UNLIKE some other universities, there will be no 800-student lecture groups, just classes of about 50 students, each led by a faculty member.
There won't be traditional faculties and departments either, in keeping with this university's focus on inter-disciplinary learning.
These are among the factors that will set the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SU) apart from other local universities.
At SU, which is to open its doors in 2011, students will be able to choose from four degree programmes:
- Architecture and Sustainable Design
- Engineering Product Design
- Engineering Systems and System Design
- Information Engineering and Design
SU's newly-appointed president, Prof Thomas Magnanti, giving a first brief glimpse into the new set-up at a news conference yesterday, said the university would admit an initial cohort of about 500 undergraduates in 2011.
Targeting 6,000 students.
It is targeting an eventual enrolment of about 4,000 undergraduate and 2,000 graduate students.
Some 50 faculty members will be on board by the time Singapore's fourth university opens.
Said Prof Magnanti: "There won't be 'faculties' or 'departments' in the usual sense.
"We will try to keep the university as inter-disciplinary and fluid as possible, by not having traditional boundaries."
This, he explained, would encourage cross-disciplinary collaboration within the university.
He added that it will soon be launching a recruitment drive for its staff.
Students in SU's four degree courses will have a common curriculum in their first and second years.
In their first year, students will take foundation-level courses in mathematics and science, and introductory courses in humanities and social sciences, in the context of design.
When they move into their second year, students will take courses in information computation, materials and systems.
Said Prof Magnanti: "In their small 'learning communities', the students will be working on design exercises, and learning basic physics, chemistry, and so on."
In their third and fourth years, students will focus on the core content of their degree programmes, but will have the opportunity to learn more about entrepreneurship and management.
"We'll focus on trying to create technically grounded leaders - people who have technology in their hearts and souls and who will go out to the marketplace with a well-grounded education," he said.
SU students will also benefit from overseas stints with partner universities, such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
The university is also in discussions with a top Chinese university on a possible partnership.
Mr Loh Ngai Seng, Deputy Secretary (Policy), Ministry of Education, said details of the partnership would be announced by the end of the year.
He added that details of SU's admission process and tuition fees would be finalised later.
The location of both the interim and permanent campuses will be announced early next year.
