NUS vs NTU vs SMU

After days of research, interviews with poly lecturers and uni-friends, and self-reflection; I've decided to choose SMU over NTU and NUS. NTU Nanyang Business School has offered me my first choice which is Business. While NUS offered me my second choice; Arts and Social Science FASS. The latter's offer is paler in comparison to the former's and that made it easy for me to cross-out NUS.

However I was confused over NBS and SMU. So I decided to lay down all the factors for an apples-to-apples comparison but I later included NUS for a holistic decision making.

Let's start with NUS. It is a comprehensive university and it ranks higher then NTU. Furthermore, a degree from NUS has this aura of prestige. However my passion for FASS is second to Business and therefore I decided to strike out NUS.

NTU's NBS is extremely prestigious. It has an awesome global ranking of 24 and it is top in ASEAN. Furthermore, its Business programme is a 3yrs programme with direct honours. Plus, it has well furbished halls and a vibrant campus life. But, NTU is very far away, better known for its engineering programmes, and not known to produce good presenters. Three stars to NTU NBS!

SMU is a new university yet to be accredited and it cannot be ranked together with NUS and NTU as it is not a holistic university like them. However, a little research will tell you that it will be accredited within the next 2years. It has a different teaching pedagogy which is more interactive - in small seminar settings, plenty of industry partnerships and it is known to develop graduates into smooth presenters. Plus, they are offering me a scholarship. :P

Although NTU is a really good university and it has been my goal for nearly 2 years. I rather take my chances with SMU which was modelled after Wharton and has been created to be different from the other 2 older universities. So I would think that SMU is more attuned to the needs of this new era. An era that is driven by innovation and IT.

So here I come, SMU!

108 Coconuts Later

I visited the Sri Senpaga Vinayagar temple today and I would definitely visit this temple again. It is one of the temples that evokes nostalgia for me. When I was younger, I had Sunday religious lessons in that very same temple. I even had the opportunity to play Lord Ganesh once; I was the skinniest Ganesh ever. It was also a temple where we had many family functions.

However, I had no family function today nor do I still attend religious lessons. Instead I was there to give thanks and to seek further blessing from the god of prosperity. I broke 108 coconuts in the name of Lord Ganesha. Some sounded like a pop from a champagne bottle, an apt sound to celebrate my recent successes. While others sounded like a crash - and to my imaginative mind it sounded like the crushing of future obstacles. I really need him to clear any possible obstacles lying before my path to a successful future.

Tomorrow will be the start of a new chapter at SMU.