Applying to NUS & NTU - General

[updated 2 Jan 2016]

Applying to National University of Singapore (NUS) and/or Nanyang Technological University (NTU) is considered prestigious by many (maybe because they're both one of the best universities in the world, let alone Asia). Admission is said to be difficult: there's the University Entrance Examination (UEE), interviews for certain programs, and your competitors have great qualifications.

So, you could say only the 'chosen ones' can go to these universities. But then this whole thing looks fishy to me. Maybe they rank high because their students are smart by nature, not by nurture. Hmmm. Oh, that was just a point to keep you thinking.

By the way, I applied to both of them this (last?) year, and my next post will be about applying to NTU and NUS from an average-student's-point-of-view.

You want to apply? Keep in mind that there are two stages here: document selection and UEE, plus one bonus stage: scholarship interview (if you're lucky).

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Stage 1 - Document Selection

How to unlock: default

What to do:

1. Maintain good academic scores in your report card. THIS IS IMPORTANT! The higher your scores are, the higher the chance you will go to the next round. Try to get at least 88 out of 100 in your report card for your subjects of interest just to keep you safe. (Doesn't mean that an average of less than 88 should keep you from applying).

2. Certificates of participation in activities are good to have. The point is, it will be advantageous to make them believe that you're active outside school and don't just study 24/7.

3. Apply to the university online when admission is open, usually around early November to late December. Don't forget to apply for scholarships (NTU), the scholarship application is separate from undergraduate application. Don't forget to pay for your application.

4. Wait patiently, check your e-mail regularly.

AY 2015/2016

You will receive an e-mail stating whether you're shortlisted to take the UEE from both universities on the first week of January. In Indonesia, around 300 (NUS) and 500 (NTU) applicants are shortlisted to take the UEE.

AY 2016/2017

NTU UEE invitation was sent on 31 December 2015.

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Stage 2 - UEE

How to unlock: pass Stage 1

What to do:

1. Prepare yourself well for the UEE held in late January to February. The subjects are English, maths, physics, chemistry and biology, all in A level (except for social sciences programs, O Level maths). Check which paper you are required to sit for on their website. Note that there is no biology test for NTU.

2. If you join A level courses, take all the try-outs available, don't be discouraged by bad or terrible scores. That's what try-outs are for ;)

3. Sleep a LOT the day before test days. Lack of sleep is your worst enemy here, believe me. At this stage, they only care about your UEE test scores.

4. Come early, stay focused, don't panic! Again, your luck is tested here as well :P

5. Wait patiently, check your e-mail regularly.

AY 2015/2016

(NTU) The decision of your application UEE was sent on 12 March 2015. If you do not pass, you can send them an appeal letter.

If your faculty requires an interview, you'll have to do it to receive your application outcome.

(NUS) The application outcome was sent on 13 May 2015.

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Bonus Stage - Scholarship Interview

How to unlock: unknown; probably based on luck.

(NTU) It is said that scoring high on the UEE, especially English, may unlock this.

If you get this bonus stage, you will receive an invitation email from the scholarships division to attend an interview. The e-mail should come to your inbox the day after you receive the application outcome e-mail.

Interview is held in late March. I read from another blog that the outcome was announced in two weeks. This year they announced the outcome of the interview in one to two days after the interview.
Around 50 people are invited for the interview, only half of them will be given the scholarship.

(NUS) Incredibly good report card (like maybe an average of 95?) may unlock this.

Yes, another reason why maintaining a good report card is very important. The e-mail should come to your inbox around one week after you receive the UEE e-mail.

Interview was held on the last day of the UEE, after the UEE had ended.

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Okay, that concludes the general walkthrough for the NUS/NTU application.