As the academic year comes to an end, transitions await for many of you. There seem to be two common paths to take post Poly education–finding a job or furthering your studies in a local, private or overseas university. Whatever your choice is, you are probably wondering what life is like after Poly.
For me, I decided to continue my education in a local university (after my mandatory National Service), so I am currently studying Computer Science at Nanyang Technological University (NTU). Previously, I was from Singapore Polytechnic (SP) studying the same course as well.
Wayne and his parents on Graduation day.
Transitions are never easy. Some people have it harder than others but it doesn’t have to be so difficult. I felt that my transition to University was a smooth sailing one except for occasional tiny bumps here and there.
So, I want to share from my experience about things to take note of and set your expectations of what to expect in a local university. Hopefully, this helps you be less anxious about starting a new chapter in life.
1. Embrace greater flexibility
I remember when I first entered university, I had to take some time to warm up my brain as two years of National Service made it ‘rusty’. However, the benefit of being a Poly student going into University is that the education system is somewhat similar, so it didn’t take too much effort to adjust to this ‘new’ system.
There are different modules related to your course and a few general electives that you have to take but the difference is that you have even more flexibility. You will not have a timetable assigned to you by the school or a fixed class where you attend lessons with the same people - you’ll likely see new faces in each class you take.
The school did assign the classes to us in the first semester of our first year. However, during the first two weeks of school, you can reassign your timetable by changing your class timeslot, add or drop modules. Flexibility is great, but bit of strategic planning is required if you want to make your timetable work in your favour or if you want to take the same class as your friends.
2. Plan ahead
I would also recommend that you start to plan on what modules you want to take as some modules require a prerequisite, which means you must clear a certain module before you get to register for it. What is helpful is to find out which modules are prerequisites for upper-level modules and clear them earlier if you can.
It is also a wise choice to ask seniors for some advice on which modules to take as certain module combinations will really be a killer if taken together in the same semester.
3. Consider what's most important to you
For my course, most of my lectures had pre-recorded lectures that I had to review before attending lectures. Can you believe it that I found myself going to the library to study in the first week of school as a University Student? I never expected myself to do that!
There was just too little time to watch the pre-lecture recordings, attend actual lectures, do tutorial homework, attend tutorials and labs, and work on group projects. I could barely breathe.
Through all that, I started to ask myself this question: "What do I want to achieve in university? What do I want to do in my life?" I could spend every ounce of my effort to get good results, a good job and a good life but I won't be content with that way of living because I know that even after achieving what I want in this world, I would still crave for more. Aiming for all that just didn’t feel like my purpose in life. Thankfully, I began to find my purpose in my faith and spirituality.
For those who have these questions about life as well, I would like to encourage you to consider what you want out of your university life. For most, it is to make the best out of their last phase of life as a student. If you want to take it a step further, consider what you want in life. Don’t join the rat race blindly but take time to figure out what your purpose in life is.
4. Take charge of your own learning
Even while you discover what means most to you during your university life, it's inevitable that you will have to take on the challenges of learning. I found the learning curve for some modules to be steep, and this remained the same, even as I progressed over the years. I tried to enjoy the process of studying, especially when doing group projects.
Wayne (middle) and his friends in University participating in an event to celebrate Chinese New Year.
Group projects for a Computer Science student are normally more practical and we get to improve our skills in coding. If you think that the school modules are enough to build you up in coding, I am sorry to tell you that it is not enough. We had to expose ourselves to different coding languages independently and do more coding projects to get better at coding. The more you learn from your mistakes, the more efficient your coding will become.
5. Give yourself time to rest
In all the hustling, it is also important to know when to take a break. I have a friend who did so well in his first year as a student but because of how hard he had been working himself, he eventually burned out. You can get good grades for one semester but unfortunately, your GPA is cumulative, so pace yourself!
6. Find opportunities to forge friendships
It is also good, and I might say, important to have friends who are taking the same course as they can help you in your studies when you are in doubt. Cliques are normally formed in the course orientation camps, so if you do want a constant group of friends throughout your four years in University, you should attend that to find people you can vibe with.
In Conclusion
I think university is a place that forces you to be independent. Do not expect the professors to feed you with lots of information. Most of the things shared by the seniors are more useful than the professors. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that the professors are useless. They are very specialised in their own fields of work, so some of them might find it hard to explain things in a simpler way.
While I have said much about university in this article, there's really no fixed way to make a smooth transition from poly to university. Just as long as you try your best and make the effort to discover what you want to do in your life as a student, I think that itself counts as living a good university life. All the best!
