Student Report
Name of the University: Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Exchange semester: Fall /2014
I. PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before leaving Norway
After we received the acceptance letter from Nanyang we received a welcome
package with more information in the end of April. In the package, all the information
about the application process was provided. We also continued to receive more emails
with up following information until the end of July. The emails are quite detailed and
contain a lot of information. Therefore it was important that we read them properly
and took our time. With exam period and everything going on, it was a bit stressful. If
we had any questions regarding the application process, Nanyang also provided a 24hour support service.
Applying for a visa
All international students at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) are required to
hold a valid Student’s Pass issued by the Singapore Immigration & Checkpoints
Authority, which was a pretty straightforward procedure. The school will provided us
all the necessary information and as well as our SOLAR-application (student’s pass
online application registration) to fill out. They also provided us an email with all the
necessary information on how to do this. ICA requires that all the information we
provided in our application was accurate. We had to upload a photo as well; this is the
photo that you will get on your student pass. Some of us needed to take a new photo
at NTU at the registration day. During the first step in the registration process we got
a reply relatively quick. At this stage we had to pay a processing fee of $30 SGD
(about 160 NOK), an issuance fee of $60 SGD (about 320 NOK) and a multiple-entry
visa of $30 SGD (about 160 NOK), but this is the only expense for the Student’s Pass.
Norwegians does not need to apply for any additional VISA to enter Singapore. We
need to print all the documents and receipts from the online registration process; these
needs to be presented when you enter Singapore before you have received your actual
student pass (which is being issued at campus in the first two weeks). NTU will sends
a lot of information on this process by email, so if you just follow the steps as
explained this process is not difficult.
Travel
Some of us booked our flight together trough Kilroy others separately with Qatar
Airways. Both warmly recommended. Good food and service and 30kg check-in
baggage was included. We did not experience any difficulties during our travels. Our
tip is to try to book the tickets as soon as possible to avoid high prices since you are
traveling in the summer, and back in December when prices are higher due to
vacation period. Some of us booked the return ticket at the same time to save some
money. If you book your return ticket at the same time make sure it’s a flexi ticket,
since you might change your plans. You might want to extend your trip or go home
earlier, or even change the departure destination.
Housing
You can apply for campus housing, which is a lot cheaper than finding an
accommodation on your own. But it’s quite difficult for exchange students to get
campus housing. Neither BI nor Nanyang assist you in this process. We where
recommended to hire an agent used by earlier exchange students from BI who helped
us find an apartment before we came to Singapore. Our agent, Daniel, helped us to
find a suitable apartment within our price range nearby the University. It is difficult to
find an apartment for less than six months rental, due to Singaporean regulations, so
we strongly recommend you to go through an agent and start looking for an
accommodation early.
We ended up with a condominium called Lakeholmz, located at Lakeside. We had a
nice apartment with four bedrooms and two bathrooms. Lakeholmz had facilities like
a large swimming pool, a tennis court and a fitness room. All included in the monthly
rent. Our trip to the university usually took about 20-30 minutes by MRT and bus,
depending on the traffic. The only minus we noticed with our condos location was
that we had quite a distance to the main city area.
The agents usually charge a half-month rent for the job, and in most cases you also
pay a deposit of one-month rent to the landlord. We paid everything before we moved
in. The housing process can be long and you need to allocate a lot of time for this
process. The agent may also need you to do a quick decision if you want an apartment
or not, as it is a lot of people who wants to rent.
Costs
Monthly cost per person
Rent
Books
Food
Transport
Other
5000 NOK
1000 NOK (one time buy) This depends on which courses you take and if
you have to buy the lecture books required.
3000-4000 NOK
In Singapore you can buy local food at food courts and at the University quite
cheap. From S$3-S$7 for a meal. Average price for a dinner is usually
35NOK. Usually it’s cheaper to buy food out at these food courts compared
to cooking home and buying ingredients at the grocery store. If you prefer
home cooking you can expect the ingredients to be similar to Norwegian food
prices.
600 NOK
This also depends on where you live and how frequent you use the MRT and
buss services or if you choose to use taxi as transport often. Transport in
Singapore is cheaper than in Norway. When arriving Singapore you should
buy an Ez-link card. This card easily can be bought at any MRT station.
At the beginning of the semester you will have to pay different fees to the
school and for your Student VISA. This will be specified in the welcome
package.
Culture and language
Teachers and other students are mostly speaking Singlish, which is a mix of English
and their mother language. In the beginning it can be a bit hard to understand and
follow up, especially if they speak really fast, but eventually you will get used to it.
In Singapore you can find a lot of different cultures. The Singaporean population are a
mix of locals, Malaysians, Chinese and Indian people. And there are also a lot of
international business people, exchange students and tourists. You can experience
different cultures more closely in in different areas in Singapore, like China Town,
Little India and Arab Street.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Nanyang Technological University has about 33,000 undergraduate and postgraduate
students. The school is located all west in Singapore and the campus area is huge.
You need to take campus riders to get around. The university have a lot of canteens, a
few libraries and sports facilities. We mostly used the facilities around south and
north spine, close to Nanyang Business School. You are required to study hard as the
locals are very committed to their schoolwork. When doing group work exchange
students are recommended to work with locals, sometimes this is also required from
the teacher.
Course registration
When we received the acceptance letter from Nanyang we where required to send in
about 10 courses we where interested to take at Nanyang. These courses needed to be
approved from both BI and Nanyang. The courses approved from both schools are
given to you before the add/drop period. We got a lot of emails and information from
Nanyang about this period, but it was quite overwhelming containing a lot and not
really specific information. Before the Add/drop period it’s important to have preapproval from BI and Nanyang on more courses you are interested to take so this is in
place before the add/drop period. You can only add courses approved during the
add/drop period, so its important to have this done so you can have a better chance on
getting the courses you want and don’t need to be on long waiting lists. The funniest,
easiest and most interesting courses are the most popular ones, so be prepared. Expect
the add/drop period to be very exhausting, its hard to get exactly the courses you
want, the perfect timetable and number of AUS required, so you need to be well
prepared. And the better you are prepared the better exchange semester you are likely
to have. The add/drop period lasted the first two weeks, and you are expected to
attend the seminars/lectures or tutorials given to you, or you would want to have,
during this period as they already then starts to give you assignments and give you a
group for your group work.
Academic calendar
Arrival date:
First day of the semester:
Last day of classes:
Examination period:
Any special events/holidays:
27. July
4. August
13. November
21. November – 5. December
Other:
Recess week: 27. September – 5. October
The National day of Singapore: 9. Aug
Hari Raya 9. August
Hari Raya 19. August
Hari Raya 29. October
Diwalli 13. November
Arrival
In the first week of July, the week before the semester started we had an introduction
week. You where given a date and time for when you where going to enrol and
register as a student. In the welcome package all the information and papers needed
where given. We also attended an introduction meeting for all new exchange students
where we were given information about University, medical services, safety
instructions and legal advice from the Singaporean police.
The International Office
The information we received from The International Office was relevant, although we
think that the information around the course registration, the 10 courses we applied
for in the first place could have been more sufficient and clear. They have gained
some experience trough their last years of sending students on exchange, like which
courses Nanyang provides to exchange students. If this information had been more
specific and worked out in the best way from every part in the first place, the course
registration, pre-approval and add/drop period would have been easier for everyone.
Social activities
During the first weeks of the semester there were a lot of stands promoting different
students activities, sports activities, student groups and other organisations we could
join during the semester. To join a society with natives sharing the same interests as
you is a good way to get to know them and maybe foster a friendship for lifetime.
Most of the local students are nice and welcoming to exchange students, although we
felt it was easier to connect with other exchange students from other schools and
courtiers.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
We experienced the teachers learning approaches to be very different between
courses, also between the same courses where we attended different seminar groups.
Courses were either divided into seminars or lectures with additional tutorials. Most
seminars lasted for 4 hours per week, and how long break you where given varied
from teacher to teacher. In seminars and tutorials you are expected to participate in
discussions, both in-group and individually, so it is important to be prepared.
Attendance and class participation counts from 10%-15% on your final grade. You
are given several assignments during the semester, each counting differently from
course to course. Be prepared of having several assignments every week. In addition
you will have one or two midterms and some quizzes in every course. Together the
assignments, group work, quizzes and midterms count 40%-70% of your final grade,
depending on each course. Your exam counts the remaining grade, and your teacher
grades the final exam. He or she also sets your total and final grade.
The amount of workload is much higher compared to BI. You always have
assignments to do, group work to finish and quizzes coming up. In some courses you
have assignments to hand in every week, some just a few during the semester.
Teachers expect you to answer questions during seminars and participate in in-class
discussions, so you need to come prepared and to have read the required chapters.
Course materials
During seminars teachers use PowerPoint’s. These are detailed and contain the main
course content, so they are helpful when you are reading for your midterms and final
exams. If you print them out and bring them to class you can write down what’s
unclear and also additional details, this will make them more helpful when preparing
for your exam. At tutorials blackboards are more commonly used. In addition you
should read the textbook and articles recommended for your course.
Exams
The exam for most of the finance courses where very hard and the questions weren’t
similar to those you have had during the assignments and nor in the lectures/course
materials. Earlier exams had no solutions either, so we found it quite hard to read and
prepare for these exams. For the elective courses and marketing courses the exams
where more based on the lecture notes and PowerPoint’s, so these where easier to
prepare for.
The final exam counted for about 30%-60% of our final grade, depending on each
course. They lasted for about 2-2 ½ hours. Most exams are written, but a few courses
have oral exams where you need to prepare a presentation. The mid term exams
counted 15%-30% of our grade. We where also given small in-class quizzes and
assignments, more frequent in some courses, these counted totally about 10% of our
grade or as a part of our class participation. Almost every course has one group work
project, which counted from 10%-20% of our grade.
Library and technology
Nanyang have huge campus area, including a lot of different libraries, printing- and
reading rooms and different classrooms. These are available for everyone, but we
mostly used the ones located close to the Business School. They also have one global
lounge, where it’s comfortable to read. Here television widescreens with world news
are also provided.
Description of courses
Course code &
name
Example:FIN12
3 Finance
Master/
Bachelor
Bachelor
Exam
form
4-hour
written
exam
No written
exam
Prerequisites
AB 0602
Communication
Management
Strategies
Bachelor
BF2207
International
finance
AB 3601
Strategic
Management
Approved
as
Elective
Comments
None
Elective
(Communic
ation
course)
2-hour
written
exam
Macroeconomics
at BI
Finance
course
2-hour
written
exam
None
Strategy
course
A interesting an
relevant course.
Recommended for
exchange students
since it has no final
written exam.
This was a hard but
very relevant and
interesting course.
We had weekly
assignments, so it
requires a lot of
work.
A hard course
requiring a lot of
critical analysis
thinking conducted
in both assignments
and group work.
Bachelor
Bachelor
None
BF 2201
Investments
Bachelor
HE 1001
Microeconomic
Principles
BF 3201
Corporate
Finance and
Strategy
Bachelor
BU 8501
Marketing for
the 21st Century
Bachelor
2-hour
written
exam
None
Marketing
Course
BT 3502
Tourism and
Technology
Bachelor
2-hour
written
exam
None
BT 2504
CSR in Tourism
and Hospitality
Bachelor
2-hour
written
exam
None
BU8301
Fundamentals
of business law
in Singapore
Bachelor
2 ½ hour
written
exam
None
Elective
(Tourism
and
Hospitality
course)
Elective
(Tourism
and
Hospitality
course)
Finance
law course
BU8201
Business
Finance
Bachelor
2-hour
written
exam
Statistics and
finance and
managerial
accounting 1. Its
also
recommended to
have finance and
managerial
accounting 2, but
not necessary.
Bachelor
2-hour
written
exam
2 ½ - hour
written
exam
2 ½ - hour
written
exam
Finance
course
Mathematics at BI Elective
Finance
course
Finance
course
Very hard
Hard final exam
Hard since BI
students do not
have the
prerequisites
needed.
Relatively easy as
this is repeating
topics from most of
the marketing
courses taken by a
Marketing student
at BI.
A fun and
interesting course
recommended for
exchange students.
A fun and
interesting course
recommended for
exchange students.
In the beginning
this was a hard
course. The law
system is very
different from the
Norwegian one, so
the in-class work
and presentations
was quite difficult,
but the final exam
was a bit easier.
A fun and
interesting course,
but the midterm
quiz was a bit
difficult. The final
exam was also very
hard.
On a final note, how will you sum up the exchange experience?
 Nanyang expects you conduct work at a high academic level, so when
applying for Nanyang you need to be prepared for a tough semester with a lot
of work to do. Although Singapore is a small country, you can experience
many different cultures. The local students are very dedicated and concerned
about their education, and they use different leaning methods that we can learn
from. They are very committed to their schoolwork, and sometimes we
wondered if they ever sleep. However, they can also learn from us to be more
efficient, so by having so much group work with the locals both them and we
learned a lot. To know the working style of different cultures is a good trait to
have with you into future career and work.