degree with a masters in environmental management through Yale.

      All students will also complete a senior capstone project in their final year that will require them to conduct original research. All students are guaranteed: an international experience, internship opportunities and special leadership programs. Some of the special leadership programs include; first summer@yale (only available for students who have been admitted this year), Study at Yale or at one of the NUS overseas colleges (one year), 40 global programs and independent research programs. Students become alumni of three bodies -Yale, NUS,and YaleNUS.

      Please visit the following websites to learn more about YaleNUS:

      http://www.ync.nus.edu.sg/learning.html
      http://yalenusblog.com/2012/10/17/why-university-students-need-a-well-rounded-education-by-james-bradshaw/

Fourth Guest Student Blogger: "So….do you already know what are you going to study after UWC?"

"So….do you already know what are you going to study after UWC?"


That is probably one of the questions that we all have heard the most over the last months from many adults and friends. What I always answer is: I'm not really sure yet… I know I don't want anything related to sciences or maths, and I am extremely interested in humanities, psychology or sociology….we'll see!


My name is Miguel Angel Zambrano Boy, I am 17 years old and I come from the far-away lands of Peru. Incredibly I have already been living 10 months in Asia, and I have traveled around some places in South East Asia and Europe that I would have had never dreamt of before. As my mates who previously posted on this blog, I am currently in Grade 11 studying the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program.  I wanted to start this set of blog posts of "university feelings and perspectives" , as I like to call this space, with a question (and my personal answer) that we all have heard or will hear at some point of our high school.


Many of us don't know how to feel about university and careers, and college life itself, some of us might be confident and have thought about what they want to study since they were in the womb and haven't changed mind from then (good for them!!!), others might change their minds about careers every time they hear a good talk from an expert or a university comes to talk (it is normal!!) and some others might just be T-E-R-R-I-F-I-E-D about the idea of applying to a university (for those….keep calm, drink some nice tea). Personally, I have been through all of them, sometimes all at the same time! In order not to panic, I would like to tell you something that my mum has always said: "If you are not the first one that has gone through this, ask someone who already has", and I am pretty sure millions of others have gone through university applications, and who would be better advice than them? And who would be even better than experts on the field? The reason behind this personal advice to you all is that to be honest, I was quite afraid at the beginning of the year to talk about my position regarding universities to University Advisors. At UWC East we have two wonderful advisors, Pamela and Shruti, and before I continue with this post, I have to tell you: Go and talk to them! Be honest! Share your fears and confusions! Tell them your dreams and aims!. In my case, my advisor is Pamela, and we have already have a couple of meetings and plenty of short talks. And something else to keep in mind is that at the end of the day, its you who are going to study wherever you decide and whatever you feel more keen of, so be completely honest about everything, we don't want you to end up studying medicine when you faint at seeing a blood drop…


After this gentle advice, I would like to talk about myself a little bit, you might feel related to some aspects. I studied in a Chinese-Peruvian school in Lima, capital city of Peru, for almost 10 years, in an environment where everyone knew each other and the community feeling was never absent. I have always considered myself in "extrovert category", however also had in mind that I have many doubts about my future, which I then learnt was okay!. I came to UWC in Singapore 10 months ago, and I am taking six subjects of IB: Psychology, Spanish Literature, English Literature, Chinese Ab, Environmental Studies and Math Studies. Yes, three languages. Yes, Math Studies and ESS. And I am in love with them. One of the things that I learnt from the beginning of the year is that you should/must pick your subjects based on what you enjoy studying. There is no point on choosing something just because "its more serious". I learnt that what you have to show in your subjects to have a good application is personal engagement and challenge. I changed (in spite of many people saying that I couldn't make it) from an English B level class to an English A Literature class Higher Level, which I might not be excelling in at, but which I am definitely enjoying and learning, and obviously challenging myself. In terms of Maths and ESS, something that you need to be careful is where are you applying. It is true that some (sadly) universities do not accept Math Studies or don't take "seriously" ESS, so that's some research that you need to do before hand.


Now, talking about countries and destinations, the US is a really good option for me because of many factors that I consider are important when choosing where to apply. The liberal arts methodology is something that I feel goes along with my interests. In colleges where they have this liberal arts approach, they offer a degree of Bachelor of Arts and you study from a broad curriculum that includes different perspectives and you can choose to major and minor depending on your area of interest. It is a great option because you don't have to "choose" the definite career and gives you the opportunity to explore various courses. So then you can have the scientist with sculpture classes and so on. I would choose definitely something related to sociology or psychology or maybe international relations, I want to work with communities and society models, always linking it with education. Another good thing from US colleges is the payment options, even though they are one of the most expensive ones, the scholarships programs are incredible. Something that I also truly appreciate is the chance to show yourself through the personal essay and the extra curriculum activities at the application. So, its not everything about grades.


To finish this first post, I also want to be honest with you all and bring up the Gap Year option that has gone through my mind in a serious and potential way. Something to be taken into account is that before taking a Gap Year, you should DEFINITELY have a plan for the year and not just take and decide later. My personal advice is also to apply before taking the gap year, and get the acceptance and then request to defer your admission. Also, make sure your plan is productive and would have an impact in your life. I would take a gap year in China to finish studying Chinese, having the opportunity to do local volunteer work.


As you can see, my options are still quite broad, in the coming months I would narrow them down.   Research is something that I must do over the summer, I also have to write my application essays. I took the SAT test in May (necessary for almost every US college), along with a preparation course. My advice, take it in January of G11, you can prepare before in a less stressful way. IB can be absorbing sometimes. But at the end of the day, it’s all about being happy with what you are studying and enjoying your time wherever you are. So I am going to enjoy UWC, and balance myself. That’s the key! See you soon.

Third Guest Blogger: The University Advising Centre and the Application Journey

Amukelani Muyanga, writes about her journey from South Africa to Singapore; from thinking about UWC applications to now thinking about University applications:

The day I’m submitting this column of sorts is significant because exactly a year ago today (23^rd May), I found out that I’d been awarded a scholarship to study at UWCSEA. I had no idea of the journey ahead that’s about to come full circle in a few weeks when I return home for a month and a half in summer.

The last thing I was thinking about when I arrived was university. I was too excited to be in a school as big as one! (The school has since shrunk, as large things do when you become used to them). I, like many other IB students, was a bit perplexed about the massive amount of university talk coming our way when we were just trying to get a grip on our Diploma. Most of us assumed that university was a long way off but the months just kept rolling past and university is now a lot closer than when we began. I also think the reason we’re so reluctant to think about university is because beginning that journey will mean end of our UWC one. The University Advising Centre (UAC) has made our views on that a little less dismaying, though. There is a constant stream of university representatives floating in and out of the UAC doors that have made my peers and me a lot more aware about the myriad of possibilities ready for us.

Before I came to Singapore, I thought my options of universities in South Africa were plentiful: more than 30 to choose from. The realization that the number in South Africa was a mere drop in the ocean compared to the rest of the world was an incredibly liberating, exciting and daunting. The paradox of choice became very real. Personality and career aptitude tests, numerous talks with the advisors, help with SAT preparation as well as testing, and honest assessments of our strengths and weaknesses encouraged by the UAC have helped a lot of us tremendously.

The UAC always has something new to help us with our journey and one of them was the “Finding Your Voice” writing sessions that doubled up as therapy ones. The free writing helped us think individually about why our progressions came about. Mine, for example, was from doctor to psychologist to sculptor and perhaps back again. Even so, I’m secure in the awareness that even if I decide to pursue the most bizarre and unheard of career path in existence, the UAC will have a 3-page list of universities they think would be great. “Ain’t nobody got time” for 3 pages, though, which is where the one-on-one sessions with the uni advisors really help.

I speak for most of the IB students when I say that we really feel supported by the UAC, and even though we take ages to fill in their surveys, we’re really thankful they’re there. The UAC has forced us to think about things a lot of us would have left for the last minute and have made us pretty excited about the future, too. Who knows, maybe we’ll register for a degree in university counseling in their honour.