Local University Admissions
The results you achieve will be in direct proportion to the effort you apply.
Denis Waitley
Application Timeline
Prepare
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Explore and narrow down your choices
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Check out subject pre-requisites, indicative grade profile and selection criteria
01
Apply
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Fill in the online application forms for each course
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Submit your personal statement
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Request for teacher referral
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Apply for scholarship and financial aid
02
Achieve
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Sit for selection test and interview
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Accept offers via Common Acceptance platform
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Appeal if rejected
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Commencement of studies
03
3rd week (Feb)
A level results release
19 Mar to 24 May
Interviews
Selection Tests
Offer and Acceptance
Jun to Aug
Matriculation
Orientation
Commencement of studies
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JULY
AUG
3rd week of Feb to 19 Mar
Visit Open Houses
University Application Period
May to 17 Jun
Appeals
Offer and Acceptance
How to apply
Prepare
1/ Explore and narrow down your choices
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This phase takes a long time. It is best to start exploring while you are still in JC.
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You should apply to at least three courses of your choice in different universities (Reach, Target and Safety) so that you can make an informed decision.
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Learn more about choosing a suitable university and course here.
2/ Check out subject pre-requisites and selection criteria
Base criteria for applying
To apply to the AUs, you need to have:
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3 H2 passes in content subjects, 1 H1 pass in content subjects, Project Work and GP/KI in the same sitting
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Meet one of the following Mother Tongue Language (MTL) requirement:
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A minimum of ‘S’ grade in H1 MTL or General Studies in Chinese or H2 Mother Tongue Language & Literature (MTLL) taken at ‘A’ level
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Pass in MTL ‘B’ syllabus taken at ‘A’ level
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A minimum of D7 in Higher MTL taken at ‘O’ level
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University Admissions Score (UAS)
The universities select candidates based on their university admissions score (UAS), also known as rank points.
The University Admission Score (UAS) is calculated as follows:
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the best four content subjects (i.e. 3 H2 and 1 H1 content subjects OR 3 best H2, with worst H2 subject counted as one H1 subject, with at least 1 content subject to be from a contrasting discipline)
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either GP or KI grade taken in the same sitting
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H1 Project Work
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The maximum points for H2 and H1 subjects are 20 and 10 respectively (see table on the right)
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Maximum number of points is 90.
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Your MTL results may be included in the computation of the UAS. The better of the two scores (i.e. with and without MTL) will be the UAS of the candidate.
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H3 papers taken at the ‘A’ Level examination are not considered in the computation of the UAS. Candidates who have taken H3 programmes may be considered for admission under Aptitude-based Admissions (ABA).
Indicative Grade Profile (IGP)
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To help students select university courses based on their UAS, the universities release an indicative grade profile every year.
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Please note that meeting the previous year’s grade of a course does not guarantee admission to that course for the next year.
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Other universities do not release an IGP as they select students based on a holistic criteria
Selection Criteria
In order to be
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selected for a course (without interview)
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shortlisted for course interview
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shortlisted for scholarship interview
your UAS should ideally be better than the UAS of the 10th percentile IGP
What if your UAS falls below the 10th percentile UAS of your desired course?
Aptitude-based Admissions (ABA)
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If your UAS falls slightly below the 10th percentile UAS of the IGP i.e. 2.5 points, you may opt to apply via aptitude-based admissions
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Under ABA, the university will consider factors besides academic grades and admit applicants on other bases, including demonstrated ability and interest, work experience, leadership, community service and exceptional talent, subject to a minimum level of academic competence.
NUS First choice Bonus Points Scheme
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If your UAS falls slightly below the 10th percentile UAS of the IGP i.e. 2.5 points, you may continue to apply to NUS due to the First choice Bonus Points Scheme.
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This scheme only applies for courses that do not require an interview or selection test.
It is highly recommended that you apply under ABA scheme for both NTU and NUS even if your grade profile meets the minimum criteria for the previous year
Apply
1/ Apply to all universities concurrently
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Apply to each university via the individual university online portals.
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The application deadline is 19 March for all AUs.
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Application to NTU-NIE via NTU.
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Application to Duke-NUS is via the various programmes under each university.
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Apply for university scholarships at the same time. The scholarship application may be separate or together with the admissions application.
2/ Request for teacher references
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Follow the guidelines stated here for teacher references.
3/ Write your personal statement and prepare for interviews
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Follow the guidelines stated here for personal statement writing.
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Follow the guidelines stated here for interviews preparation.
4/ After you submit your application, apply for scholarships and financial aid
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Besides university scholarships and financial aid, you should also apply for organisation scholarships. Find out more about scholarships and financial aid here.
Achieve
1/ Accept offers via Common Acceptance platform
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Successful applicants are required to accept the admission offer online via Common Acceptance Platform by the deadline shown in your electronic offer letter.
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The windows for acceptance are:
1st window: 2 January to 24 May (for offers released before 24 May)
2nd window: 1 to 17 June (for offers released between 25 May and 17 June) -
As the Common Acceptance Platform is the same across the six AUs, you may be offered a course of study in more than one university.
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However, you are only allowed to accept one offer from one of the six universities if you have been offered by more than one university.
2/ Appeal after release of application outcome
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You may wish to appeal against the admissions decision of the university.
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Generally, you would need to submit an essay to outline reasons for appeal.
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In your essay, you should focus on
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new achievements not previously stated in your original application
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new circumstances not previously stated in your original application
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how you can contribute to the university in non-academic areas
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If you have received offers already, please accept one of the offers as you await the outcome of appeal.
3/ Information for returning NS men
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The AUs will reserve a place for you if you are serving full-time National Service (NS) in Singapore. You will only enrol after the completion of your full-time NS obligation, or if you are granted disruption by MINDEF
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Some applicants may wish to apply for a change of course while serving full-time NS. You can submit a fresh admission application during the admissions window of the current batch or email the admissions office.
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Your reserved course will be automatically withdrawn if your new application is successful.
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If you changed your mind and do not wish to accept the new course offer, it would be advisable for you to:
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Submit an appeal during the appeal period to reinstate your previous reserved course. The success of your appeal will be at the discretion of the University, and
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Accept the new offer, while waiting for the outcome of your appeal.
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If you are unsuccessful in your new application, you will remain in the reserved course if you had accepted the reserved course earlier.