I'm not speaking for all NUS students. In fact, it's hard to find out whom I'm speaking for.
NUS trains its students like a soldier. I almost said, we're not treated like soldiers, we're treated like machines. Machines who have a life, who have feelings, who are expected to perform or be chucked away.
Another view: You can slack your way and graduate. You can also enjoy your life here with heaps of school activities. You have lots of freedom. My department takes attendance of students for every tutorial class though. They care for students, and hope that students are not skipping class because they have other issues eg family problems, to attend to.
Deadlines are a common occurence. We're expected to know everything, do everything. We don't get to choose our fuel. If we're running on V-power, i.e. the professor/lecturer is jaw-drop amazing, you're lucky. Even so, you're not so lucky because the best professors have the best students and you're expected to be at tip-top conditions. NUS students are expected to be optimal at least for 16 hours a day. Perhaps the National Service conscription had something to do with it.
Another view: Yes we have continuous assessment. They are endless, and difficult to score sometimes. Students who are in this system seem to be able to go and keep going. Never-say-die, even though they constantly say "Die (lah), Die (lah), tomorrow need to hand this in. How?"
We don't get away with memorizing. BUT we can't get away without memorizing either. We have to memorise, synthesize new knowledge as soon as possible, and make sense of everything. There aren't many professors who understands that students cannot do everything. It's expected of you. If you can't speak out in class, write potent arguments on forums, present yourself with flair during projects, no one will save you. That's the power of the bell-curve. Individuals are treated as individuals, as particles, as machines. If you're a good machine, any kind of oil produces the best quality stuff.
Another view: It's a rigourous track. Sometimes people say it's more difficult than Oxbridge... But you learn something. Arts students are (I hope) well-trained for any setting.
This reminds me of the industrial revolution when people had to work so hard to achieve nothing in the end. Students cannot wait to graduate. How much of a hellhole is this?
Another view: I'm in Year 3. Students will miss this place only after they graduate because the working world is so much worse.
I know of this guy. He wrote a wonderful paper, and wrote to his professor to tell him that the professor had covered too much content for the question, in class, and the professor is stealing his ideas. The professor writes back telling him not to be lofty in his ambitions, and implied he liked something more orthodox. So he rewrites his paper, and submits an orthodox paper with a standard view that the professor would be expected to like. This morning, the professor stated in class that he wanted something "that differentiates you from the person next to you". "If you don't take risks now, then when? You can't be taking risks in the workforce."
Another view: Work within limits. Don't think too far ahead. You're not a PhD student, so behave like an undergrad. One who shines.
QUESTION: ARE WE EVEN ALLOWED TO TAKE RISKS IN NUS? Because it affects the CAP (cumulative average point).
He broke down in class quietly, and stated that he had taken the module because he thought he would do well, despite the fact that he had completed his requirements for Year 3. He wanted to drop the module just for an essay, just because he could potentially get a B+, or even B, for his paper. He needed a 0.2 increment in his CAP score, and he couldn't risk anything.
Life in NUS is a game of life and death. People had started studying since 3 years old. They could sometimes quote amazing stuff at a tender age. Of course, humans can't be good at everything, but if you're not good in studies, people tell me "Singapore hasn't room for you".
Another view: You could choose another path, but any other path is usually frowned upon. Success is a big thing here in Singapore.
Reminds me of the Russian Roulette. Little did people know that this NUS game is a game of luck. If there are really brilliant people in your class, you're dead. If you do fall ill, you're behind. It's difficult to catch up.
I have moved away from home to avoid my family. They are a lovely bunch of people, but they're so lovely I end up talking to them a lot. I have to focus, read, and work. But they keep me sane. Blogging keeps me sane. And crimson keeps me very sane.
Yes I'll miss my friends, I'll miss the fantastic library, the wondrous facilities, the professors (a few only), but we can't wait to graduate. Life kinda sucks here.
Another view: No it doesn't. "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger."
