A Specialisation provides students with the opportunity to learn more about a particular sub-discipline within their main discipline. It is very useful for students who plan to enter specific career tracks upon their graduation.

For students admitted prior to AY2008/2009, the unit requirement for a Specialisation is typically between 16 and 20 units of distinctive courses within a Major.

For students admitted from AY2008/2009 to AY2018/2019, the unit requirement for a Specialisation is at least 24 units of distinctive courses within a Major.

For students admitted from AY2019/2020 onwards, the unit requirement for a Specialisation is at least 20 units of higher-level courses of a specialised nature within a Major. A minimum of 60% of the Specialisation requirements must be earned from courses read at NUS. Courses read at NUS include all courses taught, co-taught, supervised or co-supervised by NUS faculty member(s). These consist of graded courses or courses with an ‘S' or ‘CS' grade. The remaining units may be earned through credit transfers, advanced placement and exemptions, from courses deemed relevant to the particular Specialisation. For each specialisation, up to 8 units (40% of the unit requirements for a Specialisation) may be double counted and used to meet (i) the Specialisation requirement and (ii) another requirement, e.g., General Education (only for students admitted from AY2021/2022 onwards), College (e.g., Common Curriculum), Faculty, Second Major, Minor, Specialisation or other requirement¹, i.e., at least 12 units of the Specialisation must be distinct and not overlapping.

The Specialisation will be reflected in the student's transcript.

¹There is no double counting cap between a Specialisation and a Major requirement – Specialisation requirements can be nested within the Major requirements, which means all courses counting towards a Specialisation can concurrently be counted towards the Major it is nested in, and some courses may be triple counted towards a Major, a Specialisation nested within the Major, and another requirement.