Some of you may remember me as the Teacher Assistant who conducted a couple of ECG lessons. This is my story and I hope that you find it helpful!

1) How did you decide on your current course?

I took a really unorthodox subject combination in JC: Physics, History, Mathematics, and Economics; 1 of only 3 people in my entire batch (I even ended up in the same History class as Jing Jing!). This choice was a combination of both practicality and interest: H2 Physics qualified me for Engineering courses in University, and I had previously consistently performed poorly in Chemistry, so I decided not to take it in JC. On the other hand, I have always enjoyed studying History, and this made taking it a natural choice. 

I knew pretty early on that my passions and interests lie in the Arts, but dared not entertain the idea of studying it in University due to its common perception as a “soft” option. In J1, I considered studying Engineering for its versatility, however, a D in Physics and E in Math at Promos and a short discussion with my Engineering-background CT/Physics Tutor quickly killed that idea. In J2, I considered Computer Science, purely because it is, as you all know, the “in thing” nowadays, though I was once again dissuaded by my ECG counsellor due to my lack of aptitude in Math (and she was right too; I think I spent 60-70% of my A-Levels preparation time on Math alone!). So for the rest of JC I didn’t think about any ECG-related matters and instead focused on studying for A-Levels, with my main line of thinking being “get results first, then see how”.

Having done better than expected for A-Levels, I decided to consider Law, getting offers from NUS, SMU, and KCL, only applying to NTU in 2024 as an afterthought. 

Eventually, I decided not to go to KCL due to concerns about cost and re-evaluating the benefits of an overseas education. I had no plans to work in the UK after graduating, and UK Law graduates, while allowed to practise in SG, have to take both Part A and Part B of the bar exam, whereas local graduates only have to do Part B. Therefore, I felt that the 3 years of overseas experience, whilst definitely eye-opening, was not worth the $300k+ cost.

Furthermore, I started to have doubts about whether Law truly is for me, as I honestly had very little interest in aspects of Law outside of Public International Law, and was not very keen on the other aspects of law which make up the core of a legal education (do some research on the Law curriculum for more info). To further illustrate my point, I attended the NUS Law Welcome Weekend which included a short masterclass on constitutional law, and hearing people enthusiastically discuss legal hot topics such as the current crypto laws in Singapore while I really couldn’t care less, made me wonder if I even had the required level of intellectual curiosity and interest to slog through more than 5 years of Law School and the Bar Exam. Moreover, truthfully, I don’t have any lofty ideals about fighting for justice with my Law degree at all, which is a big part of why many people want to do Law and is what pulls them through tough times.

On the other hand, I went for a Welcome Dinner hosted by NTU’s School of Social Sciences, and had the opportunity to speak with a Professor specialising in East Asian/Indo-Pacific security, which so happens to be my area of interest. I truly enjoyed the short conversation we had, which further shifted me away from Law to PPGA. It also helped me to realise that not all reading and writing is the same too (which is a pretty Asian parent way of comparing the two courses); in Social Sciences, there is often no right answer, whereas Law prizes brevity and answering the question directly.

Apart from interest, there was another pull factor for NTU: the University Scholars Programme, which is one of the Premier Scholars Programmes (the others are CN Yang for Science research, Renaissance Engineering Programme for Engineering, and Turing AI for CS/DSAI). Basically, it is a liberal arts programme similar to NUS College, that replaces a few electives and (somewhat unpopular) Interdisciplinary Collaborative Core modules with its own curriculum, as well as provides opportunities for networking, overseas experience, and 4(!) years of guaranteed hall stay.

Therefore, after weighing my options, I decided to make the tough decision to disappoint subvert all my relatives’, parents’ and teachers’ expectations, and go for NTU PPGA instead of Law. Many people have said that I’m stupid for giving up the opportunity to study Law (perhaps even you are thinking so too), but I wanted a chance to fully enjoy my University experience (but this is not to say that Law students are miserable), and study what I truly am passionate about. I might have a bit (well, a lot) of FOMO a couple of years down the road when I see my friends who stuck it out in Law making more than I do, but for now, I am happy with my choice.

By the way, Public Policy and Global Affairs is NTU’s spin on Political Science but with a focus on 2 tracks: Public Administration and International Relations. If you’re more keen on the “politics” part like Comparative Politics or Political Theory, look elsewhere. Moral of the story: do your due diligence and don’t just look at the course name; take some time to check out the syllabi for any differences.

2) How have your working experiences been?

After A-Levels, I did a short internship with SMRT under the Young Transport Engineers Programme, where I was assigned to the Power Engineering department. I enjoyed my stint there and thought it good exposure, but it helped solidify my decision not to do Engineering in University. Funnily enough, during NS I was again posted to the Navy as an Engineer… Well, at least it was the final nail in the coffin pushing me away from Engineering! Nevertheless, serving in the Navy was certainly not a bad experience at all, and got me interested in international treaties such as UNCLOS and COLREGs, as well as legal concepts like Freedom of Navigation and a Rules-Based International Order.

After NS, I had short stints as an Internal Audit Assistant and as a waiter. I didn’t enjoy the audit job due to the dry work and constant OT, and decided I would have plenty of chances to sit in an office all day in the future, so I resigned. FnB, although tiring, was an interesting experience, and I highly recommend everyone try a customer service job, be it retail, FnB, or cashiering, at least once: it builds character ;)

My favourite job ever though, has to be my current one: a Teacher Assistant with HCI ECG! Initially, I applied for GP, Social Studies, and History, but it turns out ECG has been a fantastic choice. Coming back to help my juniors whose shoes I was once in not too long ago has truly been a wonderful experience, in particular, conducting the ECG lesson package has been enjoyable and fulfilling. Besides, you can’t get better food outside, especially not at this price! Enjoy the tom yum ban mian and chicken chop pasta as much as you can, while you can.

3) What extracurricular activities have you done to explore your interests?

I’ve used some of my free time to read books and take online courses. Namely, the Tommy Koh Reader by retired diplomat Dr Tommy Koh, which details some of his experiences at the UN, as well as self-help books such as Sun Tzu’s The Art of War and Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad Poor Dad (IMO, not a very good book outside of the basic financial planning concepts).

In addition, I’ve taken online courses such as an Excel basics course on NTUC LXP using Skillsfuture@NS, and Harvard University’s CS50: Introduction to Computer Science on EDX, which, instead of helping develop an interest as most online courses do, confirmed my lack of talent in coding... but unfortunately for me, Social Sciences still requires some programming for statistical analysis.

4) Any words of advice for your juniors?

It is perfectly OKAY not to know what you want to do at this juncture. Take the time to try different things out! A-Levels may seem daunting, and I too didn’t know what I was doing even up until Prelims, but it all worked out in the end. Continue to work hard and you will be fine! 

For those of you considering an overseas education, consider carefully what you want to get out of it. If you have a scholarship or can comfortably afford it, then yes, by all means go! The experience of living independently is truly invaluable and really, despite NUS and NTU’s impressive rankings, it is a simple fact that lower-ranked universities like Yale or KCL are far more internationalised than NUS/NTU, and will open many more doors for you to work overseas. If not, staying in SG is a perfectly adequate option too; not many countries’ citizens have the opportunity to study at still, highly-reputed universities in their own right, with a relatively low barrier to entry.

Moreover, I highly suggest being more open-minded when it comes to choosing between NUS and NTU, or even newer universities such as SMU. I’ve observed that NUS is much, much more popular with Hwach students than NTU simply due to the “prestige” value, despite both universities being viewed as equivalent by employers. Even for overseas work opportunities, both NUS and NTU do qualify for visas such as the UK’s High Potential Individual or Japan’s Future Creation Individual visa, and any good HR will do their due diligence in researching their candidates’ universities. In my opinion, scholarships or special programmes (I have a friend who chose NTU due to being offered the CN Yang Scholars Programme, which has a heavy focus on research opportunities; NUS has no such equivalent) should be the deciding factor for 2 similar courses, and NTU is generally seems to be slightly more generous due to the wider range of scholarship tiers. For instance, they offer the School Scholarship, which covers tuition fees only, or even a one-off $10,000 Education Award if you qualify for scholarship interviews but are not awarded one. Also consider things like the curriculum; for instance, NUS’ College of Humanities and Sciences provides a lot of flexibility in your first year, but being forced to take unrelated courses if you’re already clear on what you want to major in may not appeal to all. In other words, don’t dismiss things outright or succumb to peer pressure; do your own research and make an informed decision about what is better for you!

In addition, do take the initiative to speak to people, be it admissions reps, seniors, or even our ECG counsellors! Go for open houses, taster courses, or even drop people a message on LinkedIn! Most people are happy to share their stories, experiences, and help out their juniors, especially those from the same school. If you would like, feel free to find me on LinkedIn at http://linkedin.com/in/julius-ong-426b89212/. 

Also for guys, try not to let your brain rot too much during NS. Sure, it is a long, well-deserved break after A-Levels, but you should ideally not come out of it a worse person than you were before. Even something simple like 15 minutes of Duolingo a day instead of scrolling Tiktok or Instagram Reels is better than nothing.

All the best!