NTU/NUS/SMU 2012-2013 Intake

Icetray

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Hey man. I came across this forum and I had to reply to you, and to all the poly people out there.

Please don't think in this manner. I myself, and my friend, had nowhere near top GPAs in poly (below 3.9) and we are currently holding close to full GPAs in university. We also know of a handful of other ex-poly dean's listers.

For the record, I'm from SMU. If you are a go-getter, outgoing, and the sorts, come here. I'm not saying all Poly students do well here, but I think the Poly students here don't feel as inferior as those in NUS and NTU.

Just my two cents.
Plus SMU has a GPA system that doesn't penalize as bad as the other two. It's over 4.0 but an A+ gives you a grade point of 4.5. :D
 

FiboTrader

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Plus SMU has a GPA system that doesn't penalize as bad as the other two. It's over 4.0 but an A+ gives you a grade point of 4.5. :D

There are pros and cons of both systems.

For example, you have to realize that NUS/NTU can "SU" their elective courses (in other words, dont count it towards GPA if they think they can't score well). In SMU, all electives have the potential to screw up your GPA unless you do them on exchange. And it's not that easy to score well in the electives.
 

Icetray

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There are pros and cons of both systems.

For example, you have to realize that NUS/NTU can "SU" their elective courses (in other words, dont count it towards GPA if they think they can't score well). In SMU, all electives have the potential to screw up your GPA unless you do them on exchange. And it's not that easy to score well in the electives.
But I honestly hate the NTU SU system. You have to SU before the finals and you still have to take the paper. I wish they adopted the system NUS uses though.
 

MoxLotus

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I'm damn good myself(not gpa) but I got rejected from all 3 uni. Seriously.
Not sure about nus/ntu, I went to smu for SIS interview they have the students project posters pasted all over the wall. While waiting for my turn, I did read in detail what most of the project does and the programming language and api they used, it was definitely doable by myself. An example a web application using php and google map api, I could do that!

Anyway,

After the 1st SMU ISM interview, I was informed about a coding challenge to see my aptitude for programming, So I unlocked the challenge and went down to the "live" coding challenge. There were only 3 of us, 2 guys 1 girl.
The challenge was actually same as what we were required to do "online" with maybe slight modifications (or same questions) anway it was basic programming stuff, looping, functions etc.

1st guy - He did the coding super fast, he finished 10 questions in 7 mins. He is either really talented+careful or a JC student, memorize all the questions :s13: Anyway I was really amazed and good job to him.

Me - I didn't bother practising because to me those are doable , it is in my blood. So I finish 10 questions in 30-40mins. Reason I took so long is because I was careless (forget to reset a counter) however I answer all questions correctly and on time.

Girl - I think she only managed 5 out of 10 questions by the end of the 45mins given.

In the interview after we finished our challenge, the professor asked me what problems I had even though I finished all the coding correctly just that I took a longer time than the 1st guy. I told them I have no problems, just careless because I forgot to reset my counter...somehow they kept saying something like, "Ok so what took you so long, there must be some problems encountered" but really I was just careless, my algorithm was working fine just that I forget to freaking reset a variable...so no choice I have to anyhow bomb 1 problem and I stuttered because it was awkward to say something that didn't happen.

:(

Anyway I must say that poly is not about play acting, talk more, participating.you really need to put effort into your studies/project to get good gpa. I even bring my programming projects back home to do. I myself is an introvert, I never ask my lecturer stuff as I have no need to / and on the occasion I don't know things, I'll just ask my friends or search around.

Sometimes I wonder If there are other stuff that a university can use to determine if a student is good but does not meet the entry criteria. SMU is trying to do that but it failed badly.

-Guy with gpa of 3.51

tell u something that my seniors in NUS told me, they like to go SMU for student exchange and pwn the students there. =)
 

syeechee

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Hey man. I came across this forum and I had to reply to you, and to all the poly people out there.

Please don't think in this manner. I myself, and my friend, had nowhere near top GPAs in poly (below 3.9) and we are currently holding close to full GPAs in university. We also know of a handful of other ex-poly dean's listers.

For the record, I'm from SMU. If you are a go-getter, outgoing, and the sorts, come here. I'm not saying all Poly students do well here, but I think the Poly students here don't feel as inferior as those in NUS and NTU.

Just my two cents.

There are plenty of scholars from all over the world in NUS and NTU. They are smart and hardworking, with them around, it is extremely difficult to get good GPA.... Having attended lectures with them, I have to acknowledge that they are not only fast-learners but also very intelligent, they are able to comprehend new concepts extremely fast, synthesize and apply them in different contexts.

From what I have heard, SMU and NTU are great place for Poly grads. The professors there are friendly and approachable :)
 
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jameskoay

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Hey man. I came across this forum and I had to reply to you, and to all the poly people out there.

Please don't think in this manner. I myself, and my friend, had nowhere near top GPAs in poly (below 3.9) and we are currently holding close to full GPAs in university. We also know of a handful of other ex-poly dean's listers.

For the record, I'm from SMU. If you are a go-getter, outgoing, and the sorts, come here. I'm not saying all Poly students do well here, but I think the Poly students here don't feel as inferior as those in NUS and NTU.

Just my two cents.

yeah i guess university is a whole new game... i just felt that poly was an easier route compared to JC. (not that i've been to JC)

thats quite inspirational... will try my best when uni comes :)
 

MoxLotus

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yeah i guess university is a whole new game... i just felt that poly was an easier route compared to JC. (not that i've been to JC)

thats quite inspirational... will try my best when uni comes :)

Different path suits different people. some finds JC is easier to get into Uni. =)
 

singingapple

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materials science and engineering: nus vs ntu

hi, i just wanted to ask if it is a better choice choosing to go with nus's materials science and engineering rather than ntu's.

the truth is, i applied for both unis and got accepted by both. i initially chose ntu but now i'm having second thoughts about it.

nus seems to be the better sch in terms of ranking, prestige, reputation and all, but people keep saying that engineering in ntu's better, how true is this? please help!
 

MoxLotus

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hi, i just wanted to ask if it is a better choice choosing to go with nus's materials science and engineering rather than ntu's.

the truth is, i applied for both unis and got accepted by both. i initially chose ntu but now i'm having second thoughts about it.

nus seems to be the better sch in terms of ranking, prestige, reputation and all, but people keep saying that engineering in ntu's better, how true is this? please help!

unless the people that told u have attended both schools and gave u the comparison. else just pick whichever u like. =)
 

jameskoay

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Some puzzled by university ranking : London: The News

London-based QS places NUS above NTU in communication studies

Some puzzled by university ranking : London: The News (today's straits times)

How the two varsities fared


Accountancy and finance

NUS: 8
NTU: 32

Communication and media studies

NUS: 3
NTU: 23

Computer science

NUS: 9
NTU: 26

Environmental science

NUS: 11
NTU: 45

Mathematics

NUS: 11
NTU: 51-100

take it with a pinch of salt though, we all know that rankings aren't very accurate and can be skewed. just sharing! :)

it is strange that they would put NUS above NTU in comm studies.. considering that NTU is older in that area
 
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Icetray

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hi, i just wanted to ask if it is a better choice choosing to go with nus's materials science and engineering rather than ntu's.

the truth is, i applied for both unis and got accepted by both. i initially chose ntu but now i'm having second thoughts about it.

nus seems to be the better sch in terms of ranking, prestige, reputation and all, but people keep saying that engineering in ntu's better, how true is this? please help!

I guess it really depends method of teaching you're looking for. From what I've heard, NUS teaches more theory whereas NTU is supposedly more hands-on (I'm still new so haven't really noticed this yet). Supposedly that's the reason why they said that NTU engineers were preferred in the past.

You should email/call the professors and ask though. I'm sure that they'd be more than willing to help. Especially with the new syllabus change it's hard for anyone of us to really comment.
 

FrostWurm

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nus seems to be the better sch in terms of ranking, prestige, reputation and all, but people keep saying that engineering in ntu's better, how true is this? please help!

Ya it's true, all NUS engine courses are better-ranked, and also more difficult than NTU. I don't exactly recall anyone saying that ntu engine is better.
 
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couscous.falafel

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my friends are grad engineers from both unis. they share a common sentiment - nus produces desktop engineers (sit behind computer and work) whereas ntu produces ground engineers (go down to the worksite and do the actual engineering work)
 

MoxLotus

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my friends are grad engineers from both unis. they share a common sentiment - nus produces desktop engineers (sit behind computer and work) whereas ntu produces ground engineers (go down to the worksite and do the actual engineering work)

this is pretty generalized =.=.
 

Icetray

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Ya it's true, all NUS engine courses are better-ranked, and also more difficult than NTU. I don't exactly recall anyone saying that ntu engine is better.

Actually I have to agree with this part. Like for us at NTU our modules always cover the basics first before jumping into all the new stuffs. Especially in your first semester where you mostly revise your JC work. This makes everything a much fairer playing field especially if your brain has been friend in NS.

My friend in NUS showed me his course work. In uni there, they straight away jump into learning new things which can be quite difficult sometimes.

my friends are grad engineers from both unis. they share a common sentiment - nus produces desktop engineers (sit behind computer and work) whereas ntu produces ground engineers (go down to the worksite and do the actual engineering work)

This is true (based on the old syllabus anyways...not sure if it'll be the same for the new one). So ultimately your decision will depend on the type of work you're really interested in. Some companies do honestly prefer NTU engineers while other NUS ones.

Have you attended the talks in both universities with regard to your course? If you haven't, I'd strongly urge you to talk to the professors in charge of this. They're honestly very helpful. It will also be good to talk to your friends who are in similar courses in both universities.
 

crabber

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hey guys my appeal to NTU Biz was successful!

Got my acceptance letter yesterday.

Not sure how I got through cos I didn't go for any appeal interviews and it was just based on my 50 words essay. So happy bout it now!
 

suarezcarroll

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hey guys my appeal to NTU Biz was successful!

Got my acceptance letter yesterday.

Not sure how I got through cos I didn't go for any appeal interviews and it was just based on my 50 words essay. So happy bout it now!

Congratzzz ya :) All the best to your NTU life!
 
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