March 13, 2007
Unswayed by higher school fees
104 Singaporeans in pioneer batch at Aussie university's Singapore campus; students are attracted by double-degree programmes and chance to study for a year in Sydney

By Education Correspondent, Sandra Davie

ALMOST seven in 10 places at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) Asia campus here have been snapped up by Singaporeans, seemingly undeterred by the stiffer tuition fees.

Of the pioneer batch of 152 students who began classes at the university's Kay Siang Road campus yesterday, 104 are Singaporeans.

They will be spending between $26,000 and $29,000 a year in tuition fees - about four times more than the average $7,000 a year at a local university.

Among the 104 are several who have secured places in the three local universities.

The students, who include A-level and diploma holders, said they were attracted by the university's double-degree programmes and opportunity to study for a year in Sydney.

For the diploma holders, the generous course exemption was a key factor.

Local polytechnic graduates will be allowed to skip the first two years of a four-year UNSW course, compared with the local universities' grant of a year's exemption to these poly graduates.

One of them is Ms Jillian Chin, 21, a top student from the chemical and pharmaceutical technology course at Nanyang Polytechnic.

With a string of As and Bs, she could have easily landed a place in the National University of Singapore (NUS) or Nanyang Technological University (NTU), but she chose to study chemical engineering at UNSW instead.

Said Ms Chin: 'I did my sums and found that two years at UNSW will cost the same as four years at NUS.

'What's more - UNSW offered me a scholarship that will cover my fees for one year.'

For Mr Mohammad Fadhly Jasni, 21, what attracted him to UNSW was the chance to study international studies, which combines international relations and economics.

The former Victoria Junior College student was offered a place at NUS but in science, which he has no interest in.

He said: 'I am interested in subjects like politics and economics and hope to become a journalist one day.'

He said his housewife mother and technician father decided to forgo owning a car so they could afford his fees, which will come to $26,000 a year.

He also hopes to spend some time in UNSW's Sydney campus if his parents can afford it.

He added that he likes the international mix of students on the UNSW campus, which is a temporary one until its Changi one is ready in 2009.

Besides Singaporeans, Mr Mohammad Fadhly's coursemates include Indonesians, Chinese, Indians, Vietnamese and Australians.

Among the foreign students, especially Asians, UNSW's draw lies in that living costs are lower here than in Australia and the fact that Singapore is nearer to home.

Said Ms Amy Gao, 19, from Xian in China: 'My parents could have sent me to Sydney, but they prefer that I stay in Singapore because it is safe and culturally familiar.'

But it is not just the student body that is multicultural at UNSW. A third of the 50-strong faculty is Australian, while another third is Singaporean. The last third is drawn from around the world, including the United States and Europe.

Among them is Associate Professor Andrew Tan, who is teaching international studies. A former Singaporean who migrated to Australia, he is a terrorism specialist who last taught Defence Studies at King's College in London.