Experience Report Nanyang Technological University Singapore Spring 2017-2018 - Tilburg University
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Experience Report Nanyang Technological University
Singapore Spring 2017-2018
Exchange in Computer Science
September 1, 2018
1 General Information
Singapore is a vibrant and wealthy island, originally part of Malaysia. The location as a harbor for
ships traveling from the East to the West made it a strategic position, attracting a lot of foreigners.
Nowadays, Singapore is a mixture of different cultures. Most of them are from China, India and
the native Malay people.
Nanyang Technological University is located in the top left corner of the island, relatively far
from the city center. When traveling by public transport, it easily takes over an hour to get there.
But, this is nothing to be afraid about; Nanyang is a city on its own. With over 30,000 students,
most of them living on campus, it is a village filled with activities, food and knowledge. Students
live in halls, each equipped with their own study rooms, gym and food court. Furthermore, there is
a swimming pool, several libraries and also labs to work on computers, experiments, among others.
Compared to Tilburg University, Nanyang is not only larger, but also has a different mentality.
Having most students living on campus, and providing them with a lot of facilities, results in a
vibrant campus life. In Tilburg, everyone lives off-campus, and the facilities are limited. Thus, the
type of student life is also different.
2 Practical Information
2.1 Before Leaving
The information regarding the pre-arrival was limited. We received an e-mail stating the start
date, and the place where we needed to be. The campus is quite big, so the first day you will find
yourself looking for that exact spot. But, this also allows you to stroll around the campus.
Besides the information received, I indicated the courses that I wanted to follow. Most of them
were part of the Master’s in Technopreneurship. What turned out upon arrival? We were not
allowed to take these courses. This was not only case, most exchange students coped with the
same problems. Eventually, I followed three Computer Science courses which were similar to the
Technopreneurship courses. Be prepared to give up courses, and the first week being one of trying
different courses and selecting your favorite ones. Also, it was very often a "you cannot follow this
course". Keep pushing! This is how I ended up doing the Introduction to Data Science course,
which I really wanted to take.
The international office has been helpful at times, but the selection of courses remained a
bottleneck. It was easy to communicate via e-mail or drop by their office.
2.2 Visa Procedure
The first day upon arrival at the University consisted of getting the right documents and applying
for the visa. This was straightforward, and required you to bring passport-sized photos and doc-
uments from the government. Since the number of exchange students was large, the immigration
office did the registration on campus. This was very convenient for the students. The price of the
visa was approximately EUR 60. You will receive a card similar to a drivers license with your name
and picture. Tip: now you have your immigration card you can take the resident lane at Changi
airport when you go traveling. In terms of orientation, there was not much organized. Students
had time to explore the campus on their own.
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2.3 Housing
You can book your on-campus accommodation before you arrive in Singapore. I decided to live
off-campus during my period in Singapore. This was quite expensive, and eventually not what I
expected. I rented a room in a HDB apartment, which are being built for Singaporean residents
as a cheap housing option. This is needed, since the pricing in Singapore is so high, that locals are
not able to cope with the costs. I had some troubles with a very unfriendly landlord, and had to
move out after more than a month.
Afterwards, I moved to the Nanyang Campus. This was the best decision to take. From that
point onwards, I got the most out of my exchange. You immediately hang out with other students,
and have food and drinks together. I ended up in a private room at Meranti Hall. This is a
new and very beautiful building with (after trying all the food courts) the best food court! Take
into account that, normally you are only allowed to take a double room. But, what I learned
in Singapore; keep pushing and be consistent. When you do that, you can get a single room or
anything else that you want to have.
2.4 Costs
Before moving to Singapore, I saved up quite a bit of money. Expenses are as high as you want
them to be. When staying on campus you can have meals for 3-4 euros, and breakfast for 1-2
euros. There is a supermarket on campus where you can buy fruits and other nice stuff, which are
relatively cheap to The Netherlands.
Where does it get tricky? It’s all in the activities I would say. Going to the city center by
public transport (very cheap; 2-3 euros) takes a long time. The alternative is sharing a cab together
with other students. Using Grab (the South-East Asian alternative of Uber) is the best way to
book it and share it. In the city center, you can go for drinks and food. Take into account that
alcohol is expensive. For a beer, you easily pay 5-6 euros in a bar. Restaurants are also quite
expensive, except for the Hawker centers. These centers have small food stalls with all types of
food. Very unique to Singapore/Malaysia, and a must try! Another treat we often took was the
Sentosa Island. Here, you could lay on the beach and have some beers. Taking a cab there, having
a few beers and some food, easily got you to 30-40 euros each. Definitely worth it, but take it into
account! The best tip I have is trying and spending as much on food as possible; all the different
cuisines and stalls make it the perfect place to try as much delicious food as possible.
Besides the spending within Singapore, you can travel a lot. The strategic position of Singapore
makes it ideal to travel to other spots in South-East and even the Far-East. From my expenditures,
this is where I spent the most money on. I traveled to Malaysia two times, Vietnam, Brunei, Sri
Lanka, Taiwan and China. Flying from Changi is very convenient and often cheap with the local
budget airlines. Traveling by public transport to the airport takes 2 hours, and only 30 minutes
by taxi. Sharing a cab is therefore the best option to take.
2.5 Approximate Costs Overview
• Housing: EUR 500
• Food: EUR 200/300
• Transport: EUR 100/150
• Books: EUR 0 (PPTs and PDFs will suffice)
• Miscellaneous: EUR 200
2.6 Academic Calendar
The academic semester starts earlier than the semester in Tilburg. Therefore, after finishing the
semester in Tilburg you need to leave for Singapore immediately. There is a one week recess in
the middle of the semester, where you will be able to travel abroad or explore Singapore. The
examination period consisted of two weeks, and the week before was free of classes.
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2.7 Social, Culture, Language and Personal Development
At Nanyang there are so many social activities, it is hard to follow. There are numerous study
associations which organize parties, food trials, sports and more. Additionally, there were fairs
concerning careers and cultures which were nice to attend. During my time, I had contact with
both local and exchange students. In group work, there was a balance between locals and exchange.
I liked this, since it allowed me to meet numerous cultures and peoples.
Before coming to Singapore, I already went to Asia numerous times. Thus, I did not experience
a culture shock. Well, coming from Europe, you will not experience a culture shock in Singapore
anyways. The public transport, facilities and structure are quite Western, making it a good starting
point to get to know Asia. Besides that, I conducted an internship in Malaysia a few years ago.
This was more of a culture shock, but allowed me to understand the local cultures in Malaysia and
Singapore. The native language in Singapore are both Chinese and English. This makes it easy
to communicate with everyone. Before moving to Singapore, I also followed the Chinese language
course at Tilburg University to familiarize myself with the Chinese culture and language.
There are, of course, downsides to the Singaporean culture. Especially there wealth comes in as
a downside. The Singaporeans look down upon other South-East Asian Countries, labeling them as
lazy and inefficient. They do feel superior, and are not afraid to show it. Furthermore, the Chinese
population in Singapore constitutes to most of the wealth in the country. Consequently, they look
down on their Malay and Indian counterparts. You will notice that road work and other lower
range jobs are conducted by Indians. Although the city describes itself as being multicultural, I
have the feeling that they all live in their own communes. On the Singaporean ID card there is
even a column with "race" stating if your are Chinese, Indian, Malay et cetera. This is definitely
something you would not see in The Netherlands as being acceptable.
This exchange period helped me to understand one of the business centers of Asia, and the
cultures that come with. I think that studying at Nanyang will help me in my future career, as
I studied Computer Science which is in high demand. Furthermore, Nanyang is one of the top-
ranked universities worldwide. I learned from my exchange that you should never give up on what
you want to achieve, and keep pushing for it.
3 Academic Information
The courses at the university are all offered in English. There are some programs that are especially
in Chinese, but this is only the case for several programs. I followed three Computer Science
courses to expand my knowledge in programming, data structures and data science. I believe this
will become increasingly important, and will serve as a foundation for every business field in the
future. The academic level is more intense than Tilburg, requiring you to do more assignments
and self-study during the semester.
Teaching methods are mixed, consisting of programming assignments, group work and also
special lectures to program. Staff is easily approachable, and I had some good discussions with
Professors. Also, it was easy to stop by their office and ask questions regarding content. I enjoyed
this semester, both from a personal and academic perspective.
Course Prerequisites Exam ECTS Comments
Computational Thinking None Written 6 Many programming assignments
Data Science Computational Thinking Written 6 Nice data science assignment
Human-Computer-Interaction None Written 6 Quite hard programming assignment
4 Recommendations for Future Students
Definitely go to Singapore and experience the vibrant, tech-savvy and mixed-culture island. Do not
let the potential costs set you back; there is something for every budget. Also, you can take really
nice travels to other parts of Asia (or Australia) from here. The university is very professional and
high quality, which helps you professionally as well.
Carefully take into account the courses you want to follow, and have back-up available in case
you cannot follow them. This will help you during the first week. You should also go to as many
courses that you selected in the first week, and follow those that suit your needs. Living on campus
3is also a must. You will be further from the city center, but will experience the Singaporean campus
life and everything that comes with.
5 Pictures
A small selection of pictures I took during my exchange.
Figure 1: Chinese New Year event near the Marina Bay Sands.
Figure 2: View on Boat Quay.
Figure 3: Arab Street with the famous Mosque.
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