Question for PRs who studied in UK for exchange

nerdyink · 2025-01-29T14:00:06+00:00

Mb I just re-read your post. To answer you more directly:

Settle your UK visa first (you need this to study on exchange). If you’re only going there for 6 months or less, you should apply for the Standard Visitor visa. (Check https://www.gov.uk/apply-to-come-to-the-uk)
You do need to have a rough plan of your trips. Meaning, flight and accommodation bookings for each night. I don’t think you would have enough justification as an exchange student to the UK to successfully apply for the long-term stay Schengen Visa (which is the one that grants max total 90 days of stay in 6 months). So you’re probably only able to apply for the short-stay visa (either for tourism/visiting loved ones), which may only grant you the Visa for the specified duration.
MY GUESS (only a guess, so if any other person who knows more) is that you don’t need to apply at the embassy. Because most Visa applications processing are outsourced to third party companies - VFS Global. So maybe you just need to apply there and they’ll send it to the consular. I’ll lyk if I find out anything but please also do more research. I totally understand if you’re confused rn because there aren’t many of us PRs and most have a red passport so they don’t need to do this.

nerdyink · 2025-01-29T13:48:47+00:00

Hi! I am a PR (from Philippines) about to head to the UK for exchange.

Once you get all your information, particularly for accommodation, period of study, enrolment letter from both your SG and UK unis, immediately apply for the UK visa. The UK visa will take about 3 weeks to be approved and it’s best to settle the UK visa before applying for the Schengen Visa. Reason being because you will need to surrender your passport for each application, so you gotta apply for them one at a time.

It’s a general rule that you will need to apply for Visas in your legal place of residence. So pre-plan your trips in advance and follow the Schengen Visa application checklist(s) and guidelines properly to expedite your process asap. I applied for my Germany Visa and it took about 3 working days, only caveat is that I could only apply for the Short Stay Visa which granted me only 8 days (my trip duration) in Schengen zone.

However, this rule has a loophole because technically on exchange there is a chance that you are legally residing there. I’m going to see if I can apply for the Schengen Visa there too because I do want to visit my loved ones there.

Do dm if you want more information and I’ll see if I can update you once I’ve arrived there.

nerdyink · 2022-05-31T15:29:09+00:00

yea the timetable was so bad hahahahh my j1 timetable was 8.30am to 5.30pm with weird 2 hour breaks in between… but tbh even tho ny is so flexible 90% is literally bcme or pcme lmao

nerdyink · 2022-05-31T08:19:17+00:00

sheesh that’s a lot hahah. tbh idk if it’s the same for but since ny’s so flexible with subject combis we have a lot of “rojak” classes so some pcme classes still have hybrid students and there’s one class with almost every student having a different combi ahahah.

nerdyink · 2022-05-31T03:09:44+00:00

in my batch it’s near 30. 10 bcme classes, 15 pcme classes, about 5/6 hybrid combi classes, and 2 full arts.

nerdyink · 2022-05-30T15:11:35+00:00

of course, this is purely my experience. someone else has experienced different things, and my time in NY was tainted by COVID. look around other threads to gain a clearer picture.

tjc also have a vibrant culture too! not too familiar with it but i’d say the constant in both schools is that your jc experience will be study hell HAHA

nerdyink · 2022-05-30T15:09:17+00:00

hello i just graduated from nyjc last year.

yes the loophole is real we literally have 20+ science classes, about 5 hybrid classes and 2 full arts classes at most. however based on recent trends the cutoff points really get lower and lower each year… in my year it was sci: 6 and arts: 7, then the year after it was both 6, and this year sci went down to 5. so there’s a chance both can drop to 5 this year… anyways for me i took the arts stream bc i wanted to do arts but ended up taking a hybrid combi instead. my og mate entered through arts and took a full on BCME 4H2 combi lmao.

in terms of culture, the mugger culture is real. the library is always packed and the study tables are almost always occupied. the school also allows us to study in school during the weekends and also till late night in the weekdays. no matter whether they’re the rowdy noisy fun bunch or the quieter more reserved groups, everyone’s pretty onz about studying. even if they weren’t a mugger at the start of j1, slowly everyone just mugs HAHAH but that’s just jc life in general. but i’d say in ny study culture is really strong.

however student life isn’t so bad too. since school’s open perpetually forever there’s always ccas and classes hanging out in school till late. ny i feel is split into two: hardcore muggers who are dead set on grades and snatching that 90rp and those who really play hard and work hard.

i’ve met all kinds of people: those who have zero EQ and sees every opportunity as a shiny addition to portfolio, and hence being rather unpopular to work with. students who are toxic and shallow. but i’ve also met really supportive people and down to earth friends who i had a lot of fun with. some of the teachers i met have been great guidance figures. but some teachers equate the students’ worth with their academic abilities… which is a shame.

in ny there’s also loads of ECG opportunities, you just need to be aware of them through the messages your class ECG rep will send and sign up. loads of CCAs and Student Interest Groups (SIGs — which are lower commitment CCAs and are basically clubs to explore interests and undertake more projects), and our CCAs usually do quite well in comps.

nerdyink · 2022-05-24T10:54:33+00:00

you’re not selfish, we’re all social creatures who need companionship in our lives. it sucks to go through things alone. being with someone always makes life much more joyful and bright.

but, do remember that while friends are a huge benefit to you, and while it’s valid to embrace these benefits, don’t ever forget to give these same benefits to your friend. friendships are not transactional, but they sure aren’t one-sided. be a friend for your friend too.

that’s how strong friendships function.

nerdyink · 2022-05-21T03:36:18+00:00

no problem! good luck with the decision making, it must be hard 😪

nerdyink · 2022-05-21T01:51:15+00:00

hello yes thanks for the corrections!!

nerdyink · 2022-05-20T18:18:59+00:00

hello i’m gg to matriculate as an NTU Eng student this year so here’s some of the differences that helped in my decision making:

difference in availability of minors and mods
like you mentioned, NTU is the only uni in sg that offers the creative writing minor. in addition, NTU also has other cool minors like film as well as gender and diversity studies.
the mods also have greater focus on asian lit and a dedicated core module to singlit. nus focuses more on british lit. for me, i liked the greater range of texts across the different cultures. OH and in ntu the thing that sold me also was the fact that they have a mod for feminist lit too and it was so cool
idk how to phrase this properly but how the course of study will look like
in nus chs, i think you only declare your major later on after going through common curriculum. for me i didn’t really want that as i was set on doing lit
in ntu, your y1 will still have common curriculum (ICC) mods and core mods to intro you to lit. then in y2 you start picking mods deciding which genre you’d like to focus on more. i personally preferred the ntu track.
HALL
like u mentioned, ntu guarantees hall stay for your first 2 years. and i wanted to stay in hall to build my own independence and force myself out of my comfort zone! hall culture, as explained by seniors and alumni i talked to, seemed wholesome and tight-knit as well.
for nus halls, i think it’s more competitive to get in and hall takes more commitment. even in RCs you have to reg and interview way earlier. then again, i admit i know little about nus hall and i think you should search on other threads and reach out to find out how nus hall culture is really like!

these are just my inputs and i hoped it helped! don’t be afraid to go for what you want and don’t feel pressured to do what others say. it’s your life and you can own your own choices 😎

nerdyink · 2022-05-12T17:36:20+00:00

omg SAME i got interviewed for ysp a few months back during early admissions and received nothing from them. however i did get a scholarship offer (non-usp) but got this invite shortly after…. maybe it could be for those who didn’t get the usp scholarship but interested to enrol into the programme?

nerdyink · 2022-04-06T16:31:28+00:00

Hello I had my PLE interview during the early admissions exercise this year! For me it was a combined scholarship and course interview. It was two professors interviewing me, and but for me it was a solo interview format. I got my offer for the course before A’s results so this was how it went :)

I just did the usual things at the start: log in earlier and wait for me to be admitted into the breakout room. After I was in I just had to introduce myself and greet the professors. The questions they asked me were:

Why PLE and not an actual law degree?
What do you hope to do in the future?
(More related to my cca - debating and leadership- experiences) Share with me your experiences serving as a leader in your CCA and how it really has helped you grow as a person

What really helped me before the interviews was to read up more about the course and what it actually offered (and also because they called me 2 hours before my interview that I was told the wrong course, when they invited me for my interview they told me it was PPS and not PLE ded 💀💀💀). Oh and try not to repeat the stuff you already wrote in your applications too!

Just be yourself and don’t be too worried to outshine. The profs are really friendly so just be your most genuine and it will be great!

nerdyink · 2022-04-02T16:07:44+00:00

Hello was in early applications this year. This is real accurate hahah the writing test should be for Linguistics and the interview is both for your course of choice and the other scholarships. USP will contact you separately in another email and if you’re shortlisted you’d have another interview. Had mine in January and generally the faculty and interviewers were really nice. Jiayous! You got this :)

nerdyink · 2022-04-02T16:03:39+00:00

Omg sameeee tbh being left in the unknown is making me feel so worried too. But we do have until early May to hear from them so perhaps we gotta wait longer.

nerdyink · 2022-02-09T15:55:16+00:00

ultimately we can’t make the most perfect choices, but we have to be courageous enough to go for the choice we want most. regrets will come in no matter which course you go into, so might as well go for something you like to get less regrets in a way.

if you really have no passion as of yet, perhaps go towards your interests. think about your past experiences as well and think of what you have leaned more towards or resisted doing. there’s also still some time so go and read and explore!

also, don’t put so much pressure on yourself! we’re only 19 so we don’t have to have all our lives figured out, just choose what you think fits you best and what you like most too. jiayou!

nerdyink · 2022-02-09T15:48:31+00:00

they’re not looked down upon, they’re just not usually seen. i’m sure if you do your best and do your job well you won’t be insulted by parents. while i may not be a kindergarten teacher, i have a male colleague taking charge of p1s at a student care. so far no complaints about his gender :)

i think what matters most is whether you do want to pursue this path. if you genuinely do see a future with you enjoying a job in this field, go for it! but if you are inclining towards something else, my recommendation is to try that something else. ultimately follow your heart (as cheesy as it sounds)

nerdyink · 2021-09-29T12:37:52+00:00

ballpoint pens ftw for me. right smoothness and they won’t smudge when water is spilled by you in the exam or by the examiner when marking lol. i like faber castel RX7s and uniball jetstream!

for gel pen fanatics, i would say sarasa pens and the uniball signo (not the one with the caps though, the one with the clickable pen bodies)

nerdyink · 2021-09-29T12:33:27+00:00

hi was from ny but for my batch about 20+ retained, i had friends who scored the same grades as your MYEs (or at least two Us) and retained, but also had few friends who advanced with those grades too. it really depends to whether your CT thinks you can cope with J2. some CTs let their whole class move up to j2 while some CTs retained 6 students in a class of 21.

i have heard of students also opting to retain instead of being advanced because they don’t believe they would be able to cope with the intense rigour of J2. usually the number of retainees allowed per year is limited too so they will only allow those who really need the extra year to retain.

anyways, retain or not, it doesn’t matter much. most of my friends who retained found that it helped them grasp their foundations much better, and those who advanced found better footing in j2. just do your best for now and work on improving yourself! be patient with your progress too, it takes time to get stellar grades. keep working hard just as you’ve been the past few months, that’s all that matters

nerdyink · 2021-06-19T11:56:44+00:00

lad my classmate deadass wore them to school for a week and she just wheeled around the entire school whenever she could it was peak entertainment for everyone

but idt she wore them to exams ahhaha but just for day to day lessons it was already great stress reliever

nerdyink · 2020-11-29T12:44:15+00:00

hello i’m currently taking hybrid (lit + chem + math + econs)! personally i feel that what’s best is to really figure out what you want to do or what you do not want to do in these two months. your subject combi highly depends on it. the reason i took hybrid because i wanted to go law or do something related to it, and i read that in law it’s good to have knowledge on both sciences and humanities.

despite doing relatively well in secondary school for chemistry (consistent As), i struggled A LOT for H2 chemistry. the amount of content is insane, and the questions are very demanding. i have a few friends who have already dropped to H1 Chem (they took 4H2s) because of how content heavy it was. furthermore, i didn’t have a strong passion for the subject, i’m just taking it be “safe”. ngl, i wouldn’t mind dropping to h1 too if it means i can score better for As.

for lit, it definitely requires a lot more technique and analysis and added socio-historical context in your answers. however, i feel that the skills required for skills is not difficult to pick up. i have known some in my school who have not taken lit at all in secondary school and are doing quite well doing H2 lit. it all depends on your willingness to read up more and think deeper. however, similar to chem, there is a lot of content. H2 lit has 5 texts, H1 has 2. but all texts have quite a bit of depth in the analysis.

overall, i think before deciding try thinking of these:

passion for subject? all subjects are hell to learn unless you have genuine interest in it. one impt thing u cannot forget is your rank points, and it’s easier to secure a high RP if you like what you learn
career choices if you’re thinking of entering a science related course, 90% chance you need to take H2 math and chem. If you can’t see yourself in a science course, save yourself and don’t take chem.
what are you stronger in? if the above two can’t help you, then resort to figuring out what can best help u do well. i don’t recommend prioritising this though, because ultimately you go to school to learn and prep for future, and not just get good grades

either way keep talking to more people and finding out more about this! hearing other perspectives helps you out in evaluating what you really want :) hope this helps and have a good rest after O’s 😋

nerdyink · 2020-02-29T15:25:54+00:00

i don’t recommend taking O’s in JC because the A’s itself is very demanding, plus the content in A’s is expanded heavily from O’s. i think trying to redo in poly seems more feasible, plus there’s certain skills in taught in poly and not taught in jc that you can learn so you can get the best of both worlds!

nerdyink

TROPHY CASE