National University of Singapore



The National University of Singapore (Abbreviation: NUS; Universiti Kebangsaan Singapura; ; Abbreviated 国大; ) is Singapore's oldest university. It is the largest university in the country in terms of student enrollment and curriculum offered.

The university's main campus is located in southwest Singapore at Kent Ridge, with an area of approximately 1.5 km2. The Bukit Timah campus houses the Faculty of Law, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and research institutes, while the Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Singapore is located at the Outram campus.

The former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has recently named NUS as the headquarters of his Asian Faith and Globalization Initiative together with Durham University in the UK and Yale University in the USA to deliver an exclusive programme in partnership with Tony Blair Faith Foundation.

The university is widely considered to be one of the most prestigious universities in Asia. In 2011, NUS was ranked 28th in the world and 3rd in Asia by the QS World University Rankings.

Beginnings
In September 1904, Tan Jiak Kim led a group of representatives of the Chinese and other non-European communities, and petitioned the Governor of the Straits Settlements, Sir John Anderson, to establish a medical school in Singapore. Tan, who was the first president of the Straits Chinese British Association, managed to raise $87,077, of which the largest amount of $12,000 came from himself. On July 3, 1905, the medical school was founded, and was known as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School.

In 1912, the medical school received an endowment of $120,000 from the King Edward VII Memorial Fund, started by Lim Boon Keng. Subsequently on November 18, 1913, the name of the school was changed to the King Edward VII Medical School. In 1921, it was again changed to the King Edward VII College of Medicine to reflect its academic status.

In 1928, Raffles College was established to promote arts and social sciences at tertiary level for Malayan students.

Establishment of the university
Two decades later, Raffles College was merged with the King Edward VII College of Medicine to form the University of Malaya on October 8, 1949. The two institutions were merged to provide for the higher education needs of the Federation of Malaya and Singapore.

The growth of UM was very rapid during the first decade of its establishment and resulted in the setting up of two autonomous divisions in 1959, one located in Singapore and the other in Kuala Lumpur.

In 1960, the governments of then Federation of Malaya and Singapore indicated their desire to change the status of the divisions into that of a national university. Legislation was passed in 1961 establishing the former Kuala Lumpur division as the University of Malaya while the Singapore division was renamed the University of Singapore on January 1, 1962.

Present form
The National University of Singapore was formed with the merger of the University of Singapore and Nanyang University in 1980. This was done in part due to the government's desire to pool the two institutions' resources into a single, stronger entity, and promote English as Singapore's only main language. The original crest of Nanyang University with three intertwined rings was incorporated into the new coat-of-arms of NUS.

Today, the National University of Singapore has 16 faculties and schools across three campus locations in Singapore – Kent Ridge, Bukit Timah and Outram – and provides a broad-based curriculum underscored by multi-disciplinary courses and cross-faculty enrichment.

Education
NUS has a semester-based modular system for conducting courses. It adopts features of the British system, such as small group teaching (tutorials) and the American system (course credits). Students may transfer between courses within their first two semesters, enroll in cross-faculty modules or take up electives from different faculties (compulsory for most degrees). Other cross-disciplinary initiatives study programmes include double-degree undergraduate degrees in Arts & Social Sciences and Engineering; Arts & Social Sciences and Law; Business and Engineering; and Business and Law.

NUS has 16 faculties and schools, including a Music Conservatory. Currently, it has seven overseas colleges at major entrepreneurial hubs in Shanghai and Beijing (China), Israel, India, Stockholm (Sweden), Silicon Valley and Bio Valley (US).

NUS Overseas Colleges
The NUS Overseas Colleges (NOC) programme started in 2001, providing students with an educational experience in entrepreneurial and academic hubs around the world. Students spend 6-12 months overseas, interning at start-up companies and taking entrepreneurship related courses at partner Universities. There are 7 colleges, in the Silicon Valley (US), Philadelphia (US), Shanghai (China), Beijing (China), Stockholm (Sweden), India and Israel. Assoc Prof Teo Chee Leong is the Director of NOC.

The local equivalent is the Innovative Local Enterprise Achiever Development (iLEAD) initiative, where students intern at innovative Singapore companies. This is a 7-8 month programme that cultivates an entrepreneurial mindset, and develops leadership and management skills.

NOC set up an entrepreneurial-themed residence, known as N-House. Located within the NUS Prince George’s Park residence, this houses about 90 students, who are graduates of the NOC and iLEAD programmes. N-House incorporates common areas such as a meeting room, study area and recreation space. Entrepreneurial activities are also organised by the N-House residents, and these include entrepreneurial sharing sessions, business idea pitching and networking events.

Students have called the NOC programme a life-changing experience. There are over 1,000 NOC and iLEAD graduates - many have gone on to start companies, or work in start-up companies. Some notable NOC and iLEAD alumni include:
 * Darius Cheung and Rishi Irani – Co-founders tencube, which was acquired by McAfee in July 2010
 * Mohan Belani – Director e27 Singapore
 * Tan Bee Thiam – Founder Asian Film Archive and 13 Little Pictures
 * Kelly Choo – Co-founder Brandtology

Entrepreneurship
NUS began its entrepreneurial education endeavours in the 1980s, with the setting up of the Centre for Management of Innovation and Technopreneurship in 1988. In 2001, this was renamed the NUS Entrepreneurship Centre (NEC), and became a division of NUS Enterprise. NEC is currently headed by Professor Wong Poh Kam and its activities are organised into 4 areas, including a business incubator, experiential education, entrepreneurship development, and entrepreneurship research.

Arts and Social Sciences
FASS majors is organised into three divisions – Asian Studies, Humanities and Social Sciences – under which 15 departments and programmes are grouped. It is also home to the Office of Programmes which offers four multidisciplinary programmes and five minor Programmes of study, and the Centre for Language Studies which teaches 12 different languages.

Asian Studies carry a range of majors including Humanities majors are Social Sciences varies from European Studies is currently the only cross-departmental subject available.
 * Chinese Language
 * Chinese Studies
 * Japanese Studies
 * Malay Studies
 * South Asian Studies
 * Southeast Asian Studies;
 * English Language
 * English Literature
 * History
 * Philosophy
 * Theatre Studies;
 * Communications & New Media
 * Economics
 * Geography
 * Political Science
 * Psychology
 * Social Work
 * Sociology;

The faculty also offers Minor programmes (for both FASS and non-FASS undergraduates) in China Studies, American Studies, European Studies, Cultural Studies, Gender Studies, Religious Studies, and STS (Science, Technology and Society). The Centre for Language Studies, which is part of FASS, offers introductory, intermediate and advanced courses on the Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Thai and Vietnamese languages. Graduate academic programmes are offered by all departments.

Business School
NUS Business School was founded as the Department of Business Administration in 1965. It has six departments: Accounting, Strategy and Policy, Decision Sciences, Finance, Management and Organization, and Marketing. Collectively, the departments offer classes in the Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) and Bachelor of Business Administration (Accountancy) [BBA(Acc)] Programmes.

Graduate programmes offered include the Master of Business Administration (MBA), NUS MBA Double Degree (conducted jointly with Peking University), UCLA-NUS Executive MBA Programme, Asia-Pacific Executive MBA (English and Chinese), S3 Asia MBA (conducted jointly with Fudan University and Korea University).

Computing
The School of Computing (SoC), established in 1998,, has two departments – Computer Science and Information Systems. The department of Computer Science offers three undergraduate degree programmes – Computer Science, Communications and Media, and Computational Biology. The department of Information Systems offers five undergraduate programmes – Computing in Information Systems, Computing in Electronic Commerce, Concurrent Degree Programme that combines a Bachelor of Computing (in Information Systems) (Honours) from NUS and a Master of Philosophy (Management) from Cambridge University, Concurrent Degree Programme that combines a Bachelor of Computing (in Information Systems) (Honours) from NUS School of Computing and a Master of Science (Management) from the NUS School of Business, as well as a Double Degree Programme, with a Bachelor of Computing (in Information Systems) (Honours) from NUS School of Computing, and a Bachelor of Business Administration / Business Administration (Accountancy) from the NUS School of Business.

Dentistry
The Faculty of Dentistry had its early beginnings in 1929 as a Department of Dentistry within the King Edward VII College of Medicine. It was the first dental school to be established in a British colony in the east. The faculty conducts a four-year dental course leading to the Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) degree. The undergraduate programme comprises two pre-clinical (first two years) and two clinical years. The Faculty of Dentistry is organised into 3 academic departments covering the disciplines of Oral, and Maxillofacial Surgery, Preventive Dentistry and Restorative Dentistry. Dental education is delivered through comprehensive didatic and clinical sessions. The broad experience and specialisation of the academic staff combine to provide the dental undergraduate with the requisite skills for general practice.

Design and Environment
The School of Design and Environment (SDE) comprises three departments: Architecture, Building and Real Estate and a Division of Industrial Design. Degree courses in building and estate management were first offered in 1969 in the then Department of Building and Estate Management. This was subsequently changed to the School of Building and Real Estate. In June 2000 the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Real Estate changed its name to the School of Design & Environment. As a result of this change, Building and Real Estate were established as separate departments.

SDE offers four undergraduate programmes: Bachelor of Arts (Architecture) (Hons), Bachelor of Arts (Industrial Design) (Hons), Bachelor of Science (Project and Facilities Management) (Hons), and Bachelor of Science (Real Estate) (Hons). Graduate programmes offer specialisations in architecture, landscape architecture, building and real estate including scientific aspects of environmental control, building operations, project management and property management.

Engineering
The Faculty of Engineering (FOE) was launched in 1968. It is the largest faculty in the university. FOE offers both undergraduate and graduate degree programmes. The 10 undergraduate programmes include fields such as Chemical, Civil, Electrical, Computer Engineering, Engineering Science, Environmental, Mechanical, Industrial and Systems Engineering, Bioengineering, and Materials Science & Engineering. Faculty of Engineering also offers part-time undergraduate courses for polytechnic graduates and working professionals leading to the Bachelor of Technology (B-Tech) Programme. Graduate programmes include Master of Engineering, Master of Science, NUS-UIUC Master of Science (Chemical Engineering), and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).

FOE consists of several divisions. These divisions are: Bioengineering; Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering; Civil & Environmental Engineering; Electrical & Computer Engineering; Engineering Science Programme; Industrial & Systems Engineering; Materials Science & Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Division of Engineering and Technology Management.

Law
The law school was first established as a Department of Law in the then University of Malaya in 1956. The first law students were admitted to the Bukit Timah campus of the university the following year. In 1977, the faculty shifted to the Kent Ridge campus, but in 2006 it relocated back to the Bukit Timah site.

Apart from the traditional LLB which runs for four years, the law school also offers double honours degrees in Business Administration & Law, Economics & Law, Law & Life Sciences, and a concurrent degree program in Law & Public Policy. For graduate students, the law school offers coursework LLM specializations in areas such as Corporate and Financial Services Law, Intellectual Property & Technology Law, International & Comparative Law, Maritime Law and Asian Legal Studies.

Students seeking a global legal qualification can opt for the dual degree programme known informally as NYU@NUS which is a collaboration between NUS and New York University School of Law. The programme commences in Singapore in May, with NYU faculty flying to Singapore for intensive classes, continues with the NUS semesters, and concludes in New York City with a programme designed to complement preparation to sit the New York Bar Exam. Students who want to combine their NUS degree with significant time in China should consider the LL.M. in International Business Law, which takes place in Singapore and Shanghai and is offered in partnership with the East China University of Political Science and Law. There is also and a PhD programme that’s available for graduate students.

Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine
The Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine (杨潞龄医学院) was first established as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School in 1905. The School comprises departments such as the Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies, Anaesthesia, Anatomy, Biochemistry, Diagnostic Radiology, Epidemiology and Public Health, Medicine, Microbiology, Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Ophthalmology, Orthopaedic Surgery, Otolaryngology, Paediatrics, Pathology, Pharmacology, Physiology, Psychological Medicine, and Surgery. The School uses the British undergraduate medical system, offering a full-time undergraduate programme leading to the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS). For Nursing, the Bachelor of Science (Nursing) (conducted by the Alice Lee Centre for Nursing Studies) is offered. In 2011, the School is ranked as the top medical school in Asia and 12th in the world overall by the QS World University Rankings by Subject (Medicine).

Graduate programmes include:


 * Master of Medicine specialises in Anaesthesiology, Diagnostic Radiology, Emergency Medicine, Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Obestetrics & Gynaecology, Occupational Medicine, Ophthalomology, Orthopaedic Surgery, Otorhinolaryngology Paediatric Medicine, Psychiatry, Public Health, and Surgery. The MMed is often taken at the same time as the MRCP(UK), offered by the British Royal Colleges.


 * Research-oriented MSc or PhD degree programmes to train biomedical scientists


 * MBBS-PhD Programme to train medical-scientists for academia and industry


 * Part-time Graduate Diploma programmes in Dermatology, Family Medicine, Geriatric Medicine and Occupational Medicine


 * Master of Nursing

Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Singapore
The Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Singapore is an innovative collaboration between Duke University in North Carolina, United States and the National University of Singapore. It follows the American model of post-baccalaureate medical education. Students begin their medical studies after earning a bachelor’s degree. In this way, Duke-NUS is able to offer an innovative opportunity for students with the potential to excel in the field of medicine and biomedical sciences.

The school’s curriculum is based on that of Duke University’s School of Medicine: basic sciences (first year); clinical rotations (second year) and independent scholarship and research (third year). Upon successfully completing the course of study and fulfilling all requirements after their fourth year, students will be awarded a Joint Doctor of Medicine (M.D) degree from Duke University and the National University of Singapore.

Duke-NUS also offers an M.D./PhD programme for students who are committed to intensive research-oriented clinical practice careers, combining biomedical research with the practice of clinical medicine. All MD/PhD candidates will complete the first two years of the MD programme. In lieu of their third year, candidates will begin the PhD programme. The PhD typically takes four years to complete, but timing will depend on the student’s area of research. After completing their PhD, students will return to the MD programme to complete their final year. It is estimated that it will take seven years to complete an MD/PhD at Duke-NUS. Students, who are admitted, will be offered a full scholarship for the PhD component as well as for the remaining tuition required to complete their M.D. training.

A five-year PhD degree study in Integrated Biology and Medicine, which incorporates key aspects of Duke and NUS graduate programmes, is also available for students wishing to develop a successful career in biomedical research.

Science
The Faculty of Science (FOS) comprises the departments of Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Mathematics, Pharmacy, Physics, and Statistics & Applied Probability.

Listed below are the primary majors offered by the Faculty. Except for Computational Biology and Pharmacy which are strict 4-year honours programmes, all majors allow students to graduate with a Bachelor's degree.


 * Department of Biological Sciences
 * Computational Biology – jointly supported by the School of Computing
 * Environmental Studies (Specialisation in Environmental Biology) – jointly supported by the Department of Geography, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
 * Life Sciences – jointly supported by the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine
 * Life Sciences (Specialisation in Environmental Biology)
 * Life Sciences (Specialisation in Biomedical Sciences)
 * Life Sciences (Specialisation in Molecular and Cell Biology)


 * Department of Chemistry
 * Applied Chemistry
 * Chemistry
 * Food Science & Technology


 * Department of Mathematics
 * Applied Mathematics
 * Mathematics
 * Quantitative Finance


 * Department of Pharmacy
 * Pharmacy


 * Department of Physics
 * Physics
 * Physics (with specialisation in Astrophysics)
 * Physics (with specialisation in Physics in Technology)


 * Department of Statistics and Applied Probability
 * Statistics
 * Statistics (with specialisation in Biostatistics)
 * Statistics (with specialisation in Finance and Business Statistics)

The faculty also offers a spread of minors, multidisciplinary programmes and special programmes for the educational broadening and enhancement of the students.

Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy
The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKYSPP) (李光耀公共政策学院) was formally established in 2004 as an autonomous graduate school of the National University of Singapore. Although the School was formally launched in 2004, it inherited NUS' Public Policy Programme, which was established in 1992 in partnership with Harvard University’s John F Kennedy School of Government.

LKYSPP offers three master degree programmes:


 * Master in Public Policy


 * Master in Public Administration


 * Master in Public Management

NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering
NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering (NGS) was established in 2003. The principal purpose of NGS is "to promote integrative PhD research encompassing both laboratory work and coursework programmes which not only transcend traditional subject boundaries but also provides students with a depth of experience about science and the way it is carried out".

Students admitted to NGS are invited to apply for the A*STAR Pre-Graduate Scholarship.

NGS’ PhD programmes are firmly anchored in cross-disciplinary research. It offers a spectrum of research areas, spanning science, engineering, related aspects of medicine, and interactive & digital media. NGS also offers the following PhD degree programmes. •	Joint NUS-Imperial College Phd Programme •	NUS PhD-MBA

University Scholars Programme
The University Scholars Programme (USP) aims to develop the intellectual, leadership, and personal potential of promising students. Students in the Programme graduate with an honours degree from their faculty if they meet the minimum requirements by the home department or school and a certificate that recognizes them as University Scholars having participated in the programme. USP students are scholars in the sense that they love learning, and though many may also be awarded financial aid in the form of scholarships or studentships.

USP is an honours programme where students are concurrently enrolled in one of six faculties or schools – Arts and Social Sciences, Business, Computing, Design and Environment, Engineering, and Science. The students do 30% of their academic work with USP, and 70% in their home faculty or school where they do their majors. USP classes are taught in seminar style, with class sizes ranging from 10 to 35 so as to allow maximum interaction between professors and students. USP modules focus on critical thinking, analysis and interdisciplinary thought. The programme emphasizes students' ability to communicate and, through analysis, make connections across diverse fields.

Starting from August 2011, this ten-year-old programme includes a residential component where USP students live and learn together in the new USP residential college in NUS's University Town. All USP students will stay at the USP residential college in Year One and a second year over the course of their studies. Entry to the programme is highly competitive. Application is by transcript, essay, and interview with our professors and alumni. Students are admitted based on their academic potential and co-curricular achievements, together with their passion, motivation, and curiosity.

Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music
The Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music (YSTCM) (杨秀桃音乐学院) is a collaboration between NUS and the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University. Singapore’s first conservatory of music, YSTCM was founded as the Singapore Conservatory of Music in 2001. The School was renamed Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music in recognition of a gift from the family of the late Dr Yong Loo Lin in memory of his daughter.

The Conservatory presently offers a Bachelor of Music (Honours) degree, with majors in Performance (Piano and Orchestral Instruments) and Composition. This is a four-year full-time music degree programme with an emphasis on music performance and music academics.

NUS University Town
The NUS University Town (UTown) opened its doors in August 2011. Located across the NUS Kent Ridge campus; this is where some 2,400 undergraduate students, 1,700 graduate students and 1,000 researchers will work, live, and learn in close proximity. There are two residential colleges (Cinnamon and Tembusu Colleges), an Education Resource Centre and a Graduate Residence. When fully completed, there will be another two residential colleges for undergraduate students.

Cinnamon College
Cinnamon College houses the University Scholars Programme. The USP residential college community is set to provide a stimulating environment for intellectual and personal growth, and the USP experience will be intensely reinforced through the integration of curriculum, learning-beyond–the-classroom activities, and residential programmes. The USP residential college will house 600 students and contain the administrative and faculty offices for USP and teaching classrooms.

USP students will take modules at the college and follow the current USP curriculum. They will be required to take eight multidisciplinary modules specially designed for USP students, including the Writing and Critical Thinking module and University Scholars Seminars. Students will have various options to fulfill their USP advanced curriculum requirements that include individual research with faculty mentors, and industrial and entrepreneurial attachments. Students also get to participate in overseas programmes and exchanges with some of the best universities in the world. They will be part of a closely knitted community and network of USP alums, faculty, staff and students.

Tembusu College
Tembusu College is one of the first two Residential Colleges in University Town, a new extension to the main NUS campus at Kent Ridge. Tembusu houses mainly undergraduates, in addition to resident faculty, distinguished visiting scholars, and a few graduate fellows. Freshmen (matriculating first-year students) enrolling in any NUS faculty or programme apply to the College at the same time they apply to NUS. Entry is competitive (an essay-based application followed by an interview) as only 200–230 students can be enrolled in any given year. Some students from non-modular faculties (whose course requirements may be reduced or waived) and students from overseas exchange programmes add to the residential mix. Students from any NUS faculty are eligible to apply.

The College offers five multi-disciplinary modules fulfilling the "University-Level Requirements" (2 General Education modules, 2 Breadth modules, and 1 Singapore Studies module) which most NUS undergraduates must read to graduate. Students read the rest of their modules in their home faculties. A University Town Residential Programme Certificate is issued to eligible students along with the regular degree scroll. Students from non-modular faculties (i.e. Law, Medicine, and Dentistry) also belong to the College, but with course-work tailored to their specific programmes. The Rector of Tembusu College is Singapore's Ambassador-at-Large and former U.N. Ambassador Prof. Tommy Koh, who is also the former Dean of the NUS Faculty of Law.

Centre for Development of Teaching and Learning
The Centre for Development of Teaching and Learning (CDTL) was first established in 1984 as the Centre for Educational Technology (CET). It was renamed to CDTL in 1996. The Centre oversees functions such as:
 * Facilitating informed reflection among faculty on :
 * 1) concepts of teaching, learning, and university education, and
 * 2) teaching practices that are consistent with these concepts;
 * encouraging and spearheading educational innovations and initiatives;
 * conducting research on educational philosophy, pedagogical theory, and educational practices;
 * assisting University administration in the formulation of educational policies in matters such as teacher appraisal, peer review, selecting outstanding educators, student feedback and student assessment;
 * developing and implementing teacher education programmes for faculty and teaching assistants;
 * providing educational consultation and assistance to faculty; and
 * exploring and promoting pedagogically sound innovative applications of instructional technology to teaching and learning, in collaboration with CIT.

Centre for Instructional Technology
The Centre for Instructional Technology (CIT) was formed in 1999 to drive the use of technology in teaching and learning at NUS. It provides for the exploration, development and application of digital and audio-visual technologies to support and enhance teaching and learning. This is done through the NUS-developed Integrated Virtual Learning Environment and by developing new applications/services and incorporating multimedia content in courses for academia.

Centre for English Language Communication
The Centre for English Language Communication (CELC) was established in 1979 as the English Language Proficiency Unit (ELPU). It is a non-faculty teaching department in the National University of Singapore. CELC focuses on four areas:


 * Developing students' English Language Skills;
 * Enhancing students' communication skills;
 * Providing training in English for Academic purposes; and
 * Researching issues related to language teaching and learning.

Institute of Systems Science
A specialty training institute of NUS, the Institute of Systems Science (ISS) offers professional information technology continuing education to managers and IT practitioners. ISS is a life long learning centre for strategic IT management, software technology, and knowledge engineering. ISS offers postgraduate degree programs, professional development short courses and certification training programs such as the Certified Information Technology Project Manager (CITPM) course. ISS is also a research center in on-line is education – its ISS Virtual Institute offers e-learning courses in IT Security and Object Oriented Analysis & Design.

NUS Extension
NUS Extension is the continuing education arm of NUS. It offers a comprehensive suite of courses in the following learning platforms: In addition to courses for open enrolment, NUS Extension offers training programmes that are specially tailored to meet the unique needs of each individual organisation.
 * Professional and Management (Staying Relevant)
 * Enterprise Leadership (Cultivating Leaders)
 * Entrepreneurship Development (Nurturing Entrepreneurs)
 * Personal Enrichment (Enhancing the Individual)

NUS High School of Mathematics and Science
NUS High School of Mathematics and Science is a school specializing in math and science, and provides secondary and pre-tertiary education to many students with an inclination to these fields. Being an independent department of NUS, NUS High School students are instructed in the modular system, with a curriculum accredited by NUS, and have access to certain NUS resources. Also, all NUS High School students have the privilege of electing to read any NUS modules from three faculties: Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Faculty of Engineering and Faculty of Science before matriculation as long as they have the necessary foundation knowledge, as opposed to students of other secondary institutions who can only read one or two modules at best. The campus is also part of the NUS fibre optic network with an underground extension linking it to the main network.

Research
Strategic research initiatives to help the university achieve its goal of knowledge creation include:
 * Leveraging on available expertise to establish a base of research across a broad range of disciplines
 * Building peaks of research excellence
 * Growing global research links
 * Forging strong links between research and graduate education

Among the major research focuses at NUS are biomedical and life sciences, physical sciences, engineering, nanoscience and nanotechnology, materials science and engineering, infocommunication and infotechnology, humanities and social sciences, and defence-related research.

One of several niche research areas of strategic importance to Singapore being undertaken at NUS is bioengineering. Initiatives in this area include bioimaging, tissue engineering and tissue modulation. Another new field which holds much promise is nanoscience and nanotechnology. Apart from higher-performance but lower-maintenance materials for manufacturing, defence, transportation, space and environmental applications, this field also heralds the development of accelerated biotechnical applications in medicine, health care and agriculture.

Research institutes and centres
Currently, NUS hosts 21 university-level research institutes and centres in various fields such as research on Asia, risk management, logistics, engineering sciences, mathematical sciences, biomedical and life sciences, nanotechnology to marine studies. Besides that, NUS also hosts three Research Centres of Excellence which are the Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, Centre for Quantum Technologies and Mechanobiology Institute, Singapore – a partner in Singapore's fifth Research Centre of Excellence (RCE). Besides University-level RICs, NUS also has close affiliation with many National Research Centres / Institutes.

Major research facilities
Comparative Medicine (CM) National University Medical Institutes (NUMI)
 * CM is set up to provide professional and technical service for laboratory animal care, veterinary medical services, and animal research project support for NUS staff and students.
 * NUMI focuses its efforts on the development of centralized research facilities and services for the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine in NUS and developing research programs in cancer and cardiovascular diseases.

Besides such centralized facilities, many Faculties and Departments have facilities and equipment which could be made available to other NUS colleagues. More details could be obtained from the respective Faculty / Department website.

Industry Liaison Office
The NUS Industry Liaison Office (ILO) manages the University’s technology transfer and promotes research collaborations with industry and partners. ILO manages NUS intellectual property, commercialises its intellectual assets and facilitates the spinning off of technologies into start-up companies. Ms Irene Cheong is the Director of ILO.

Some recent industry partnerships enabled by ILO include a research agreement with Agilent, a licensing agreement with Cambridge Display Technology (a Sumitomo Chemical Group company), and a partnership with the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics. NUS spin-off companies supported by ILO include BioMers, Gatekeeper Laboratories , Clearbridge BioMedics , Clearbridge VitalSigns , and BioLynx Technologies.

ILO has set up the Research to Market (R2M) portal, to showcase NUS technologies and engage with industry. Technology sectors include the life sciences, interactive digital media, physical sciences and multi-disciplinary technologies. Another activity organised by ILO is the Technology Commercialisation Forum (TCF), an annual event that brings together industry, academia, researchers, investors and entrepreneurs to examine trends and issues involved in commercialising technology. In 2012, ILO has collaborated with the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) to organise TCF concurrently with AUTM Asia.

ILO organises technology specific events, looking to facilitate technology commercialisation in industry sectors. TechLaunch is an event that focuses on technologies in the field of augmented reality, media search, image processing, gaming, language processing, web analysis and video processing.

World rankings
NUS is consistently ranked amongst the best universities in Asia and the world. The Academic Ranking of World Universities places it in the range of 100–150 among world universities. However, In 2011 a small private firm based in London with a major office in Singapore, Quacquarelli Symonds in its QS World University Rankings ranked NUS 28th in the world and 3rd among Asian Universities.

The 2011–12 Times Higher Education World University Rankings ranked NUS 40th in the world, and the 3rd in Asia.

In their 2011 rankings, Forbes ranked the NUS Business School's Master of Business Administration (MBA) programme has emerged top in Singapore and Asia on Forbes' list and placed fourth Internationally after IESE Business School. The Financial Times places NUS School of Business at 23rd in their global MBA ranking tables.

Global classroom
NUS uses technology to link up campuses on different continents. An example is the Singapore-MIT Alliance which utilises Internet 2 technology to bring students from Singapore and MIT together in one virtual classroom for lectures and interactions via videoconferencing.

Other initiatives implemented includes Integrated Virtual Learning Environment, which is used for IT-based teaching and learning resources. A secure Plug-and-Play environment provides wireless connectivity to the university’s computer network and the Internet on campus.

Global networking
NUS is a member of a bunch of organisations involved in education and research. These include International Alliance of Research Universities (IARU), Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU), ASEAN University Network (AUN), Global Enterprise for Micro-Mechanics and Molecular Medicine (GEM4) and Universitas 21 (U21).

International teaching and research partners
NUS has several formalized teaching and research collaborations :

Research and Teaching Institutes
 * Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Singapore
 * German Institute of Science & Technology
 * Joint Laboratories with Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)
 * Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy
 * Risk Management Institute
 * Singapore – MIT Alliance
 * Temasek Defence Systems Institute
 * The Logistics Institute – Asia Pacific
 * Yong Siew Toh Conservatory of Music

International Partners
 * Duke University
 * Technische Universitat Munchen
 * Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
 * John F Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University
 * University of California, Berkeley
 * Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Nanyang Technological University
 * US Naval Postgraduate School
 * Georgia Institute of Technology
 * Peabody Institute, Johns Hopkins University

IT and computing services
The IT facilities and network are generally provided by its central IT department, Computer Centre. The university’s optical fibre network is one of the largest campus networks in the Asia Pacific region. NUSNET is used in research, teaching, learning and administration. In 2004, a campus-wide grid computing network based on UD Grid MP was deployed, connecting at least 1,000 computers. This becomes one of the largest such virtual supercomputing facilities in the region.

Library services
The NUS Libraries comprises 7 libraries, namely, the Central Library, the Chinese Library, the CJ Koh Law Library, the Hon Sui Sen Memorial Library, the Medical Library, the Music Library, and the Science Library. Its primary clients are the NUS and NUS-affiliated research institutes, students, teaching, research and administrative staff members, as well as a sizeable group of external members. Its collection encompasses subjects in architecture, building and real estate, business, dentistry, engineering, computer science, the humanities and social sciences, law, medicine, music, nursing and science. As of June 2010, there are close to 1.5 million unique titles, and 23,290 microform resources in the collection. The Library Portal, a one-stop gateway, offers the university community 24-hour access via the Internet to a rich array of electronic collection and services provided by the NUS Libraries. Besides the rich resources, the NUS Libraries provide an environment conducive for individual research and spaces for group interaction and learning.

Student accommodation


There are about 6,000 residential places distributed between Halls of Residence and Student Residences on campus. There is a free Internal Shuttle Bus Service that plies the entire campus seven days a week.

Rooms are furnished with beds, mattresses, wardrobes, study tables, bookshelves and fans. There is a very small number of air-conditioned single rooms with attached bathrooms. Points for telephone, cable television and the university's computer network are available in each room. The accommodation is divided into single room (single-occupancy) or double room (double-occupancy). Laundry rooms equipped with washing machines and coin-operated tumble dryers are located in each student accommodation.

Halls of residence
NUS has 6 Halls of Residence with about 3,000 residential places.

Each hall has a Senior Common Room Committee (SCRC) comprising the Resident Fellows (staff). Headed by a Hall Master, which is tasked to look after residents' well being. Residents are represented by elected student members to the Junior Common Room Committee (JCRC), which helps to promote the hall's social and cultural life.

The six Halls of Residence are:


 * Eusoff Hall (345 single rooms; 70 double rooms)
 * Kent Ridge Hall (507 single)
 * King Edward VII Hall (350 single; 60 double)
 * Raffles Hall (213 single; 128 double)
 * Sheares Hall (509 single)
 * Temasek Hall (345 single; 70 double)

Student residences
NUS also has 3 Student Residences for undergraduate students with clusters of 11 to 15 single rooms with their own kitchen and bathroom facilities. Kitchen and dining areas are equipped with basic cooking appliances. The newly built university town houses Graduate Residence for graduate students with the option of both apartments and single rooms.

Each residence has a team of Resident Assistants (senior students) and Resident Advisors (either an academic or non-academic staff) to assist with any concerns that students may have. The 3 Student Residences are:


 * Kuok Foundation House
 * Prince George's Park Residences
 * Ridge View Residences
 * Graduate Residences

List of principal officers
The following table is a list of the principal officers of the National University of Singapore's predecessors. Note that the office of the President of Raffles College was renamed Principal of Raffles College from 1938

List of alumni

 * Chan Sek Keong - Chief Justice of Singapore
 * Goh Chok Tong - second Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore
 * Ivan Heng - actor and director
 * S Jayakumar - former Deputy Prime Minister and Co-ordinating Minister for National Security and former Dean
 * Adam Khoo - best-selling author I am Gifted So Are You; entrepreneur
 * Koh Juat Jong - Solicitor-General, Singapore
 * Tommy Koh - Ambassador-at-Large and Chairman of the NUS Law Advisory Board
 * Sundaresh Menon - Attorney-General, Singapore
 * S.R. Nathan - former President of Singapore
 * Ong Keng Sen - Singaporean theatre director
 * Ong Keng Yong - Singapore High Commissioner to Malaysia and former ASEAN Secretary-General
 * K. Shanmugam - Minister for Law and Foreign Affairs, Singapore
 * Tan Lee Meng - Supreme Court Judge and former Dean
 * Selena Tan - actress
 * Tony Tan Keng Yam - President of Singapore and former Vice Chancellor of the National University of Singapore
 * Kelvin Tong - director
 * Eleanor Wong - playwright
 * Wong Kan Seng - former Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore
 * Walter Woon - David Marshall Professor and former Attorney-General of Singapore
 * Rais Yatim - Minister for Information, Communications and Culture, Malaysia
 * Pan Zai Xiang - Journalist at DANAMIC