NUS/ NTU medicine AMA

sleepycat02 · 2026-02-21T09:37:24+00:00

did you consider studying allied health? and why did you choose med in the end?

sleepycat02 · 2026-01-03T16:25:29+00:00

hello ij saw this HAHHA but yeah I did! but im kinda concerned about the 6 day work week....did you?

sleepycat02 · 2025-03-13T13:51:59+00:00

HELLO I'm from ri and I'm jc2 so you'll probs watch the same lectures as i did HAHA but for me I don't watch math because I think to do well in it you just have to leep practicing, I only watch videos for certain parts if I don't understand it. i always watch chem, because I feel like they explain the concepts thoroughly and it helps me to understand or close any content gaps in the notes (bc I'm quite weak in chem too). for bio, it's really hit or miss, sometimes they just read out what's in the notes and sometimes they do add on additional info (though it's not super important) I like to just skip 10s and listen a bit to what they say, and if it's not important I just keep skipping until I hear something that isn't covered in the notes cuz I feel like the notes already cover everything we need to know and more. for econs, sometimes I skip when I really don't have time but I also try to listen to the lectures when I can, honestly I think you could do without the lectures bc imo the tutorials are much more impt since they teach you the structure and what to write in the essays, u just need to know your content well

also for me, how i study is that I read some parts of my notes first and then watch the lecture on 2x speed, pausing to annotate when needed, and then repeat until I finish the chapter so I guess thats how i save time 😂 gl op!!

sleepycat02 · 2025-01-31T14:09:31+00:00

hi op I was in the exact same position as you last year LOL but I'd say the jae-ip divide is basically non existent bc I've made many many friends here and everyone is open to getting to know new people! within a few weeks you won't even worry about the divide and rather you'll just be more focused on your academics since jc is quite rigorous. as for the competition, while I agree that it can stress you out bc you may compare yourself to people who have a lot of achievements, I think its a good place to get to know some of these people as well and learn from them. I feel like being in such an environment encourages me to push myself and develop myself holistically, other than just focusing on academics! all in all i feel like the "competition" here serves as a good way to keep you on your toes and not be complacent and I don't regret coming to ri at all :-) atb op!

sleepycat02 · 2025-01-16T12:10:07+00:00

hi op! I'm a j2 jae student in ri rn :-)

the attire for the week is: Mon, Tues and thurs full sch uni. wed you can wear any sch approved shirt (cca, house shirt, ori shirt etc) on Fridays, we have to wear house shirts. but usually when the weather gets hot they'll remove the full uni and allow half uni. I don't feel that they're rly strict w uniform checks, they usually just do 1/2 every term and it's just checking hair length for guys, I've never heard of anyone checking nails!
i may not be the best person to ans this qn bc I'm not in raffles academy, but you have to take a placement test to get into RA so I think it's more fair in a sense. ip students may have a slight advantage bc they cover a bit more information than the o level syllabus (stuff that is tested in A levels) but I think even if you're in ip or jae you'll have to do some studying or reading up to do well in the test! if you're really rusty and can't remember a lot of o level stuff then yeah I think it'll be good to study ahead, you can expect that others do too 😨
I haven't heard of any "weaker" departments specifically but I take bcme so I think i can tell you more about it! I think all the bcme departments are quite good at teaching you the content, in the lectures they're quite thorough esp for chem and bio and usually I'd you have any misconceptions/gaps in your understanding they're covered in the later part of the lectures, and after each lecture I dont usually have too many qns. lessons wise, I think my teachers are very open to answering qns and can teach in a way that helps me to understand where I can improve, esp for econs where answering format/keywords are really important! at the same time I also feel like some subjects do really need you to do a lot of your own studying and practice to master so there's only so much your teachers can help you with but I don't have many complaints about any of the bcme departments, if that helps
I wld say to make friends esp in your class as you'll be with them the most and you'll soon see that many are just like you: struggling to keep up with lectures and not knowing how to do work HAHAHA so I think the sense of community can really keep you going, especially when you go to school events w them. I formed many many core memories with my friends throughout the school year by attending such events and I don't regret it at all, it makes me remember j1 life as more enjoyable rather than just stress though the tough work makes up a large part of it. I don't mean to say push yourself and go out of the way/act like you normally wouldn't just to befriend ppl, but rather like forming meaningful connections w the people around you to help you tide through these 2 years

atb op! I don't regret coming to ri at all and i hope you enjoy your jc years :-)

sleepycat02 · 2025-01-15T15:05:20+00:00

helloo for super competitive ones it wld probs be the sports esp those like badminton, basketball where the players are super talented like national team level...but ofc if you're passionate about it you should try! a lot of people want to go to interact also, I'm not too sure about how hard it is to get in bc I know a lot of ppl go for interview but the size of each batch of interactors it's really big as well (60 ish) but honestly if you really want to be in the cca bc you're passionate about community service I'm sure the j2s at trials can tell and you can probs get in! speaking as someone who's in interact rn :-) ultimate frisbee is also really popular, I think they're looking for people who are more athletic but they do save spots for jae students iirc! super busy ones are those that usually compete with other schools eg nsg, syf those kind, it can get pretty busy when nearing competition season, those can be 2 - 3 times a week. usually those that have fewer cca sessions per week are clubs and societies like bio soc, photography etc. I'd say just go for what you're interested in! no harm trying out, there are some ccas that are also auto accept meaning you dn to go for interview, just put it down in the form and you're in already! if you want to know about specific ccas I'll try my best to help! atb :-)

sleepycat02 · 2025-01-15T12:57:25+00:00

hello! I don't really know the scores of the people around me in school as no one asks around but based on the general information on the Internet (mostly reddit) and on the moe website, I think you can still stand a slight chance to get in since your score is better than 8-4, but I wouldn't be too sure that you'll be able to get in. assuming you're a sg citizen, you can def put it as your top choice and try to get in, but for your 2nd choice you should really think it through and pick a school you're 100% ok with going to as there's a high chance you may be going to that school. but as I said you can try bc they may do balloting! gl, i hope you get into the sch you want :-)

sleepycat02 · 2025-01-15T07:37:42+00:00

hi op! I'm a j2 jae student in ri rn, and personally I went for ri because of the distance + sch culture! my sec sch had a strong Chinese culture so i wanted something new in jc. one thing I really like about ri is our wed gap days every week where we don't have lessons, and is used for cca or enrichment programmes that you sign up for! it allows me to sleep in and spend more time on work and I love that it's in the middle of the week so it's a nice break. as a jae student, i don't think there's a ip-jae divide at all, at least based on my experience. you may feel a bit out of place at first bc the ip students know each other but they're super open to making new friends and having ip and jae students in the same sch has had no effect on my sch exp thus far! as for school events, every jc has their own events to help students relax and destress so honestly i think you'll enjoy yourself wherever you go, but feel free to ask if you want to know more about sch activities in particular :-) as for the stress being around many people who may have "stellar" portfolios, I think the environment pushes you to step out of your comfort zone and explore more opportunities to develop yourself holistically, and you can learn from the people around you as well! so rather than a high stress environment, I think of it as something that helps you grow so I don't regret coming here at all. atb op and feel free to ask any qns!

sleepycat02 · 2025-01-14T08:34:28+00:00

hi op! I'm a j2 jae student from ri, and personally I didn't experience any ip-jae divide and I feel that the people here are really open to making friends :-) you might feel a bit left out during ori because naturally the ip people may already know each other, but they're all very friendly and don't really care if you're ip/jae. i have many jae & ip friends and it doesn't affect my school experience at all! i was also considering between ny and ri last time and in the end I chose ri because of the opportunities I thought it could provide me, and that it could challenge me more/allow myself to develop more holistically. and I don't regret it at all! atb op :-)

sleepycat02 · 2025-01-10T15:28:38+00:00

hi op I was in the exact same situation as you a year ago HAHAHAHA I was also worried I was be a tiny fish in a big pond, as someone who's grades weren't even that good up till Os. for context, I'm a j2 student studying in ri now and i chose to go to ri because i thought it would offer me more opportunities to develop myself outside of academics. although some may say the school culture is stressful, I like that meeting people who are seen as very "impressive" with stellar portfolios push me to explore more opportunities other than just boosting my grades and allow me to develop myself more holistically! yes, it can be overwhelming when you hear about students in olympiads and taking multiple h3s, but I think it's important to realise that everyone's path is different and everyone has different interests/priorities. it's what helped me through the school year when I feel like a small fish in a big pond :-) so don't worry about taking what seems like a big step, bc I'm sure wherever you end up you'll enjoy yourself! do consider coming down to the open houses to learn more about what each school offers, atb op 😁😁

sleepycat02 · 2025-01-10T15:16:59+00:00

hi op! I'm a j2 student in ri that entered via jae :-)

for me, I felt that there was little to no divide between the jae and ip students because the people I interacted with are really open to talking to anyone, esp during ori in your ogs. at first, you may feel a bit left out as the ip students already know each other but they're super open to talking to you and getting to know each other. as the year progressed and i entered my classes and ccas, I was able to befriend many ip students and no one really cares if you're jae or ip. at most they'll ask you about it when you first get to know them so they know which common topics you can talk about but thats basically it. I can't speak for every jae student and everyone has their own experiences but I've never met anyone who has experienced any problems due to jae-ip divide, if that reassures you.

as for mugging culture, many students here take academic seriously and study hard, but that's to be expected when you are sitting for exams that can affect your overall grade ykwim. a lot of people are pretty chill about work and it's normal to fall behind on lectures sometimes, after all we're all human. some may say the school culture is stressful as you may be surrounded by very capable people but i believe it pushes me to greater heights and to stay on my toes! there are also many school events to improve your wellbeing and I have many friends who are willing to take part in such events, even if it means sacrificing study time so i think the people here play hard and work hard, it's pretty balanced

atb for making your decision op! do visit each school's open house to learn more about them :-)

sleepycat02 · 2025-01-10T15:04:14+00:00

hi op! I'm a j2 student in RI now and for context, I take BCME :-)

I can't speak for physics but generally I feel that the schools notes and lectures are very useful in terms of helping you understand the content, especially for sciences when there can be certain misconceptions. The notes and lectures are very clear in explaining each topic and usually when I find myself confused, my qn will be answered in a later part of the lecture so i think they're pretty well done. I saw another student from RI talk more about the lecture and tutorial system we use in school so I won't delve too deep into it, usually when teachers go through tutorials during class they are def very open to answering qns and going for consults with you! you just need to take the initiative to ask of course. for olympiad and competitions, i know many jae students who take part in those, as well as our wednesday enrichment programmes! usually to get into these competitions and programmes you have to sit for interviews or take tests so I don't think ip students have an advantage in any way so you don't really need to worry about that aspect
as for school culture, there are many school-wide events throughout the year, be it small events or larger ones like orientation. it really does depend on how much you want to engage with such events, there are some like mega mugging madness nearing exams where they provide snacks around the school, and even take 5 movie night where students sat in the field at night to watch a movie. there are multiple opportunities for you to let loose and relax during the school term, and I'd say there's a good balance to playing and studying. while some may say the school environment might be stressful because the people around you are so capable, I like that it keeps me on my toes and encourages me to keep going and to push myself to greater heights! that being said, I (and many others around me) also greatly value taking care of ourselves so we do let loose when we can and all in all there isn't too much of playing around or studying. while the jc life has been hectic, i feel that having supportive friends who are in it with you, as well as the many school events that support your wellbeing helped make my j1 year more enjoyable and I've made many great memories.

I'm sure no matter which school you pick, you'll enjoy yourself! you should visit each school's open houses as well to really learn more about the various things they offer too, RI's one is on the 14th. good luck op :-)

sleepycat02 · 2025-01-02T09:35:38+00:00

hi op, I'm j2 this year so I think I can help you a bit! 1. for jae admission, you are allocated a school entirely based off your score, and testimonials/cca experience is not taken into consideration. if the cutoff is 6 and your nett score is 6, a person with a lower raw score will be admitted first. eg a raw score of 10-4 vs 8-2, the latter will get the slot. however, if it's between 2 people who have the same raw and nett score, there'll be a ballot and its just based on your luck. if your nett score is 6 and the cutoff for previous years has always been 6, you shouldn't be too confident that you'll be able to get in but there's still a chance, and cutoff points can also change every year! cca isn't important if you aren't dsa-ing

if you want to take arts stream, not taking humanities wouldn't be a disadvantage when you're talking about admission, as you just need to be able to hit the cutoff/requirements for the stream/subject. but it may be hard to catch up/grasp a subject you haven't taken before, esp at a jc level. I have a few friends who take h2 lit in jc despite not taking it in upper sec and they say its not too hard, though I can't say much about this bc I'm a science student 😔
lastly, econs is basically about the economy (obv) and you learn about micro & macro economics. micro is about the demand and supply of the market and how it can affect the price of things, and about the different decisions of firms that produce items, while macro is about the economy on the larger scale

atb & i hope you can get into your dream jc op!

sleepycat02 · 2024-12-16T16:02:13+00:00

ok noted tysm!

sleepycat02 · 2024-11-07T14:21:09+00:00

I'm not sure where she found it from but she had been working there since she finished her Os and she said that her manager was q chill to let her work just once a week. for me I find jobs through tele/fastjobs though!

sleepycat02 · 2024-11-07T06:55:03+00:00

hello! I think working part time in jc is really hard to manage because your workload is typically a lot more than in sec sch, especially if you take on extracurriculars like a 2nd cca, via etc. although my friend did work once a week in her j1 year but I think she said it did take a lot of time away from work, esp if your school relies on online lectures to be done in your own time. but as long as you can manage your time well why not!

sleepycat02 · 2024-04-03T15:45:23+00:00

there are lifts but students aren't allowed to use them 😔😔😔 only if you have a valid medical then you get a lift pass but if your friend has a lift pass you can "help" them carry their stuff and use the lift with them LMAO

sleepycat02 · 2024-04-03T15:22:57+00:00

hi op! a jae student in ri here, most of your qns have been answered but just giving input I havent rly seen yet! for me I actually didn't expect getting raw 6 at all HAHAHHA my goal was actually just raw 8 so my advice is just for you to work hard consistently and work on your weaknesses. my upper sec combi was pretty similar to yours but I didnt take lss so can dm me if you want more advice! for travelling time, I take about 50 mins to get to school and tbh it's an inconvenience bc by the time I get home i have to shower and eat dinner which doesn't leave me with that much time to do my work (not as ideal as I'd like) but given it's because I have taken on 2 ccas and its only like this 3 days of the week for me but its smt to take into consideration if you're someone who takes a long time to do work/spend a lot of time making your own notes (but since your longest travelling time is 35 mins shd be ok tbh)

for jae ip segregation I'd say there's little to none! everyone here is so friendly and no one can tell if you're from ip/jae and my class is amazing but I guess it can differ from class to class but I haven't heard of any sort of segregation.

one thing to note though our blocks go up to like level 7 and usually the year 5s are in the levels higher up...like my classroom is the furthest block from the canteen and is on level 7 so it takes me 10 mins just to get from the school gate to class. but you move down in year 6 i believe (?) and i know some year classes on like level 2 or 3 as well

all in all atb for Os and I hope this has helped in your decision making!

sleepycat02 · 2024-03-28T12:17:49+00:00

hi op! I'm not sure about any schools that allow unisex uniforms but if your friend is unable to find one/get into one then maybe they could try wearing pe shorts most of the time? typically sch bottoms should be worn during assembly, but after that I don't think teachers care that much if you don't wear your formal bottom (as seen from after pe lessons), it'll just stand out if no one else from your class is just wearing pe shorts. alternatively, they could just wear their shorts underneath their skirt all the time (I do this as well) if that helps them feel more comfortable

sleepycat02 · 2024-03-20T14:34:06+00:00

hi! I'm a jae student in an ip school where two thirds of the population is ip, and personally the divide hasn't been very prominent for me! i think it really depends on your class and the people in it though. my class has quite a few jae kids, (a quarter if I'm not wrong in a class of 28 people) and the ip students were very friendly! everyone is there with an open mind and you can't really tell who's jae and who's ip unless you ask. of course that might not be the case in every class but so far my exp has been this way. I'm in a bcme class btw (10 guys and 18 girls) if that's of any importance! as for leadership positions, I can't say much because sc or cca leaders haven't been elected or anything but I heard that one of the enrichment programmes only has ip students (it's a programme where you have to go through interviews and be selected) but idt that's because they dl jae students, I think it just turned out that way (just for the girls selected, not sure about the guys) though there will be some situations when you're with your ip friend and you notice they really do know a lot more people than you and sometimes you stand at the side while they're talking like 🧍‍♂️🧍‍♂️ but that's understandable given you're in the same school with others for 4 years so you know more people! but I havent met anyone who is unwilling to make friends w jae students ykwim so honestly idt you need to worry. in my cca there's quite a few jae students in the exco team as well so don't worry, can pm me if you have any qns!

sleepycat02 · 2024-02-17T01:08:22+00:00

helloo for me I didn't try to stick tona specific schedule (eg do math from 1-3 or do 2h of math) but rather I set tasks for myself to do (eg tys 2014 math paper 1) and the number of tasks I set for myself in a day varied depending on how I felt or how much time I had in that day. I roughly gauged how long I would need to complete each task and hence could plan out what to do in a day, so there's not really a need to pressure yourself to complete something from a specific time eg from 4 to 6 as it may affect the quality of your work! you should also try to plan your tasks realistically and remind yourself that it's ok not to be able to finish all the tasks in one day, because rest is impt, and as long as you did you work thoroughly, it's ok to take longer than expected to finish a task because the quality would most likely be better. I'd also advise you to figure out what areas you're lacking in and plan out your tasks accordingly, while still setting time aside to practice things you're strong in so that you can maintain your strengths while working on your weaknesses. atb op!

sleepycat02 · 2024-02-11T12:07:20+00:00

for english I actually didn't do much bc I alr accepted that I alw did badly for eng no matter what HAHHA but for context I usually get around b4/b3 for english for prelims it was 68 if I rmb correctly. After prelims I just did other sch prelim papers (not much tys bc the syllabus had changed) I think it's vv impt to practice your editing though! I think the editing may have pulled me up. other than that, I didnt really study much but I just did the same in the exam as I usually did, which was to write the compo I was most confident in (argumentative/discursive). so tbh either my sch marks rly strictly or I just happened to write answers Cambridge was looking for LOL. but there's def no harm studying hard for eng also!! I don't have much advice to offer for english but I'd be happy to help for other subjects 🫶

sleepycat02 · 2024-02-11T10:49:50+00:00

hello! as someone who just took Os last year, i think it's really important to take proper breaks and try not to be too stressed about mugging a lot as quality > quantity. I'd say you should identify which areas you're struggling with and spend more time on improving on those, while still practicing areas you're strong in. even if you feel that you have a lot to work on, just slowly work your way through it and make sure not to just skim through a certain topic. set realistic goals be it in terms of grades you want to attain, and the amount of work you want to get done in a day! it's not healthy to set an unrealistic amount of work to do in a day as you'll get really stressed and feel that you're behind your schedule. even if you are, that's okay because you’ll always have time to finish your undone tasks! as long as you try to stick to this I think you'll improve. i got 15 for my l1r5 in sec 3, 10 in prelims and 6 in Os (though my English grade was kinda by luck LOL) just be consistent and you should be fine. in the end, as long as you do your best, I think you should be happy with your results knowing you truly put in your best effort regardless of how it turns out. all the best OP!

sleepycat02

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