NUS: Life at a campus university 

By Reuben Passi, National University of Singapore (NUS), Singapore

One of the main differences between NUS and UOM that I knew before coming was that whereas UOM is a hybrid campus university due to its seamless connections to the city, NUS is a full-on large-scale campus university which even has its own 5-line bus system that operates every day for free across the campus! 

Getting used to being part of a university community that is exclusively in one single contained area away from the city was an adjustment that I personally found to be quite difficult as I have always enjoyed being directly next to the CBD. However, NUS is approximately 30-35 minutes on the MRT (metro) away from the city centre which was somewhat of a shock to me when put into practice. 

Although this distance away from the city has been something I have struggled with, being in a campus university also has many perks that I would never have realised without staying in one! For example, the campus itself is extremely gorgeous with lots of greenery and nature around as well as having excellent food stalls and amenities such as an infinity pool. These combine to make campus life a truly fun and exciting one as everyone you know will most likely be a quick bus ride (or walk if you’re brave enough to face the heat) away and so meeting up with people and also getting to classes is always pretty quick and easy to organise. The university also puts on many events throughout the year that are often free to attend which makes campus living even more fun such as the welcome week at the start of term which even features a music festival one night and many booths to collect goodies such as free bubble tea and photos from! 

Being away from the city also means that it becomes easier to visit areas of Singapore that are less well known but also hold a great deal of cultural and social importance such as temples and hikes with some tourist destinations being less 15-20 minutes away from campus! 

With so much to do on campus from extra-curriculars to social activities and events hosted by the university, living at a campus university has enabled me to partake in so many activities I wouldn’t necessarily do as well as experience a whole new way of studying at university.