Right now, it can be said that I'm at a bit of a milestone. I have finished studying all the academic modules I need to study as an undergraduate in my programme. I just need to complete my internship, then I can move on to the extra one year of studies for my Honours degree.
I think there's no time like the present to look back on my academic modules and see how I've done since entering the National University of Singapore (NUS).
Full listing of grades
I have no reason to hide my grades. They are nothing to be shy about, but they are nothing to be modest about either. They are good, definitely, but not mindblowing. And they certainly don't form any part of my SingPass password, so if you're a scammer looking for personal information to hack my account, look harder.
Here's a full inventory of the modules I have done, and my performance in each of them.
August 2017 to December 2017
January 2018 to May 2018
August 2018 to December 2018
January 2019 to May 2019
My cumulative average point (CAP) stands at 4.78 out of 5.
Comments on each semester
August 2017 to December 2017
My first semester in NUS was fun. The modules were not too difficult as they were all introductory-level, and I felt very learned because I was exposed to a lot of cool stuff that I had never seen before. For example, I fell in love with linguistics in EL1101E, and was so interested and motivated that I got an A+ despite most of the concepts being alien to me. The only part of linguistics that I had encountered before was phonetics as I had studied a little about it in poly. Also in poly, I had studied psychology as that was my diploma, so taking the basic psychology module PL1101E here helped me get another easy A+. I did use one of my Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory options (S/U) on GER1000 to remove the B I got, which would otherwise have tanked my CAP badly. I just couldn't understand the concepts in that module for the life of me.
January 2018 to May 2018
This was my lightest semester in terms of workload. My timetable was so neat that I only needed to go to school on two out of the five weekdays. Even though two of the modules were at level-2000, I got A+ in both. NM2103 was easy for me because my psychology background had equipped me with plenty of rigorous training and skills in quantitative research and statistical analysis. And I thoroughly enjoyed NM2220, so my motivation to do well in it was sky-high, which duly manifested in the result. Two of the modules were Completed Satisfactorily/Completed Unsatisfactorily (CS/CU), which meant that I didn't need to study so hard and just needed to do the assignments on time in order to pass and get the CS, which has no impact on my CAP. I did not use any of my S/Us. My target CAP is 4.00, the equivalent of a second-upper Honours score, so my policy is to keep all A-range grades as they are worth at least 4.50 points each, helping to pull my CAP above 4.00.
August 2018 to December 2018
I was a little nervous about this semester before it began, as I was doing two level-2000 modules and one level-3000 module and worried that it would be difficult. Looking back on it now, it wasn't that bad. My love of linguistics spurred me to take EL2102 and EL2151 and excel in them. I also aced NM2101, the compulsory theory module of my major. These three modules were of the intensive "swallow the textbook" sort. Providing balance were the project-based GEH1014 and NM3217. I ate a B+ for NM3217 but I'm not too worried because a B+ is still worth 4.00 points so it doesn't drag my CAP below my target. Anyway, level-3000 modules are ineligible for S/U, so I couldn't get rid of the B+ even if I wanted to.
January 2019 to May 2019
Some students use their S/Us like machine gun bullets, spraying them around in their very first semester and running out of "ammunition" almost immediately. Starting with five, I used only one, and lost another when I ended my second semester because we are only allowed to bring three with us beyond our first calendar year. I'm glad I adopted this conservative approach early on, because this semester was hellish and my results took a hit. I almost bit off more than I could chew, taking six 4MC modules, two each at levels 1000, 2000, and 3000. The reason I did this was so that I could finish up all my academic graduation requirements for the base three-year degree programme, allowing me to focus fully on my upcoming internship. The alternative would have been to take just five modules and make up the shortfall by doing an online module during the internship period. I didn't want to do this because it would have been too tiring for me. When I come home after work, and on weekends, I want to rest, not study. But my brave decision came at a price: my diluted attention produced B+ in JS1101E and NM2203, as well as NM3219. Although B+ doesn't threaten to drag my CAP below my target as explained previously, it's still a bummer in a semester where three of them appear together and counteract the euphoria of me getting a highly unexpected A+ in NM2104 despite me going through that entire module in a haze of confusion. My CAP nosedived to 4.69 from where it stood at a healthy 4.81 the previous semester. Don't misunderstand: 4.69 is still a fantastic score, within first-class Honours territory and way above my target of 4.00. But I knew that it could be higher if I got rid of the B+ grades. Out came the S/Us and the B+ grades for JS1101E and NM2203 disappeared. My CAP shot back up to 4.78, where it now stands, safely beyond the first-class Honours threshold of 4.50.
What's next?
When I return from my internship stint, I will have a dilemma to deal with. Barring any major disaster, namely failing my internship, I should start my Honours year with my CAP in first-class territory. I will have to decide whether or not to do a thesis.
On one hand, it will be a huge pity if I don't do the thesis because if I finish with a CAP above 4.50 without the thesis, I will only get a second-upper-class Honours even though my CAP is in the first-class range. To have any shot at getting a first-class Honours, I have to do a thesis.
On the other hand, three things are holding me back from doing the thesis:
- I don't know what to write about. It has to be a research study and related to communications or new media, and I will need to find a professor in the department to be my supervisor so the topic I write about will have to match one of their research interests. But I frankly have no inkling of what I want to research on! Research has always been something I do because I have to for the sake of academics. It's not something I'm really passionate about.
- There are so many interesting level-4000 modules being offered by my department that I want to take. The modules teach relevant and practical industry knowledge and skills such as crisis communications, campaign management, financial communications, media law and ethics, risk management, social change communication, and social media. Doing the thesis will mean taking three fewer of these modules. I'm not sure if I'm willing to sacrifice learning a variety of interesting things for doing a lengthy piece of research on a single topic. Honestly, it sounds boring.
- I'm not confident in doing well for the thesis. Besides, it is worth a whopping 15MC, so its impact on my CAP will be huge. What happens if I get a bad grade for it, and as a result my CAP slips below 4.50? The whole purpose of doing the thesis is to be able to get first-class Honours, but I won't get it anyway if my CAP is less than 4.50, thesis or no.
I hate having to make earth-shattering decisions like this! Sometimes I can't even decide what I want from McDonald's. I'll just sit in front of the counter staring blankly at the menu board, sweating profusely in fear, the eyes of the entire world boring into my skull as it impatiently awaits my order.
But whatever decision I eventually make, it certainly won't be as daft as the one my mother made when she was a student at NUS in the 1980s. Offered the chance to do Honours in both of her majors, English and Sociology, she turned them both down because she had already secured a highly sought-after job at a large local bank. Wait, that's not the stupid part. The stupid part is this. She had letters from NUS stating that she was offered the chance to do Honours. These letters were documentary evidence of her academic prowess. But after deciding that she wasn't going to do the Honours, she casually threw away the letters! In effect, she trashed the only material proof she had that she was in fact qualified to be an Honours student and that her lack of an Honours degree was a conscious choice. To this day, she rues her foolishness.
And after that?
It strikes me that the end of my life as a student draws near. I'm terrified, because being a student is the only thing I've ever known and it's also something I've proven to be good at. I don't know if I'll be able to have similar success in the big, bad world out there.
Sometimes I toy with the idea of engaging in delaying tactics by remaining a student a little bit longer. I have my eye on a one-year Master's in English Language offered by my current faculty. It's coursework-based so there's no research thesis, which is a huge plus for me. And the fact that it's offered by my current faculty means that I won't have to adjust to a new physical and cultural environment. That's always comforting.
The drawbacks? Although it's quite affordable in the context of postgraduate degrees, at about $10,000 in total, it will still put a big hole in my bank account. My parents are financing my Bachelor studies because it's considered a necessity to secure a better future for me and they can afford to support me fully, but this delaying tactic of mine is a "nice to have" or luxury item and I cannot in good faith have them pay for it. Additionally, this particular Master's adds almost zero value to my resume. I stand to gain a year's worth of fun and intrigue from the programme, but nothing more.
And even if I do the Master's, it will just put off the inevitable. I'll still eventually have to survive outside of school. I can't be a student forever. I need money.
Oh, to be young again...
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