Residential Colleges
Residential Colleges are a great way to stay in your first 2 years in NUS. Find out why below!
Why residential colleges?#
- Modern hostels to stay
- Great variety and quality of food eg. Malay, Chinese, Western, Indian, Noodle, Yoghurt (although the rates are pricier)
- RC clubs/activities (equals to hall-based activities but with a more humane schedule) and inter-RC activities.
- Exclusive modules to replace University requirement modules, as part of USP/UTCP.
- For students under USP, they will receive 2 degrees from their own faculties and USP upon graduation.
- 2 years of stay guaranteed with no commitments needed
Note of caution#
caution
- UTown modules heavily emphasize on writing essays, might be challenging for students who are not used to academic writing
- Modules are more scientific based, which may not be interesting to some people
- More expensive because of the location (UTown) and newer buildings
- Air conditioner fee is not included in hostel fee
General comparison#
| USP | Tembusu | CAPT | RC4 | RVRC | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Module Focus | Broad-based, multidisciplinary, and even philosophical learning | Intellectual Activities | Community Engagement | Systems Thinking | Industry Engagement and Mentorship |
| Num of Modules | 12, replacing Uni Reqs, a few faculty reqs, and UEs. | 5, replacing Uni Reqs (except GER and GEQ) and GET1021 (Engineering faculty requirements) | Similar to UTown's but focuses more on Sustainability. | ||
| Module Type |
|
| Year 1 (3 inter-disciplinary modules) :
Themes: respect, resilience and reflection. | ||
| Location | University Town | Beside Yusof Ishak House | |||
| After 2 years? | Easy! Usually locals won't want to stay > 2 years. But to be safe, active participation is considered. | Senior Retention Exercise: based on your active participation in academic and non-academic activities. | - | ||
| Inter-RC Activities | Inter-Collegiate Games (ICG), debate, parties (CNY, Halloween, Valentine's day) | ||||
| Dining Experience |
| ||||
| Amenities |
|
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Cinammon College#
Why stay at USP?#
- A unique interdisciplinary program for those willing to challenge themselves intellectually
- A community of curious and diverse individuals open to talk about any subjects
NOTE: USP is not a particularly CAP-friendly programmes, it is well known to drag down students' grades
Location#
NUS University Town (Beside Tembusu College and Education Resource Centre)
- 5 Minutes Walk from New Town Secondary School Bus Stop, 7 Minutes Walk from Aft Dover Road Bus Stop, 8 Minutes Walk from Aft Clementi Ave 1
- 7 Minutes Walk from NUS University Town Bus Stop
Culture / Focus#
Cinnamon’s College purpose is “To shape independent, adaptable thinkers and doers who will make an impact in the world”. With “Curious, Critical, Courageous, Engaged” as the 4 core values of the college, students enrolled in the University Scholars’ Programme in Cinnamon College will be pushed to their intellectual boundaries through the various interdisciplinary modules.
More info on college life or curriculum!
People / Community#
- 180-190 students/batch accross 7 faculties.
- Mostly Singaporeans
- Other countries: Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, India, Korea, not-so-many PRCs, exchange students.
CCA/Interest Groups (IG)#
- University Scholars Club
- USP Polymaths : an open platform featuring a series of 26.667 minutes Pecha Kucha talks on diverse topics
- Gender Collective : the group seeks to draw together people of all genders and sexual identities, for discussion about gender and sexuality and how they intersect with other modes of living, learning in a safe space
- USProductions : a youth-led theatre group in University Scholars Programme (USP), NUS that seeks to produce meaningful and entertaining work, reaching out to audiences on campus and beyond.
- USPike - USP very own volleyball team that holds trainings in conjunction with other colleges in UTown
- Live Core : For anyone who likes music or likes playing music!
- The Sessions : a platform for individuals in USP to host discussions with distinguished speakers, exchange ideas and opinions about issues that they were concerned with/interested in.
Events#
- Confluence: presentation of best student writings
- Master's Tea
- Dean's Tea
- Random Looks at Art
- Random Walks in Science
- Formal Dinner
- Open Mic
- The Sessions Talks
- Formal Dinner
- Orientation Week
Specific Amenities#
- USP Reading Room
- The Writing Centre (Helps students with essay assignments)
- The QR Centre (Helps students with Quantitative Reasoning assignments)
- The ChatterBox (Study Lounge with USProvisions/Snack Corner)
Houses#
Every student staying at Cinnamon will be allocated to a house. While other residential colleges divide students into houses based on floor number, Cinnamon does not work this way, hence, you will make friends with people from different floors:
- Ianthe
- Triton
- Saren
- Ankaa
- Nocturna
- Ursaia
Tembusu College#
Home of Possibilities
Why stay at Tembusu?#
- Modules are more philosophical, which may be interesting to some students
- Diverse and inclusive community
- A lot of opportunities to learn and grow
NOTE: Tembusu residents often said that their residential college is the hardest to get into
Location#
- 8-10 minutes walk to University Town internal bus stop
- 8-10 minutes walk to the nearest external bus stop
Culture / Focus#
Tembusu College’s motto The Home of Possibilities, means we value the development of each individual according to her or his own path through life. At the same time we are a learning community, which seeks to give students an intense experience in a nurturing environment.
Know more about Tembusu culture and modules offered!
People / Community#
- Mostly Singaporeans.
- Other countries: Indonesia, Korean, Malaysia, exchange students.
- Keen on multi-cultural culture
CCA/Interest Groups (IG)#
- Arts: Tembusu Arts Council (performing arts), tArt (painting),Curios Magazine, Tembusu Debate Society, Filmbusu, Slate (theatrical production), tGuitar, Transposition (instruments playing), Treblemakers (choir), T.C.W. (dance), Ukulele Beats, tWord (poetry and creative writing), Yarn & Doodles (craft)
- Sports: Tembusu Barefoots (frisbee), tBalls (dodgeball), Tembusu Bladers (rollerblading), Bolt & Pace (running), tBoxing, tCali (calisthenics), Captain's Ball, Floorball, Netball, Rock Climbing, Men Soccer, Women Soccer, Tembusu Shuttles (badminton), tSquash, Stretch & Tone (pilates), Table Tennis, Tennis, Tchoukball, Touch Rugby, Volleyball, T-OWLS: Tembusu On Wheels (Lepak & Supper) (night cycling)
- Community: Adestes Fideles (Catholic community), Tembusu Christian Fellowship, T.A.L.L (Tembusu Animal Lovers’ League), Green T Movement (sustainability club), tFreedom (LGBTQIA+ club), Treehouse - Tembusu’s Online Student Journal, etc
- Lifestyle: tCoders (programming), Tembusu Coffeehouse, IG2 (strategic board games: mahjong, chess, contract bridge, etc.), tKaraoke, Polity (public policy and current affairs), tRecess (relaxation), Strategos (financial knowledge), Tembusu Tabletops (board and card games), Urban Gardeners, tStudios (photography, videography, design), etc
More info about interest groups here!
Events#
- Tembusu Forum
- Master's Tea
- Fellow's Tea
- Student's Tea
- House Events
- Floor Events
- Orientation Week
- Formal Dinner,
- Inter College Games (ICG)
- Tembusu House Games (THG)
Houses#
Every student staying at Tembusu will be allocated to a house, which will also determine the floor the student will stay at. Houses in Tembusu are:
- Shan (4th-7th floor)
- Ora (8th-11th floor)
- Gaja (12th-14th floor)
- Tancho (15th-18th floor)
- Ponya (19th-21st floor)
College of Alice and Peter Tan (CAPT)#
Active Citizenship and Community Engagement
Why stay at CAPT?#
- More community-based and community engagement activities, which provides opportunities to explore hidden underdeveloped areas (a major issue in nowadays world)
- Has the least Indonesian students, meaning more opportunity to blend with Singaporeans and other ethnics
- More practical modules, because there are a lot of visits
Location#
NUS University Town (beside RC4 and across Yale-NUS College)
- 10-15 minutes walk to UTown internal bus stop
- 5-7 minutes walk to nearest external bus stop
Culture / Focus#
The College of Alice & Peter Tan is distinguished by its vision of helping students engage with the community within and outside of NUS, and encouraging them to apply their knowledge to address issues that are important to society. The College consciously weaves this theme of active citizenship and community engagement through its curriculum and other aspects of the student experience.
Know more about CAPT culture and modules offered!
People / Community#
- Mostly Singaporeans.
- Other countries: Vietnam, China, Malaysia, exchange students, a number of Indo students.
CCA/Interest Groups (IG)#
- Sports
- Capital(business induced)
- Capslock(Coding)
- CAPT Coffee
- Cooking
- CAPT Support
- JamCity & Guitarpella(Band)
- ACE (Active Community Engagement)
- Kindle(Helping kids)
- CSC
Events#
- Master's Tea
- Formal Dinner
- Community Engagement Festival
- Open Mic, etc
- House Events
- Floor Eventse
- Inter College Games (ICG)
- Inter Neighbourhood Games (ING)
- Inter Neighbourhood Shield (INS)
Houses#
Every student staying at CAPT will be allocated to a house, which will also determine the floor the student will stay at. Houses in CAPT are:
- Roc (3rd-5th floor)
- Dragon (6th-8th floor)
- Garuda (9th-11th floor)
- Phoenix (12th-14th floor)
- Tulpar (15th-17th floor)
Residential College 4 (RC4)#
Systems Thinking
Why stay at RC4?#
- All bedrooms are provided with aircons!
- Easier to get in as compared to other RCs in UTown (CAPT or Tembusu)
- Nearest to external bus stop to Clementi and other locations
- Will learn Vensim, which can be very useful for systems learning and thinking
Location#
University Town (farthest from UTown internal bus stop, but nearest to external bus stop)
Culture/Focus#
Systems Thinking and Systems Dynamic Modelling. Modules in RC4 teach about designing model using a software called Vensim, which focuses on loop diagrams to predict an event or see the process.
Know more about RC4 culture and modules offered!
People / Community#
- Mostly Singaporeans.
- Other countries: Indonesia, Vietnam, China, Malaysia, exchange students.
CCA/Interest Groups (IG)#
- Arts: R4D(Dance), RC4ME (Band), RC4Theatre
- Community Service: CASA (Focuses on educating poor children in Clementi), RC4lunteers (Various target groups)
- Lifestyle: OrcaBakes, Orc4Plays (Various board and card games), RC4Coffee, RC4fe, RC4Moda (Fashion), RC4rtsy (Craft), RC4tography, Strategic Games (Bridge & Mahjong)
- Sports & Adventure: ARC4NA (Online games), Badminton, Captain's Ball, Climbing, Dodgeball, Floorball, Soccer, Squash, Table Tennis, Tchoukball, Tennis, Touch Rugby, Ultimate Frisbee, Volleyball, WilderNUS (Outdoor adrenaline activities)
- Pods: RC4Space, RC4Wellness
Satisfy your curiosity here: Interest Groups, Cognitio
Events#
- Master's Tea
- Formal Dinner
- Slumber Party
- RC4 Arts Night
- House Events
- Floor Events
- Inter College Games (ICG)
- Inter House Games (IHG)
Houses#
Every student staying at RC4 will be allocated to a house, which will also determine the floor the student will stay at. Houses in RC4 are:
- Aquila (3rd-5th floor)
- Noctua (6th-8th floor)
- Ursa (9th-11th floor)
- Leo (12th-14th floor)
- Draco (15th-17th floor)
Ridge View Residential College (RVRC)#
Why stay at RVRC?#
- Convenient/ strategic place i can get to science by 5 min walk 7/11 and YIH right beside RVRC!
- Chill sessions at pitstop (nintendo switch + arts and crafts)
- 1 RVRC module WR1401 is super fun (kin ball, tchouk ball, chill teachers, dragon boating outing)
- Even though some rooms do not have aircon, the trees and naturey sceneries make the rooms cool
- Many lounges and places to chill and play and watch movies together
Location#
See the table. It is near to the University Health Centre (Clinic), University Sports Centre, and Exam Halls (This will come in handy since you don't need to catch a bus to exam)
Culture / Focus#
RVRC focuses on sustainability and workplace readiness, empowering students to “explore and engage with complex real world challenges.”
“The RVRC experience is aimed at cultivating students who are intellectually inquisitive, action-oriented, resilient, and future-ready” (RVRC Mission and Values)
People / Community#
- Welcoming singaporeans, bonded indo community
- Weekly card game/board game sessions
- Study together = less stress
- A lot of low commitment IGs to join (sports, arts, clubs)
- A lot of leadership opportunities available (CSC, House Committee, IG Heads)
CCA/Interest Groups (IG)#
- Industry Networking
- Co-planned activities: camp, nature trails, heritage walks, community service projects, dialogues.
- Student-led activities
- Value-centric community through experiential learning.
Events#
- Industry visits
- Formal Dinner
- Talks