Forgo the uncertainty

STORIES of applicants to local university who, despite scoring 4As in the A-level examinations, failed to secure a place in the medicine, law or engineering faculties, was a big warning sign for me to look overseas.

Many of my schoolmates are currently in courses they have no interest in. They had good grades, but there were not enough places in medicine or law.

By contrast, universities abroad state clearly what they want - meet a grade, ace the interview and you get your choice.

That is how I entered the University of Western Australia, without having to chase shadows here. Five years into medical school, I have no regrets.

Tabitha Mok, 22, is a fifth-year medical student at the University of Western Australia

Better job prospects

ALMOST all university graduates aim to secure good, decent-paying jobs. So it follows that the career prospects linked to a university's name is a crucial factor in their choice of where to study.

Friends working in multinational corporations say employers here still place a premium on those educated in brand-name overseas universities, such as those attended by the nation's top scholars - Yale, Princeton and Stanford.

If I had the academic and financial means to study at any of them, I would have definitely chosen to.

After all, given a choice between two people who differ only in the source of their degree scrolls, I am sure employers would pick the Ivy League candidate.

Jason Zhou, 23, is a third-year economics student at Singapore Management University

Time to engage in life

FOUR years of secondary school left me gasping, another two in junior college left me nearly unconscious. Lecture, tutorial, extra classes, homework, examination. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Did education have to be this painful?

In London, enrolled in a three-year undergraduate degree, I discovered my academic interests and nurtured them.

I was given essay questions that perplexed me for days because they had no answer; I endured weeks of stress because the research project I undertook refused to yield usable results.

But I was also given the luxury of time. Time to reflect on unanswerable essays, to critically evaluate failures, to devise creative solutions. Time for holidays, theatre trips and afternoon naps. Time to engage in life.

Adrienne de Souza, 22, is pursuing her post-graduate diploma in education at the National Institute of Education

Local university life is vibrant

THE call of home and plus the allure of a fulfilling local university life tug at my heartstrings.

Are local universities of mediocre standard? Definitely not. Nanyang Business School at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) is ranked among the top three in Asia by the Economic Intelligence Unit, and 24th globally by the Financial Times.

Besides, with exchange programmes now available to most students, we can still gain international experience.

Websites such as funkygrad.com also dispel notions that local varsity life is less colourful than that abroad. I cannot wait to embrace the campus lifestyle - beauty pageants and all - once I matriculate in August 2010.

Nicholas Lim, 19, has a place at NTU's Nanyang Business School

Seeking a fresh challenge

I CHOSE to study in New York City to embrace a lifestyle change, after being here all 18 years of my life. At an age of transition, I want to venture from my protective environment.

In a fast-paced and globalised city, I expect a constructive culture shock to facilitate personal growth. I will also learn to be more independent, with less accessible help from family.

There is also the lure of the global economic cynosure that is Wall Street, the capital of the business world, and when I finally return home to contribute, the prestige of it all should set me apart.

Nurul Asyikin Mohd Nasir, 18, has a place to read business at New York University

Lucky to have an education

AS A student still only in my first year of polytechnic education, the decision between studying in a local or overseas university seems pretty far-off.

Yet when I do think about it, I weigh the invaluable benefits of an overseas education against staying to ensure I do not substantially increase my parents' financial burden.

Either way, I will still strive to get the most out of a university education - I would be extremely fortunate just to have one.

Bryan Toh, 16, is a first-year mass communications student at Ngee Ann Polytechnic

This article was first published in The Straits Times on February 02, 2009.