Open Day draws lively crowd
Some 110 speakers, 94 informative talks, 20 programme booths and 23 student activities. This year’s Open Day promised more interactive avenues for some 21,500 visitors who turned up at NUS on 12 March.
For a more pleasant visitor experience, talks and activities at this year’s NUS Open Day were well spread-out compared to previous years, and utilised more venues at University Town (UTown) including the College of Alice and Peter Tan and Residential College 4. Guests could also take a shuttle to tour some of the residential colleges and get a taste of campus living. The new Yale-NUS College campus, which was inaugurated in October 2015, opened its doors to the public this year. It hosted informative sharing sessions on the value of a liberal arts education and tips on application procedures as well as conducted eye-opening sample classes across disciplines.
NUS President Professor Tan Chorh Chuan (holding New York sign) at the Global Entrepreneurship Programmes booth
Snaking queues were seen at the auditoriums and seminar rooms as students and parents alike waited patiently for the various academic talks conducted throughout the day. This year, additional talks were added to the line-up to cater to the overwhelming response seen in previous years. This move allowed visitors to better plan their day, and at a more leisurely pace too.
“I’m eager to attend the Science talk. I want to learn more about the course and NUS so that I can make an informed decision on my tertiary education,” said Sharlene Foo, a former Anderson Junior College student who will be matriculating in 2016. “It’s nice to learn a bit more about the University to support my daughter,” added Sharlene’s mother Mrs Ai Lin Foo, who joined her daughter at Open Day.
A wushu performance at Student Village delighted the crowd
Enthusiastic NUS students provided high energy entertainment with a slew of performances, ranging from martial arts displays to musical numbers. There were also appearances and dance-offs by the friendly student club mascots as well as the return of the popular flash mob, put together by performers from NUS Engineering RAG and Eusoff Hall.
“The talks were really popular and NUS’ top rankings definitely helped draw the crowd,” commented Open Day Ambassador and Year 2 NUS Economics student Janice Meng. It was her first experience helping out in Open Day. She added that it was really fun and interesting to interact with visitors and welcome them to NUS.
Mascots were out in full force to welcome visitors to NUS Open Day 2016
Over at Bukit Timah Campus, visitors to Law Open Day were invited to interact with faculty and students, and even experience the inner workings of a courtroom as they sat in on a moot, or mock trial, in action.
Kelvin Singh, a Year 2 student from Raffles Junior College who wanted to get a head start on exploring a career in Medicine or Dentistry, had a fruitful and enjoyable experience. “I liked the fact that we could learn more by talking to faculty and current students at the programme booths. I think the student life and nice campus make NUS a conducive place to study,” he said.
Visitors watched a moot in action at NUS Law Open Day
