Which category should I apply for?

Exchange

If your home university has entered into an exchange agreement with NUS and you have been nominated for exchange, please select the category “Exchange”. Exchange students attend NUS on a fee waiver basis and are only liable to pay miscellaneous student fees.

Please refer here for a list of partner institutions.

Non-Exchange (fee paying basis)

If your home university has a programme-specific agreement that has a study-abroad arrangement at NUS, please select the category “Non-Exchange”. Non-Exchange are liable to pay both tuition fees and miscellaneous student fees.

Please note that you will have to be selected by your home university to apply as a non-exchange student. We are unable to accept Non-Exchange coursework applications from individual applicants.  

General Criteria

1. You must be a current student registered at another University and have completed at least two semesters (one full year) at the college/university level.
2. You must continue to assume this status throughout your intended duration of study at NUS under the non-graduating programme.
3. To qualify as an exchange student, you have to be nominated for exchange for NUS by your home institution. Please check with your home institution if you have queries on whether you qualify as an exchange student.

Note: Students must hold a valid Students' Pass (STP) for the entire duration of study. The STP does not permit students to work.

Coursework applicants have to choose courses at the point of application. As applicants will be enrolled in their courses choices after review by the respective departments, please choose courses that you wish to read on exchange.

Applicants are therefore encouraged to take note of the various policies regarding course selection and enrollment in the Non-Graduating Programme prior to their application.

• Course Restrictions

  When planning your application, please refer to the following list of courses that have limited or restricted access for non-graduating students due to demand and space constraints.

• Course Offerings

  Refer to the following for courses available to Non-Graduating Students:

  NG Courses for Current Academic Year  NG Courses for Previous Academic Year  Brief Course Descriptions

  Please ensure that the courses selected (a minimum of 3 courses with at least 3 additional courses as reserves) are offered during the semester for which you have applied.

• Audit Status

  Non-graduating students are permitted to take certain courses on an audit basis.

  When taking a course on an audit basis, you will only attend lectures and will not be permitted to sit for examinations. Participation in other practical components (e.g. tutorials, laboratory work, fieldwork) will be at the discretion of the respective faculty/department.

  Courses from the following Faculties/Departments/Centres CANNOT be done on an audit basis:

  • Arts & Social Sciences
  • Building
  • Business
  • Computing
  • Law
  • Industrial Systems Engineering and Management
  • Division of Industrial Design
  • Public Health
  • Public Policy
  • Real Estate
  • Statistics and Data Science
  • Centre for English Language Communication
  • NUS College
  • Life Sciences courses from Faculty of Science
  • UROPS courses from Faculty of Science (subject to approval from the respective department offering the course)
  • Yale-NUS College

• Course Summary and Curriculum-related matters

  For a summary of a course’s contents and contact hours, please check NUSMods.

  If you require more specific information on a course e.g. syllabus, please consult the specific department website or proceed to contact the department directly.

• Changes to enrolled courses

  Successful applicants will be able to view the courses that they have been enrolled into when they view their application outcome in late May (for semester 1) and early November (for semester 2).

  Students will have another opportunity to make changes to their enrolled courses via the Course Registration exercise that occurs at the start of the semester. Further instructions will be sent to students' NUS email account.

  For more information on Course Registration at NUS, please visit the Course Registration website.

• Workload Requirement

  Based on the full-time NUS undergraduate student's average workload, a full-time Non-Graduating student should read not more than 23 units worth of courses (approximately 5 courses) per regular semester, regardless of whether courses are set to audit or examinable. A workload of 23 units would typically require a student to spend an average of 50 hours of study per week over 13 weeks of classes.
  
  Non-graduating international students are required to read a minimum workload of 12 units (approximately 3 courses) or pursue full-time research during regular semester. They are responsible for ensuring that the courses registered would fulfil the graduation requirements at the home university. This minimum workload is also a requirement to qualify for a Student's Pass issued by the Immigration Checkpoints Authority (ICA). 

All applicants are required to upload the documents as part of their online application to the Non-Graduating Programme. Refer to the following checklist for the documents required.

NG Document Checklist - Coursework

• Miscellaneous Student Fees

  All non-graduating students enrolled at NUS are liable to pay Miscellaneous Student Fees (MSFs) to the University as part of their stay.

  The MSF consists of two components: the Student Service Fee and the Health Service Fee.

  Why pay?

  Miscellaneous student fees help meet part of the costs incurred by the University in providing services to the student community.

  These services include healthcare for students; facilitating student cultural, social and recreational programmes; and maintaining the internal shuttle bus service, IT network and other campus-wide services.

• Other Costs (campus housing)

  All non-graduating students are eligible to apply for on-campus housing, although not guaranteed placement given the limited supply of accommodation at NUS. Primary consideration will be given to exchange students reading undergraduate courses in NUS. Please refer to the Office of Student Affairs for more information on eligibility and application.

  Please refer to the following for a list of updated fees.

  Fees for Non-Graduating Programme