Back to school in Singapore

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/singapore.jpg” caption=”Myles Yaksich, far left, is attending Singapore Management University as part of the BizX International Exchange Program.”]Myles Yaksich is a third year commerce student at the DeGroote School of Business. As part of the BizX International Exchange Program, Yaksich is attending Singapore Management University (SMU). He wrote the following journal entry for the Daily News.

Edited by Sabrina Jeria

I arrived in Singapore a few weeks ago, before classes started, and have spent the majority of my time exploring the city. So far I've been to the Merlion in the downtown core, Singapore Slings at Raffles and various restaurants and nightclubs on Clark Quay. I have also sunbathed and played volleyball at Sentosa and on Bin-Tan Island in Indonesia.

Time has just flown by – I've already finished my first day of classes at Singapore Management University (SMU). Here at SMU, exchange students aren't registered in any courses – we have to compete for the courses we want in an online e-auction. So this week, I'll sit in on the courses I've bid on and hope that next week I'll be a member of my chosen classes. This process is proving stressful, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Because classes are taught in three hour sessions, I went to a class on international business strategy this morning and a management science class on statistics this afternoon.

All day the corridors were full of students scrambling to find their way around campus. The university is connected through an underground which links the schools of business, law, accountancy and economics with the library, gymnasium, bar and kopitiam (food court). It is difficult to navigate at first, but I think I'm already getting the hang of it.

Although the coursework is organized in a fashion that is very similar to classes at DeGroote – a student's final grade is weighted as a distribution across the term, and is based on class participation, case studies, a group project and final exam – I'm already feeling intimidated. The local students are so keen that they have already read the entire course text book, completed the suggested readings and finished the practice questions! Perhaps this level of competition is something I'm going to have to get used to.

Aside from feeling overwhelmed, I think I'm settling into my new life in Singapore very well. As the academic term goes on, I look forward to so many things: travelling, being able to live and learn in a new environment, meeting new people and learning to communicate cross-culturally.

The BizX International Exchange Program offers exchanges at 22 schools in 13 countries across the world, providing students the opportunity to experience another culture and gain insight into the global marketplace.

For more information, visit degroote.mcmaster.ca/exchange.