Advice Needed

[aliciaheartsfti]

I'm currently a freshie in NTU Chinese, previously from SP Biotech. Long story short, because of my poor portfolio & gpa (cgpa 3.25), I couldn't get into any of the science courses I wanted in the local unis (including SIT healthcare), tried for 2 years, and ended up in NTU Chinese as I got desperate, and also pressured to get into a uni. It was a huge mistake as I'm not enjoying the course, or suffering rather. Although I still study hard to not waste my parents' money, so I think my results won't be very bad, but I don't think I can take it anymore (I'm already in counselling) , especially since there are 3+ more years to go and also, I worry about the career prospects of this course.

So I'm thinking of withdrawing and changing uni. I've been looking into private unis, especially PSB Academy, as they offer Biomedical science, and I am able to have direct entry to 3rd year, the fees are also reasonable due to the exemptions. Going overseas is out of the question as money is a problem for me.

I've been stuck in this dilemma for very long now. Can anyone with knowledge of or had experience in a similar situation advice me on what can I expect if I take certain paths (continue with NTU Chinese/ go for PSB), or any useful advice for this situation. Because right now, I worry that science degree from private uni is not as recognised in SG. But at the same time, I've been miserable because of this Chinese course and the science courses in local unis seem unlikely for me to transfer into since I've already been rejected twice, and more importantly I don't have interest in teaching Chinese or journalism whatsoever.

I know I should have thought this through before I applied for uni, and I deeply regret it. But the damage is already done, and I'm trying to figure a way out before it's too late.

Please help, thanks. And sorry about the long and messy post.

 

[GalaxyS7]

Your passion for the course is vital. 长痛不如短痛。There are pros and cons in every situation. Do you like what you're doing in poly? If you do, go ahead with what u are passionate about. You should also know that people might not even work in the same industry compared to what they studied from. Every ending is a new beginning. Don't worry, you'll be fine.

 

[ManchesterFC]

PSB SCI/ENG courses all useless one lah.. the facilities / laboratories can’t be compared to the well equipped NTU/NUS

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[LEEJIYOUNG]

I'm currently a freshie in NTU Chinese, previously from SP Biotech. Long story short, because of my poor portfolio & gpa (cgpa 3.25), I couldn't get into any of the science courses I wanted in the local unis (including SIT healthcare), tried for 2 years, and ended up in NTU Chinese as I got desperate, and also pressured to get into a uni. It was a huge mistake as I'm not enjoying the course, or suffering rather. Although I still study hard to not waste my parents' money, so I think my results won't be very bad, but I don't think I can take it anymore (I'm already in counselling) , especially since there are 3+ more years to go and also, I worry about the career prospects of this course.

So I'm thinking of withdrawing and changing uni. I've been looking into private unis, especially PSB Academy, as they offer Biomedical science, and I am able to have direct entry to 3rd year, the fees are also reasonable due to the exemptions. Going overseas is out of the question as money is a problem for me.

I've been stuck in this dilemma for very long now. Can anyone with knowledge of or had experience in a similar situation advice me on what can I expect if I take certain paths (continue with NTU Chinese/ go for PSB), or any useful advice for this situation. Because right now, I worry that science degree from private uni is not as recognised in SG. But at the same time, I've been miserable because of this Chinese course and the science courses in local unis seem unlikely for me to transfer into since I've already been rejected twice, and more importantly I don't have interest in teaching Chinese or journalism whatsoever.

I know I should have thought this through before I applied for uni, and I deeply regret it. But the damage is already done, and I'm trying to figure a way out before it's too late.

Please help, thanks. And sorry about the long and messy post.

why not just to pass? beats having PSB degree

 

[mccmmm]

2 ways ,firstly educational in Singapore are business orientated quit for your own good .Second ,you can survive ownself without any qualification addressed setup by the PAP .

 

[FrostWurm]

go overseas lor...

 

[Kuudere]

I think it is better if you go for something you are really interested in. Quite a number of posts here share a negative sentiment towards private institutions.

Since you do not have the expenses to go overseas,maybe you can consider the bottom pointers as to whether you should go to psb or not.Personally,I am going through a slightly similar situation(biology student), but for me, it's more of considering of transferring uni to overseas to cope with the academic rigour.


If you are considering of taking the biomedical route,

Are you open to the idea of working overseas?

I feel this question is applicable since it might not be easy to find a career in Singapore in the biological sciences. This isn't an issue specifically with private institution but biomed in general. Being a bio student in a local university, I am open to the idea of working overseas as it really isn't easy to find good career opportunities to work for bio in Sg. It will be considerably harder for students taking the private institution route. My bio professor likes to joke that a bio degree takes you places around the world,but not really at home. Most of my peers are intending to go for a graduate degree overseas to improve their chances of working in Sg.

Are you passionate about biomed?

Asking this question as I realised you are focusing a lot on the career prospects as opposed to interest in this field.I do not know if you are really interested in biomed or picking the lesser of two evils. I will say biomed requires lots of passion to thrive,especially so when the career prospects for biomed is pretty subjective in Sg.

What do you hope to accomplish after you graduate with a degree?

Do you hope to work in the biomedical sector? Do you hope to go for graduate school?

Based on the current information,I would just suggest you go towards PSB instead of staying on in NTU.

You are gloomy and pessimistic about the career scope of Chinese in NTU>> What's the practicality of doing a chinese degree and not working in a similar field? Then again,you might change your career options,after your biomed degree, depending on the circumstances.

You are seeing a counsellor to seek help due to coping with NTU Chinese>> I guess this is warning bells for you to reconsider your options in NTU. I would never suggest you to "tough" it out as leejiyoung mentioned below. 3 years in a programme you are not interested in, is gonna have a significant impact on your life, like it or not. Seeing that it has taken a toll on your mental and emotional well-being, it is a sign for you to do some soul-searching.

To sum up,do what you enjoy,step out of your comfort zone and not be limited by the environment you are in.

 

[eriolmoon2008]

Siao... chinese NTU sucks... won't really lend u any job anyway... market not there..

 

[aliciaheartsfti]

I think it is better if you go for something you are really interested in. Quite a number of posts here share a negative sentiment towards private institutions.

Since you do not have the expenses to go overseas,maybe you can consider the bottom pointers as to whether you should go to psb or not.Personally,I am going through a slightly similar situation(biology student), but for me, it's more of considering of transferring uni to overseas to cope with the academic rigour.


If you are considering of taking the biomedical route,

Are you open to the idea of working overseas?

I feel this question is applicable since it might not be easy to find a career in Singapore in the biological sciences. This isn't an issue specifically with private institution but biomed in general. Being a bio student in a local university, I am open to the idea of working overseas as it really isn't easy to find good career opportunities to work for bio in Sg. It will be considerably harder for students taking the private institution route. My bio professor likes to joke that a bio degree takes you places around the world,but not really at home. Most of my peers are intending to go for a graduate degree overseas to improve their chances of working in Sg.

Are you passionate about biomed?

Asking this question as I realised you are focusing a lot on the career prospects as opposed to interest in this field.I do not know if you are really interested in biomed or picking the lesser of two evils. I will say biomed requires lots of passion to thrive,especially so when the career prospects for biomed is pretty subjective in Sg.

What do you hope to accomplish after you graduate with a degree?

Do you hope to work in the biomedical sector? Do you hope to go for graduate school?

Based on the current information,I would just suggest you go towards PSB instead of staying on in NTU.

You are gloomy and pessimistic about the career scope of Chinese in NTU>> What's the practicality of doing a chinese degree and not working in a similar field? Then again,you might change your career options,after your biomed degree, depending on the circumstances.

You are seeing a counsellor to seek help due to coping with NTU Chinese>> I guess this is warning bells for you to reconsider your options in NTU. I would never suggest you to "tough" it out as leejiyoung mentioned below. 3 years in a programme you are not interested in, is gonna have a significant impact on your life, like it or not. Seeing that it has taken a toll on your mental and emotional well-being, it is a sign for you to do some soul-searching.

To sum up,do what you enjoy,step out of your comfort zone and not be limited by the environment you are in.

Thank you for the pointers. Your post is one of the rare ones here that is actually useful.

I am open to working overseas. I've always wanted to explore and experience things outside of my comfort zone. If I have the opportunity to, I would definitely go for it. Opportunities here in SG is limited for bio students I agree, it also depends on what job in this industry you're looking for too. I'm not much of a high achiever, so I'm not really aiming for high level jobs.

Are you passionate about biomed? That's one question I ask myself too. Back in my biotech days in poly, I struggled with some of the modules cuz I wasn't interested in them, especially the cell and tissue engineering module. I enjoyed and did well in modules like human anatomy, modules that were more towards healthcare/medical. And I enjoyed carrying out the experiments in general than the theory part of it. Which is one of the reason why biomed was my first choice instead of biotech (but i didnt get into that).

I do look into the career prospects as one of my criteria in choosing what course I want because eventually the end goal is to get a decent paying job that I like. I would say that I'm more into the field and nature of the jobs than a specific job in the field.

After graduating, I hope I am able to try out different jobs in the medical industry and to also accumulate experience, go through a trial and error phase and eventually land on a job I am happy with.

I've been looking into medical lab tech jobs which requires a deg/dip in a relevant field. So yes, I am definitely going to work in the medical/healthcare field, it's been my dream since I was young. The environment and the nature of the job really appeals to me.

I don't plan to go to graduate school, it's not because of the course itself but rather the idea of schooling is a bit of a problem for me. Exams really kill most of the fun out of school, so much so that I almost didnt want to future my studies because of them. So the idea of going to graduate school and seeing those stuff again scares me. I'm more towards working and gaining industry experience while earning income on the side.

Having Chinese degree in an unrelated field is possible. My career coach did showed me some jobs in the medical/healthcare field I can apply to after graduating with a Chinese degree, like Administrator, Operations manager, Programme Manager, those that only require a basic degree. But my worry is that, those jobs in the medical/healthcare industry may be limited and I may not enjoy working in those jobs. So it is rather risky, and the jobs that I'm more interested in require experience in the biomedical or equivalent field. Meaning that I will be competing against other people from other degrees, and I'm not very sure a Chinese degree appeals to the employers as compared to people with more relevant degrees.

My mental and emotional well-being hit an all time low for the past months in this Chinese course. But people have been telling me that local uni grads have an edge over private institution grads, and told me to bite through the bullet for the next 3+ years just to get a degree first, then find a job, and if I'm not liking what I'm doing then go study another course in a private institution of my liking. I know there are people who went through that route, but I don't know if it is wise for me since I'm already terribly struggling mentally and emotionally in just 4 months.

Anyway, thank you for your post and your words. I hope I can find courage and the path towards what I enjoy doing soon.

 

[Kuudere]

Working overseas is generally better for bio graduates and even better if you have gotten a qualification from biomed degree from PSB,compared to working in Singapore. (La Trobe university-mid tier university in Australia) It's good that you keep your options open to working overseas but do bear in mind that these are some important questions to ask yourself before you embark on this.

1.Is your family supportive of you working abroad? They do not necessarily have to follow you to the country that you work in
2.Do you have a strong attachment to Sg such as friends,etc.?
3.Does the job offer better career opportunities(promotion/pay) or welfare benefits?(work-life balance)

It's a little early to consider about this now, but it's a good starting point.

I will differ in my opinions over grad school. In my opinion,grad school is similar to work,except you have to do research.(unless you are considering coursework grad programmes) Grad school can be an opportunity to go in-depth into a specific field of research. It's common for people to embark on gaining broad work/research experience for a couple of years before deciding that they should go to grad school to specialise. Never rule that out, always better to keep an open mind and form connections with different people, esp. those with grad. degrees.

I wouldn't encourage you to do Chinese, if you are intending to go for biomedical field, regardless of the institution you are currently in. It isn't similar to transiting to business sector, where any degree gets you there. Biomed is highly technical and it isn't recommended that you continue toughening out in Chinese, if your original intention is to work in biomed. Don't do something that takes a toll on your mental and emotional health, even more so if it does not align with your career expectations.

Drop me a pm or if you are comfortable,you can post here if you prefer.