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  Undergraduate Studies  
   
     
 

Course Registration

(1) Registration Period

(a) Student Automated Registration System

Except where the courses are allocated by the Office of Academic Services, all students must register their courses through the Student Automated Registration System (STARS) according to the schedule announced by the Office of Academic Services.

Students will not be allowed to take the examinations for courses for which they are not registered.

Students must pay outstanding tuition and hostel rental fees before they register for courses.

Students may add or drop any course within the add/drop period as announced by the Office of Academic Services.

A course that is dropped during the add/drop period will not appear in the official transcript. A student who is still registered for a course after the add/ drop period but did not subsequently sit for the examination will be deemed to have read and failed the course. An ‘F’ will appear on his official transcript.

In order to complete the degree requirements within the normal specified period of candidature, full-time students are expected to carry an academic load of 16 to 21 academic unit (AU) per semester (approximately four to six courses).

Subject to approval by the Chair concerned, students may be allowed to take up to 8 AU (approximately two courses) more or less than the normal semester academic load to enable them to pursue their studies at a pace commensurate with their needs and/or capabilities.

(e) Restricted Repeat

Final-year students, who have failed any core course not offered in the semester following the failure, may be permitted to take the failed course(s) as restricted repeat(s). This arrangement is available only for final-year core courses which students cannot replace with any other courses offered in the following semester. Additionally, only final-year students deemed to have sufficient academic units to meet graduation requirements will be eligible for restricted repeat(s).

 

(2) The Academic Unit System

(a) Academic Calendar

 The academic year is divided into two semesters of 17 weeks each. Examinations are held at the end of each semester. There are two Special Terms during the Semester 2 vacation.

(b) Academic Units

Under the Academic Unit System, each course is assigned a certain number of academic units (AU). The academic unit is a measure of the student’s work-load associated with both class attendance and preparation. For a typical one-semester course, the number of academic units is calculated as follows:

  • one hour of lecture/tutorial per week: 1 AU
  • three hours laboratory/fieldwork per week: 1 AU

(c) Curricular Requirements

Courses of Study

The courses of study in every undergraduate programme are classified under three categories:

  • Core Courses are compulsory courses required to satisfy programme requirements.
  • Prescribed Electives are courses for specialisation in a particular degree programme.

These may also be broadening courses in:

- arts, humanities and social sciences

- business and management

- science, technology and society

  • Unrestricted Electives are courses chosen by students to broaden their learning experience.

Unrestricted electives may be taken from the list of courses offered by the School or, with the approval of the Chair concerned, from courses offered by other Schools in the University. Although unrestricted electives may be taken in any year of study, students are advised to plan carefully when to take the unrestricted electives in order not to delay their graduation.

For the purpose of fulfilling the requirements of the programme and for classification of the degree, once a course is confirmed by the student as being registered as a prescribed elective, it cannot be reclassified as an unrestricted elective, and vice versa.

 

Prerequisites

Some courses may only be offered to students who have obtained at least the specified grade in related courses offered at a lower level. These lower-level courses are called the “prerequisites” for the higher-level courses.

Period of Candidature (for students admitting in AY2009-10 onwards)

Single Degree Programmes (Full Time)

Programmes

Period of candidature

Normal

Min.

Max.

Accountancy, Business

3 years

3 years

5 years

Aerospace Engineering, Art, Design and Media, Arts(Education), Bioengineering, Biological Sciences, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Chemistry and Biological Chemistry, Chinese, Civil Engineering, Communication Studies, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Economics, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Information Engineering and Media, English, Environmental Engineering, Linguistics and Multilingual Studies, Maritime Studies, Materials Engineering, Mathematics and Economics, Mathematical Sciences, Mechanical Engineering, Physics and Applied Physics, Psychology, Science(Education), Sociology, Sport Science and Management

4 years

3½ years

6 years

For students admitted directly to the second year of a 4-year programme, the minimum, normal and maximum periods shall be 2½ years, 3 years and 5 years respectively.

 

Single Degree Programmes (Part Time)

Programmes

Period of candidature

Normal

Min.

Max.

Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Mechanical Engineering,

5 years

4 years

8 years

For the period of candidature of part time programmes offered by NIE, please refer to http://www.nie.edu.sg (Click on Programmes / Foundation Programmes / Degree Programmes / Programme Information & Handbook)

 

Double Degree Programmes (Full Time)

Programmes

Period of candidature

Normal

Min.

Max.

Accountancy, Business

4 years

3½ years

5 years

Business and Computing

4 years

4 years

6 years

Engineering and Economics

5 years

4½ years

7 years

* Biomedical Sciences and Chinese Medicine

5 years

5 years

7 years

* Inclusive of 2 years at Beijing University of Chinese Medicine.

 

Classification of Students

 Students are classified as Year 1 to Year 5 students according to the number of academic units earned. While reclassification is normally done at the end of an academic year, where appropriate, this may be done at the end of the first semester. Students placed on Academic Warning and Academic Probation will not be reclassified until they have been restored to good academic standing.

 

Transfer of Academic Units

With the prior approval of the Chair concerned, students are allowed to take some courses from another university and transfer the academic units earned from that university towards fulfilling the degree requirements of NTU. Students who have taken some courses from another university prior to their admission to NTU may apply for a transfer of academic units earned.

Grades obtained for credits earned in other institutions are not counted in the classification of the degree awarded.

To be eligible for the award of a Bachelor’s degree from NTU, a student must fulfill the following conditions:

3-year programmes

Complete not less than two academic years of study at the University and obtain from the University not less than 66 AU of graded courses.

4-year programmes

Complete not less than three academic years of study at the University and obtain from the University not less than 77 AUs of graded courses.

For a student admitted directly to the second year of a 4-year programme, complete not less than 2½ academic years of study at the University and obtain from the University not less than 66 AU of graded courses.

  • Pass all or be exempted from some of the examinations prescribed for the degree.
  • Satisfy all other requirements prescribed for the degree.

Students must submit their application for transfer of credits within the first semester of their enrolment in NTU.