FASS Office of Programmes and EU Centre in Singapore organize Creative Writing Competition 2013

FASS’ own Vina Jie-Min Prasad receiving her prize from His Excellency Dr Michael Pulch.

The FASS Office of Programmes, in conjunction with the European Union (EU) Centre in Singapore, organised the very first Creative Writing Competition in September this year. More than 40 entries were receive d from students across NUS and assessed by a panel of adjudicators that comprised of Associate Professor Reuben Wong (NUS-FASS’s very first Jean Monnet Professor and Director of Studies, College of Alice and Peter Tan), Dr Barnard Turner (Academic Convenor, NUS-FASS European Studies), and Dr Yeo Lay Hwee (Director, EU Centre in Singapore).

The three winning entries can be accessed below:

Winner                                : Mr. Lim Yejie’s (Business) entry
First runner-up                  : Miss Vina Jie-Min Prasad’s (History) entry
Second runner-up             : Mr. Lam Pak Nian’s (Law) entry

“This Competition was conceived as part of our ongoing efforts to raise awareness among our students towards the Euoprean Union and its progress, and we are delighted to have received numerous high-quality and creative submissions”, remarked Dr Stephen Lim, Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Studies who currently oversees the FASS Office of Programmes.

The student winners received their awards on 6 December 2013 from His Excellency Dr Michael Pulch, Ambassador and Head of Delegation, Delegation of the European Union to Singapore, who also discussed the EU’s successes and future challenges through an informal dialogue session.

Dr Stephen Lim (Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Studies – Office of Programmes), Assoc Prof Reuben Wong (Jean Monnet Professor; Director of Studies, CAPT), Dr Barnard Turner (Academic Convenor of NUS-FASS European Studies), Mr. Lam Pak Nian (student winner; Faculty of Law), Miss Vina Jie-Min Prasad (student winner; FASS – History), Mr. Lim Yejie (student winner; Faculty of Business), Dr Yeo Lay Hwee (Director of EU Centre in Singapore)

[Subjectivities] New Southeast Asian Studies Undergraduate Research Journal

Calling for Submissions!

Subjectivities is a new research journal run by undergraduate students from the NUS Southeast Asian Studies Department. The journal will be published on a biannual basis, with each issue tackling a specific theme concerning the region. We will be inviting students, faculty members as well as external individuals to contribute their works on Southeast Asia.

In our inaugural issue, themed UNDERSIDES, we are calling for submissions of essays and creative works (eg. artworks, poems) on the un-discovered, un-spoken and under-cover aspects of the region we call Southeast Asia.

Guideline for All Essay Submissions

Word Limit: 1000-1200 words
Citation Style: MLA with footnotes

Send in your entries to editor.subjectivities@gmail.com.

Deadline: 24 Jan 2014 (Week 2)

You may also contact us at editor.subjectivities@gmail.com for more information about the submissions.

SASP Celebrates! Deepavali 2013 with ISAS

In the foreground, MA and PhD students: Ms Shin Sojin, Ms Priscilla Ann Vincent, Mr Himanshu Jha and Mr Irfan Waheed Usmani

For the second year running, South Asian Studies Programme (SASP) celebrated Deepavali with Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS). On 6 November 2013, a total of 50 staff and students got together to enjoy good food and company. The event kicked off with A/P Vineeta Sinha, Head of SASP, welcoming everyone to the tea and thanking them for coming. She was pleased that we were able to hold this event again and hoped it would be a tradition between SASP and ISAS. Prof Tan Tai Yong, Director of ISAS, echoed her sentiments and mentioned that it was certainly a good and auspicious way of continuing SASP-ISAS collaboration.

History Student Wins EUC-FASS Creative Essay Competition

Congratulations to Vina Jie-Min Prasad (Year 4 history student) for winning in the EUC-FASS Creative Writing Essay Competition! Her submission came in the form of a letter to the EU written by a long tailed shrike! She will be receiving her prize from EU Ambassador to Singapore Dr Michael Pulch, who will also be holding an informal dialogue session at UTown Stephen Riady Centre, 4.30pm-6pm, 6 December. To read Vina’s essay (very creative indeed!) and register for the event, please visit: http://www.eucentre.sg/?p=6076

FASS Alumni Dinner – 24 October 2013

Over 50 alumni members and staff from the Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences gathered for the FASS Alumni Dinner on Thursday, 24 October 2013. Hosted by Vice Dean Associate Professor T.C. Chang at Sapore Italiano at NUS University Town, the biannual dinner allows alumni to keep in touch with the Faculty and also get to know one another.

Prior to dinner, the alumni were taken on a walking tour of UTown including its residential and teaching spaces. On being introduced to its myriad of amenities, alumnus Soo Hui Wah (Class of 1986, History and Political Science) Director of Education at the Singapore Discovery Centre, commented that she was “very impressed and proud of how far NUS had come in terms of its extensive offerings, such as its student-centric and all-rounded education programmes which are supported by up-to-date infrastructure and facilities”.

Over dinner, guests were entertained by a magician, FASS alumnus Alexander Yuen (Class of 2012, Psychology). Political Science and Law graduate Cynthia Elizabeth Tang (Class of 2003) said that it was great fun reconnecting with fellow alumni and her former professors. Likewise, Azmi Suhaimi, Managing Director/Head of Social Media at HotelQuickly (Class of 2010, Communications & New Media) enjoyed reminiscing his time as an undergraduate while discussing future plans with fellow alumni over dinner.

Vice Dean T.C. Chang and guests
Working his magic on a table of guests
All smiles as alumni guests listen attentively to Vice Dean T.C. Chang’s welcome speech

Nov’13 Event Highlights : U@live, Feature Flicks

Join us for an evening with Madam Halimah Yacob! – 27 November 7.30pm

Poverty in Singapore sounds like a disconnect- with our reputation as a financial hub, a shoppers’ haunt and a food haven.  Yet, the poor exist – The 70-year-old cleaner who can barely make ends meet, the primary school boy who wears the same torn uniform every day. These are silent sufferers, voiceless individuals.

Join Speaker of Parliament, Madam Halimah Yacob as she shares how each of us can be that `somebody’ and how the choices we make today can change the lives of individuals and generations to come.

Details of the event are as follows:

A unique feature of U@live is that not only will it be viewed by a live audience, it will be streamed live through a dedicated website (www.nus.edu.sg/ualive). The event will also incorporate a new interactive application that allows users to post questions and vote for their favourite questions in real time. The event will consist of a 10-minute talk by the speaker followed by a 20-minute interview conducted by Mr Viswa Sadasivan and a 30-minute Q&A session open to the live and online audience.

Date: 27 November 2013 (Wednesday)
Time: 7:30 pm – 8:30 pm
(Registration at 6:45pm, Seated at 7:15pm, Cocktail reception after event)
Location: Auditorium (2nd Storey), Shaw Foundation Alumni House, 11 Kent Ridge Drive, Singapore 119244

We sincerely hope that you will be able to join us for this event.

Click HERE to register

2nd NUS Economics Alumni Trishaw Fundraiser

The sky looked threatening and it did rain in the morning but by 5 pm, the skies cleared and at 7 pm, NUS Economics Alumni was off to its 2nd trishaw fund-raising event on Friday, 1 November 2013.  The Guest of Honour, Assoc Prof Zeng Jinli, represented the Head of Department in riding off in the first trishaw, accompanied by the president of NUS Economics Alumni, Mr. Daniel Lo.  Other Economics staff were there to support:  Dr Connie Chung, Dr Lee Soo Ann and Mr Chan Kok Hoe, who took the photos while running alongside the trishaws! Sponsors paid for the 30 trishaws rented for the event, and each trishaw raised $500 for the NUS Economics Alumni Bursary Fund, netting over $15,000 in all.  Seven undergraduates turned up, including some who were bursary recipients.  This Fund awards 3 bursaries worth $2000 each for three years of undergraduate study, based largely on need but also on merit.