Nanyang Technological University, or NTU, is one of the top global universities.

In this article, we will give you an in-depth view of the university and will decode the academic, social, and financial aspects of the university with our star ratings. And then will offer you the most important tips and strategies to get into NTU. 

About NTU

NTU (former Nanyang University) is a National Research University based in Singapore. It was established in 1981 as a Nanyang Technological Institute and was finally recognized as a university in 1991. It is the second most prestigious University in Singapore, right after NUS, and is considered one of the best ones in the world for technical courses. 

It is an autonomous University (a university that controls the day-to-day activities and curriculum). In 2021, it was ranked 12th by QS world university rankings. 

NTU  is located in Singapore in an Urban Setting. Singapore is a small country with amazing opportunities and facilities for students to enjoy. Apart from tourist attractions like Garden by the Bay, Marina Bay Sands, Botanical Gardens, Sentosa, and many more, there are also a lot of work opportunities available. The most significant sectors in Singapore are telecommunications, banking, transportation, and manufacturing. 

NTU campus is one of the most beautiful university campuses in the world. Recognized by various architectural magazines, its mixture of Japanese, Singaporean, and British Architects' designs makes it so inviting for people. The main campus - Yunnan Garden Campus, is 200 hectares, the largest in Singapore. The Novena Campus is smaller in comparison to the Yunnan campus. 

All colleges on the campus are equipped with state-of-the-art facilities. ​​The NTU Smart Campus is a living testbed of tomorrow’s technologies that demonstrates how innovative digital and tech-enabled solutions support better learning and living experiences, the discovery of new knowledge, and the sustainability of resources.

Popular majors at NTU

The most popular majors at NTU include

• Physics
• Engineering
• Electronic Engineering
• Computer Science
• Material Science
• Social Sciences
• Chemistry
• Optics
• Business
• Neuroscience, and
• Nanotechnology 

Ranking of NTU

NTU is also one of the Top 1 percent Universities in the world according to the US News and QS World Report Rankings. 

Factors which you consider while choosing N.T.U. University:

A good college fit is when a college meets your needs and wants academically, socially, and financially.

Academic Fit

Academics at NTU are extremely competitive, as is expected, being amongst the top international universities. With the largest engineering college in the world with six schools, including a graduate college, focused on technology and innovation, NTU is leading in the engineering field on each front. The school's academic offers a rich array of interdisciplinary programs as well as double degrees, double majors, and integrated programs. 

But that is not it. Apart from engineering, NTU has a lot to offer to the world. The courses at NTU are challenging and competitive in nature. It offers a wide range of programs by schools within engineering. Business, science and humanities, arts and social science, and autonomous study options. 

The business school offers one of the world’s top 50 MBA programs and three-year direct Honours degree programs in Accountancy and Business. College of Sciences offers unique interdisciplinary programs such as the Bachelor of Science in Economics and Data Sciences and a Double Major Bachelor of Science in Physics and Mathematical Sciences. The business school also offers top postgraduate programs, like MBA, MS in Business Analytics, Marketing science, financial engineering, and MS in asset and wealth management. 

A new model for medical schools, the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine combines NTU’s core strengths in engineering and business with Imperial College London’s world-renowned medical expertise. The School prepares the brightest minds for the demands of 21st-century healthcare and has introduced innovations to medical education.

The S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies is an autonomous graduate institution of NTU. The school has the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies, which is long recognized as a world authority on strategic studies and terrorism. 

NTU is one of the seven founding members of the Global Alliance of Technological Universities (GlobalTech), a network of top technological universities united in addressing global issues through leading-edge science and technology. The eight members of GlobalTech are: 

Carnegie Mellon University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Imperial College London, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Nanyang Technological University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Technische Universität München, University of New South Wales

NTU offers vibrant research culture through various strategic national and international research programs. The University hosts two out of five national Research Centres of Excellence (RCEs) – the Earth Observatory of Singapore and the Singapore Centre for Environmental Life Sciences Engineering, both conducting research aligned with the long-term strategic interests of Singapore.

One more thing, NTU Singapore is the world’s first university to allow credits from Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) hosted on Coursera to be used to fulfill degree requirements. That’s really wonderful.

The Faculty at NTU are amazing and experienced in their subjects. Professors have their respective researches, which students can get involved in. Most students have expressed satisfaction with the kind of attention they are able to get from the staff to clarify their doubts.

The Class size at NTU is small to average; most of the classes are 20 students at the most out there are few that can go up to 50 to 100 as well. 

So keeping all of this in mind, we will rate NTU with 5 Stars on the Academic Difficulty level, where 5 is the highest level. 

Social Fit & Campus Life

Social Life at NTU is very happening. Many sports, recreational games, and performing arts activities within the residence hall communities are regular events that can be enjoyed by any interested student. NTU encourages student participation all year round. 

Singapore has a lot of tourist attractions that can be explored for a fun weekend. There are a lot of Museums available for students to explore. Video Games Cafes are also one of the main attractions, And you can learn how to surf too. 

There are more than 100 student organizations at NTU. These include Constituent Clubs, Non-Constituent Clubs, Academic Clubs, Cultural Clubs, Welfare Society, Sports Clubs, Arts Clubs, and clubs for various religions and interests.

A lot of students are involved in social and volunteer services, which is deemed normal for the campus. The university also has a museum within the campus where you can enjoy art and learn a lot too. 

At the time of recording this video, NTU has above 33,000 students, with 24,000 being UG and the remaining PGs and PhDs.  The University has a 15-20 percent student body of international students, and NTU is regularly trying to attract International students to keep the campus a diverse place. 

Housing is limited but is guaranteed to all incoming freshmen. NTU has 23 Halls of Residence for undergraduates, each with a capacity of between 500 and 659 residents. All halls are co-ed with a lot of facilities available, like lounges, air-conditioned reading rooms, pantries, and laundry rooms with washing machines and dryers. There are many off-campus options available near campus as well. Most graduate students prefer living off campus. 

For NTU Students, meal plans are available within the student accommodations. The food is pretty good as per students. The quality and variety are plentiful. Apart from college meal plans, a lot of on-campus and off-campus food/beverage options are available.

Through a plethora of sports, competitive as well as recreational activities, NTU provides various avenues​​ for students to learn life skills, build character and pursue a healthy lifestyle. Around 23 competitive sports teams are there on campus, with Badminton, Basketball, Floorball, Handball, Soccer, and Squash being the best of them. There are also water sports like canoe polo, aquathlon, water polo, etc., that students can find interesting. 

NTU offers competitive academics and good social life as well, I would give a 5 star out of 5 on the Quality of Life. 

Financial Fit

NTU falls in an expensive school category. But the expenditure depends. You can expect up to 25k to 40k Singapore dollars in annual Tuition fees. It’s cheaper for domestic students, around 10 to 15k Singapore DOllars. But the tuition fee for postgraduate MBA and business programs can go up to SG$65,000 per annum. The Housing and dining may fall in the 10k-15k Singapore Dollars range for most.

As far as Financial aid is concerned, NTU Offers a lot of Scholarship opportunities based on  Merit averaging 15-20k Singapore Dollars. A lot of third-party and athletic scholarships are also available.

NTU’s sponsored scholarships are offered in recognition of academic excellence and leadership potential. NTU offers a variety of scholarships to new as well as current students. NTU Scholarships are generally awarded to students based on academic merit and good co-curricular records. 

We would give it a 4 star out of 5 on Financial Fit.

How to Increase Your Chances of Getting into NTU with my special admission tips and strategies.

NTU is one of the elite colleges that are highly selective. The Acceptance rate last year was 36% overall, but it’s less than that for international students. NTU is highly competitive. 

When it comes to admissions, NTU follows a holistic approach. Unlike the common notion that only good grades can get you here, NTU is much more liberal in their admissions process. 

Tip#1 High GPA

There is a high academic cut-off point, and if you make it through that, it's easy for you to handle the rest of the things. Generally, you must have 90% or higher in high school (CBSE Indian Students), which is about 38 IB points, and around a 3.5 GPA. For a Postgraduate, anything above 7.5 and preferably closer to 8 CGPA is great. 

Tip#2 Research is Important

If you are applying for Engineering programs, NTU is amongst the world’s best. Its engineering school is highly ranked and has excellent outreach. Research and development is a vital building block of excellence at NTU College of Engineering (CoE), so make sure to demonstrate your research interest in engineering programs. 

Tip#3 Build your Character Traits

For Business programs, remember the three words, Innovate, Lead, Transform. You must display these attributes in your application. Think about how you can build your profile around these characteristics of Innovation, Leadership, and Transformation. 

Tip#4 Participate in Co-scholastic Activities

Challenge yourself and go beyond the boundaries of your discipline to discover new courses that will help you open unparalleled opportunities in the professional world. Apart from your academic grades, test scores, co-curricular and hobbies even count for a lot. Participate in activities that will help you build a great profile. In general, NTU looks for leaders with intellectual diversity. You must work to develop skills that will enable you to face future challenges with optimism and confidence. So, participate in leadership activities, competitions, and also community-based activities. NTU has Community as a core pillar, so talk about your participation with a diverse group of people with a sense of community. Super important.

Tip#5 Work on your Essay / SOP

The main essay plays an important role, too, in both undergraduate and postgraduate admissions. Talk about your achievements and how did you manage to achieve them. Essays provide insight into how you have achieved something. Talk about how you have faced challenges with optimism and challenges. I do understand it might not be so easy to talk about these in your essays as many students don’t know how to, and that’s why I highly recommend taking professional help, as it will help you a great deal. Maybe consider joining my program Ivy cohort, where we help you showcase your qualities through essays and applications. 

NTU Application Process is simple as compared to its US and UK Counterparts and is very similar to NUS Application. The deadlines for different boards and different countries are different but mostly lie between February and March for international students and can go upto June for domestic applicants. 

Tip#6 Participate in Olympiads

For Undergraduates, NTU has something called Direct Entry. Medallists (Gold, Silver or Bronze) of International Science Olympiads Competitions in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics, Informatics, Astronomy and Astronomy, and Astrophysics will be considered for admission more favorably to programs related to their field of achievement, which is a great plus. So make sure to participate in such olympiads, as this will give a huge boost to your admission chances. 

Transfer Applications are accepted between January and February every year. Although every course has specific prerequisites that the applicant must meet before applying. Students, regardless of nationality, who have studied for a term or more at a university, locally or overseas, may apply as transfer students. Admissions offer is based on Year 1 entry. Successful applicants may apply formally for the assessment of transfer of credit. Determination is, however, on a case-by-case basis 

For Postgraduates, the applications are department-wise and consist of an interview which is generally face-to-face or online, whichever is the preferred medium. Applicants are required to submit an online application via the NTU application portal, and the deadline for most postgraduate programs is in January for the August start date and July for the January start date. 

In the end to conclude, If you are hard-working, Okay with an intense workload, love to socialize, are interested in research, a good Leader, NTU is for you.

Author: Shirish Gupta

Shirish is a TEDx Speaker, Entrepreneur & Youth Mentor. Shirish runs a highly successful Youtube Channel (shirishgee). He has been featured on National television multiple times and has won the prestigious Philip Kotler Award. Shirish is on a mission to mentor today’s Youth and create a ripple effect of positive impact across the planet. He believes that the Youth have a unique opportunity to Build an 'Xtraordinary Life' for themselves and make a positive global change. 

We are the new school of change-makers looking to build a great life and great a positive impact through our work and life. Join the tribe and build your Best Life today! Shirish calls it your Xtraordinary Life :)