NUS Bulletin AY2020/21

NUS Educational Philosophy

The NUS community of students, teachers, and administrators, seeks to help students become

• individuals with questioning minds, willing and able to examine what is taken for granted, and who engage in rigorous inquiry within and beyond assumed disciplinary borders;
• individuals of well-rounded mind and character;
• constructive and responsible members of a community, ready to assume leadership and conscious of the impact of their activities on others;
• global citizens, who are sensitive to diverse cultural settings, aware of the potential they offer, and capable of operating in them, while conscious of the particularity, value, and limits of their own perspectives;
• bearers of a resourceful and enterprising spirit, in public and private life; and
• able communicators who can articulate and defend ideas effectively.

The University seeks to inculcate students with the above qualities through both formal and informal education that extends from the classroom environment to a larger institutional culture outside the classroom. The latter includes the myriad learning opportunities in residential living. NUS recognizes its distinctive educational role as a university with both an Asian and international identity. This unique position creates the possibility of equally unique perspectives, and allows the University to retain a global outlook while drawing from and reflecting upon the character and resources of the region.

Academic Governance

The Senate is the highest academic body of the University. Chaired by the President of the University, the Senate meets regularly to deliberate on educational policy and other academic issues. The following Senate committees, with representatives from among Senate members and the various Deaneries, examine and make recommendations to Senate on educational issues:

University Committee on Educational Policy (UCEP)
Board of Undergraduate Studies (BUS)
Board of Graduate Studies (BGS)

Among the duties of these committees are to review, evaluate and recommend changes to:

• the general curriculum structure;
• existing and new degree programmes;
• other educational policy issues, such as advance placement credits and general education.

The minimum requirements for undergraduate and graduate students set by the University are specified in the NUS Bulletin. Individual Faculties / Departments / Programmes may set additional requirements for their degree programmes according to the demands of the discipline.