Job Opportunities at MCI

The Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) has job vacancies available for FASS graduates and students graduating in 2014. More details on these vacancies are available at these links:

1)      Manager (Research) –  (fresh grads are welcome to apply)

2)      Assistant Director (Research) 

Deadline to apply: 15 June 2014. If you have any queries, you can also contact Mr Ivan Yeo at ivan_yeo@mci.gov.sg.

Student Film Competition

Dear NUS Students,

The Singapore Research Nexus (SRN) is pleased to announce the third Singapore on Screen FASS Student Film Competition. Submissions are now open with a deadline of December 12th, 2014. You can learn more about the top entries for the first Singapore on Screen competition here, and for Singapore on Screen II here.

Entrants need not be from FASS to participate; the competition is open to any NUS student, undergraduate or graduate, who is taking a FASS module during the 2014 calendar year. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. Additional information is below.

Singapore on Screen, the FASS Student Short Film Competition, is an initiative organised by SRN. Students who are taking a FASS module which has an original short film component are encouraged to submit their entries. Additionally, students majoring in a FASS subject may submit short films they have produced on their own.

The winning films in each category – fiction and non-fiction – will receive a prize of $500!

The requirements for the entries and prize-giving are as follows:

· The film must be made either as part of the course requirements of a FASS module undertaken during January-December 2014, or by a student/students majoring in a FASS subject.

· The film must be an original short film (e.g. documentary, visual ethnography video, or creative piece). Please indicate on your submission whether the film is fiction or non-fiction.

· The film must be set in or about Singapore.

· The film may be by an individual or a group of students.

· The film must not exceed 15 minutes in length.

· Films not in English require English subtitles.

· The film should be a self-explanatory, standalone piece which demonstrates a particular research methodology, creative process, or filmic mode of research for portraying Singapore.

· Students are responsible for obtaining written consent from any persons/entities featured in their film.

· The film must be submitted to the SRN office (AS7, Level 6, Research Division, #06-20) on a CD or DVD in .mp4 or .wma format. The deadline is 12 December 2014. Please indicate the film-maker(s)’ name(s), student ID, contact details, and if applicable, module number and professor.

· A shortlist featuring the best films will be shown in competition in Spring 2015 at the Third Singapore on Screen Film Festival where the judging panel will announce the winning films in the categories of fiction and non-fiction.

Happy filming!

The SRN Team

MPA Global Internship Award 2014

The Maritime Port Authority (MPA) held its first award ceremony for 23 recipients of the Global Internship Award (GIA) on 12 May 2014 at PSA Building.

First introduced in 2013, the MPA GIA partners maritime companies to promote manpower development in the maritime industry. Under this programme, high-achieving undergraduates from local universities are awarded a fully-sponsored, maritime-focused 10-week internship with international maritime companies with the opportunity to spend up to four weeks overseas.

The 10-week internship programme will take the students to 11 different countries covering the Asia-Pacific, Europe and Middle East regions and the United States of America.

A total of 4 NUS undergraduates received the MPA GIA this year, 3 of whom are Economics majors from FASS. Year 4 student Lee Xiang Zachary (Double Degree Programme in Business Administration/Economics) mentioned that he was honoured to be chosen as an intern, and eager to embark on this exciting new journey. He has been assigned an internship with Braemar Seascope Pte Ltd, and also spend 2 weeks at its Melbourne office.

Year 3 Economics major Tobias Leong Zhun Mun (University of North Carolina-NUS Joint Degree Programme) added that he was very grateful to be part of this programme and looked forward to entering the dynamic world of shipping with an internship at Eastport Shipping Pte Ltd. He will be spending a few weeks at the company’s Shanghai office.

NUS recipients of the MPA Global Internship Award (from Left): Tobias Leong, Zachary Lee, and Alex Huang (BBA Accounting).
NUS recipients of the MPA Global Internship Award (from Left): Tobias Leong, Zachary Lee, and Alex Huang (BBA Accounting).

Department of Psychology organizes Psychology Teaching Assistant Symposium (PTAS) 2014

Publicity Poster_PTAS 2014_LimSWHThe NUS Department of Psychology organized the inaugural NUS Psychology Teaching Assistant Symposium (PTAS) 2014 on 25 February 2014, with the aim of sharing best practices and ideas to empower both Full-time and Graduate Student Teaching Assistants (TAs) on how best to teach psychology students.

Advised by A/P Melvin Yap (Psychology Graduate Studies Director), Dr. Stephen Lim (Symposium Chair) – along with his Team that comprised of two Full-time Teaching Assistants Mr. Lee Li Neng (Symposium Co-chair) and Ms. Sarah Wong (Symposium Secretariat) – devised a half-a-day programme that developed TAs’ pedagogical and presentation skills, and discussed such topics as how TAs might effectively relate with their module lecturers and students as well as balance coursework with research and teaching.

The PTAS 2014 received very positive feedback from attendees, who thought that it was “personally relevant” and “highly engaging”. They liked the fact that the Symposium promoted “exchanges of problems [sic] and ideas between panel members and attendees, created “[a] chance to connect with other TAs”, “didn’t merely impart teaching skills but also reminded [them] to reflect and leverage [on their] strengths”, contained “inspiring testimonials from the facilitators”, and provided “a refreshing reminder [that they too] can potentially impact and inspire students”. A participant “[felt] recharged to continue to teach passionately”. Many yearned for full-day Symposiums in future runs.

If Departments would like to discuss ideas on running teaching assistant/instructor workshops, please feel free to contact Dr. Stephen Lim (psylimwh@nus.edu.sg) directly.

Reviving kampung spirit in HDB flats

Sunday, 25 May 2014

The Sunday Times

It was reported that Tampines Central will become a test-bed for two new ideas to encourage public flat residents to connect, bond and revive the “kampung” spirit. From June 2014 to May 2015, public walkways that run through housing estates will be turned into “social linkways” and a one-stop hub for community activities which can help develop residents’ ideas for more initiatives will also be set up. The proposals came after a year-long study which the Housing Development Board (HDB) conducted with the NUS Centre of Sustainable Asian Cities and the Department of Sociology at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. If successful, they will be incorporated into HDB’s plans for new areas such as Bidadari and Tampines North.

To find out more about the article, click here.

Discussions on Indian poll and after

Friday, 23 May 2014

Tabla!

This was a report on panel discussions in Singapore that will explore various topics relating to the issues that affect the future of India in the aftermath of the elections. It was mentioned that the Asia Research Institute (ARI) at NUS and the Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry is co-organising a roundtable on 26 May 2014, titled “The Indian Elections of 2014: Ramifications for India and Beyond”. The discussion will feature Ambassador K Kesavapany, Singapore’s Non-Resident Ambassador to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, who is also a Distinguished Affiliated Fellow at ARI; Dr Ronojoy Sen, Senior Research Fellow at ARI and the Institute of South Asian Studies at NUS; Associate Professor Rahul Mukherji from the South Asian Studies Programme at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences; and Mr Ashish Rajadhyaksha, Visiting Senior Research Fellow at ARI.

Appreciation dinner for lecturers from NUS Department of Chinese Studies

Wednesday, 21 May 2014

Lianhe Zaobao

This was a report on the annual appreciation dinner for lecturers from the Department of Chinese Studies at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, which was held on 10 April. The event was an opportunity for graduating students to express gratitude to their lecturers and also for the entire department to get together.

FASS Alumni Return For Career Talks

The FASS Alumni-Student Speed Mentoring and Networking Evening at work.
The FASS Alumni-Student Speed Mentoring and Networking Evening at work.

Together with the NUS Career Centre, the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS) held its second FASS Career Day on 13 March 2014. Specially organised to guide FASS students in charting their career paths upon commencement, FASS Career Day comprised three different events – two industry talks and a Speed Mentoring and Networking session, all of which featured alumni. In total, over 20 FASS alumni from various job sectors returned to share their work experiences with over 160 students.

FASS Career Day kick-started with an industry talk on Human Resources where representatives from CitiBank and McDonald’s Restaurants were on hand to advice students on current employment trends. This was followed by “FASS Career Insights @ Marketing Analysis and Research” where representatives from Millward Brown and Bloomberg shared their perspectives on the market research/analysis industry. Millward Brown Account Manager Ms Cassandra Tan (Psychology ‘10), stated that it was a privilege to return to her alma mater and found the talk refreshing, inspiring and rewarding for both students and herself.

The day was capped by the highly interactive “FASS Alumni-Student Speed Mentoring and Networking Evening” where 17 FASS alumni from such sectors as banking, healthcare, education and consulting shared with students their working experiences over dinner and drinks. Mr Gabriel Yeo (Sociology 2004; Senior Manager and Head of Strategic Plans at MINDEF) reflected that the event was a good opportunity for him to connect with FASS students who were intending to join the public service. Student feedback on the session was also very positive, with many of them finding the alumni mentors “extremely passionate and informative”, in the words of one undergraduate.