Studying in Singapore

[celine2009]

Hi,

I'm currently a Computer Science student in the Philippines and I'm thinking of pursuing my studies in Singapore. Any suggestions of what is the best university to go to? Is it difficult to enter to this universities?

Any suggestions will be very much appreciated. Thanks in advanced.

[durain]

have you done any research into universities in singapore? probably the best uni in singapore is NUS. it's not easy to get in!

[celine2009]

Yes I did! So far I found Nanyang Technological University, Singapore Management University and also the one suggest which is National University of Singapore. And also there's James Cook University.

I just want to know which school is easy to get in to or which school is the best... Thanks a lot.

[econoMIC]

Well, there are four true Singaporean Unis: SMU and NUS which are maybe the best ones in Singapore, NTU and SIM which are also not too bad.

Apart from that all schools are private or foreign schools. You should be especially careful with private schools as they are often sub-standard and maybe look down on (speaking from experience although the LSE degree I obtained opened many doors for me in the UK). Some of the foreign schools are quite high calibre and very reputable (Booth for example).

[boffenl]

PLEASE make sure the university you choose, if not a public Sinagpore Uni, is accredited in SG AND in their "home" country. Also be aware there are changes coming for the regulation of private uni's in SG--and it will affect how you pay for courses. There are some good (GREAT" private Uni's here in SG (US, UK and Australian), but you need to know what you want to study and then choose the course which will give you the best return--and NOT say Singapore on your diploma!

[wcs]

Why are you interested in studying in Singapore? Is it the cost of studying here? Is it the location? Or is it because you would like to work here after graduation?

Depending on your reasons, you can make different choices. If you want to work in Singapore and hope a local degree will help you out, then NTU, NUS and SMU are your best options. There are other degree providers, but those are the three that the govt will help out the graduates of the most.

NUS arguably has the best reputation. NTU is solid, and has been trying to lift its international rankings, so it may become better known outside Singapore in the future. SMU is the newest, but has created a good reputation amongst employers as producing confident, presentable graduates. I would say NUS or NTU is your real choice.

James Cook is just a campus of an Australian university. It will probably be a lot more expensive than a local Singaporean degree, but probably easier to be accepted into the course. If you study at James Cook Uni in Singapore, it probably only helps you with employers who graduated from there themselves. Little else about the school will make a local employer chase after you.

This is another reason why NUS or NTU are better if you want to work in Singapore. They have a larger alumni base if you are into networking and building up contacts.

Good luck with it all. Let us know what you choose to do!