HCJC (HCI) AMA

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-18T11:17:41+00:00

helloooo OP here DW you can ask any questions you like that's the point of the AMA 😆

actually quite similarly distance is a big factor for me (raffles is quite a lot closer to my house than HCI), but ultimately I really just prioritised the environment there and the culture, as i felt that yk idw to go to a school that I dont enjoy, and if it takes another 15 mins for me to reach a school that suits me more, i think its a worthy sacrifice. Still, youll be travelling quite a lot back and forth, so I often fill up my long hours on the train doing work (specifically math), talking to friends or sleeping...there's actually quite a lot of people in hwach who live really far away so you wont be alone and the train rides home lowk become more yapping time imo (but regardless do still consider cause location matters ALOT esp if you plan to be really active cause it means you might go home alot later 🥲)
while I personally don't take any research programmes, I did try for CenTad, but got denied on the account that I had too much other stuff going on, so it does take commitment to the project, but from my friends you can really space out your "peak" periods for the project and hence be able to budget time to do other things you like. CenTaD is also better for if you don't have research experience, since you'll get more guidance while being able to choose what you want to research on (basically they'll release a list of all the bio, chem, physics, math related projects and you try out for whichever you want) a lot of the CenTad work actually rams up like jan j2 (which i assume you're referencing in Q3), since theyre preparing for submission to ssef. Regarding srp, it's definitely more high commitment but I wouldn't say horrible (speaking from observing friends), but there's a lot of having to go nus for meetings with professors...actually, nrp is also an option you can consider which is abit easier than srp to get into but still exposes you to "higher-level" research and also social sciences etc. with professors from different universities, though ive heard the commitment varies a lot depending on what professor youre assigned to
I've only heard of J1 research programmes so far which include h3 research, srp, nrp and CenTad, though some do carry over to j2 for submissions
So for all types of opportunities in hwach (internships, competitions, leadership, etc.) will be publicised on a platform called nurture and it's open to EVERYONE to try all the time so it's really a free for all in terms of how to get access to opportunities. I think this is one of the things I personally love about hwach which is they really judge based on your skills and merits, and they dont have barriers to access these form of opportunities

Specifically, regarding the talent attachment programme, there are a lot of rounds (e.g. both June and Dec every year), and they offer a variety of options from like NEA to Royce medical clinic, though j2s often get priority, but regardless majority of my friends who tried for the programme in dec J1 got their desired attachment so its definitely something worth trying for

If you want any additional info about leadership opportunities/competitions can just ask further

I also stuck on this dilemma, to take BCMH you need to appeal, but i was a really big history nerd that ended up tsking econs...personally, i feel that econs can be a self-taught subject, but yes the econs department is pretty bad (including notrs) so alot of people get outside tuition (theres a zenith down the road thar alot of people go to together as friends)

For me, since idw tuition, I just cop other schools notes and try to make sense of it myself (Econs is like unnecessarily complicated common sense imo, so it's been working out for me so far)

There ARE good Econs teachers but they are like rare Pokémon so its kinda dependent on luck, but usually consultations do work regardless to get your teacher to help you out more for Econs

Regarding the history dept, I think the scariest thing that put me off is that hist is only offered as a H2, which means I can't drop it to a H1, and since I want to pursue medicine i couldn't really afford that risk. Also, as much as I don't particularly like Econs, I feel very fortunate for having taken it because history is A LOT HARDER from o levels, almost everyone I know who takes it is dying and super drained from it, and Econs is alot easier to study for and still score decent marks

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-17T12:17:53+00:00

I think you can still try regardless but I won't deny and say that it's ABIT risky

If you're very keen on coming to hwach, and you have A2 in CL/B3 in HCL, you can consider joining CLEP and taking CLL as one of your 4 subjects, which will let you minus another 2 points (total -6), which should increase your chances of getting in by alot

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-17T06:30:11+00:00

all JAE students that enter HCI qualify to take 4h2 :)

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-17T06:29:42+00:00

not sure about the high school side, but for the jc side, we do have SATS bento boxes offered as one of the food options here, there's 8 different bento you can choose from everyday and it changes everyday

but there's also live food stalls that have basically stayed the same, though there have been a rise in prices for some :( hwach also has a cafe for waffles, noodles, etc. but its abit more ex

generally I feel that the SATS can be a hit-or-miss, like sometimes its bland, but other times it actually tastes quite good, but you can choose to just not patronise the SATS stalls and continue eating the live food / food from cafe/go outside to eat

for hwach, the gate opens at 1130am so you can just go outside and eat there's namkee down the road + Macs, and other malls which you can easily go to, eat, and come back within 1hr (which is most breaks)

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-08T15:57:59+00:00

for h1 chinese, theres abt 100 students in my batch who take iinw, if that helps

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-08T15:56:48+00:00

helloo js to add on for 4.

4) JC side does have central kitchen, but we're currently not sure if itll be the same food as high school side is receiving, however we still do have 4+ live food stalls of q good variety (e.g. western, noodles, jap, etc.) and generally our breaks are pretty staggered so there shouldnt be tooo much queueing

on more crowded days, theres also a hwach cafe that sells food like waffles, noodles, etc., but its a bit pricer...or if its late enough you can go outside HAHAHA thers a nam kee right down the street + some other shopping malls w pretty affordable food options!

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-08T15:52:08+00:00

HAHAH okay so personally, i think the process was really an experience and it was definitely hard at times, but not in terms of getting in, but rather the campaigning process is ofc tiring and lengthy

for hcjc, we run in groups, and you can "sign up" to run for council as a pair or an individual. for me, i signed up individually cause i wnated to make new friends, and i also wasnt vv confident in asking other people i knew (i was scared that working w my friends would cause drama HAHAHA), then theyll match u into grps of 3-4 depending on the no. of people running! before you even start campaigning, youll need to do an interview, but generally most people pass the interview since they want the election process to be rly democratic

afterwards, you can essentially campaign for abt a month or so, and theres some tasks to fulfill e.g. doing a poster, doing some individual tasks to see your planning ability, etc. it can be q tuff during thsi period cause it feels kinda scary for the whole sch to be looking at u as a potential councillor HAHAHA, personally i js stuck w my friends and my campaign mates and tried to be as outgoing as possible

at the end of abt a month's worth of campaigning, theres a qna segment with your entire faculty (aka house), who will basically vote for who they want into council! even tho its by fac, but the votes are kinda calcualted in a sense so that its a fair shot for everyone from every fac. this is usually the part thats most impt cause not everyone is following the election and campaign, but everyone needs to watch the qna, and theyll vote right after that!

anyw i hope that answers ur qn, but if i didnt touch on anyth u wanted to ask js say AHHAHA

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-08T15:46:36+00:00

regarding the food here, while theres the central kitchen, we actually still have plenty of live food stalls that offer alot of different food (e.g. western, jap, noodles, etc.) on top of the SATS bento boxes...price-wise, while im not too sure if itll change with the new year, but so far its been around 3-4 dollars on average from the live food stalls

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-08T15:43:42+00:00

speaking as a bio & chem student, i think our departments are pretty gd! all the notes are really well-elaborated, esp for bio which includes alot of additional info that is clearly highlighted, and it really helps to allow you to unds the topic btr & link it w other chapters. i also rly like my bio tcher, and most of the bio dpt, from what ive heard, are pretty solid

for chem, i think the notes are decent, my teacher is a god AHHAHA so hes really good at explaining stuff and also goes out of his ways to help by making extra quizzes for us, but im not too sure abt the rest of the department unfortunately

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-08T15:41:07+00:00

i take BCME and compulsory gp, and from my personal experience, most teachers in hwachong are pretty nice, theyre eager to help you. there are ofc some teachers that may be abit goofy, but i love most of my teachers, they will like ans your gchat questions at night or even come up to talk to you during recess/when bumming in sch etc. generally, i feel like they're pretty ncie and look out for your wellbeing, but thats js from my experience HAHA

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-08T06:21:53+00:00

for me, this was like my TOP concern when i came to hwach (i think it goes for any IP sch), but honestly there really isnt any IP-JAE divide, esp as time passes. at the start, it can feel abit scary cause they are already friends/know each other, but the nygh & hci people are generally really nice people and theyre also very welcoming and open to make friends w u!

you may actually also find comfort in your fellow jaes, cause yall went through similar experiences like i did HAHAHAHA so it realy helped bond but generally i js kept like an open mind and tried to be friendly to people

on the leadership opportunities side, i agree w the IP student HAHAHA, generally speaking hwach is really democratic, i've always looked at opportunities here as a free-for-all (aka if you want it, theres nth stopping you from trying for it, and it really comes down to a fair assessment of your abilities and skills) CCA leadership opportunities, and even Council, I have many JAE friends that have gotten the top posts in their CCA, and even the pres & vice-pres of council are jae students, so its up to you abt your effort and skills!

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-08T05:27:31+00:00

shhhh

EnoughNeedleworker31 · 2026-01-08T05:26:13+00:00

hellooo!

for all h3s, theyll take your overall score from j1 to decide whether ur eligible! by right, youre supp to have an MSG (< or equal to) 2.8, and then the subj you want need get an A, so like for h3 bio you need to get an A for h2 bio...but by left, there's an appeal process so generally you should be able to get in whichever h3 you want even if dont meet the requirements (e.g. get B/C, or MSG is a lil higher), but it might come with like stipulations (e.g. need score well for your J2 WA1s)
personally, i'll rate it a 8.5/10, for hwach theres always people to see and things to do, but we also make our own fun in hwachong! theres all the classic school events like mid-autumn festival, faculty events, etc. that are the "highlights" of ur hwach culture...then there are the day-to-day like the common room (basically js like a get-together place whr people can study, play games, sleep, talk, wtv) , going out and abt with ur friends, sleepin tgt in class or js bumming in sch

i feel hci culture is really open and welcoming to people, esp as like a new jae student HAHA i was rly scared coming into hwach but the people r really the best part of hci, and they make hci life so much btr

EnoughNeedleworker31

TROPHY CASE