The pioneer cohort of UTRP, which I was part of, has graduated as of the end of the last academic year (Aug 2012 - May 2013). CAPT's pioneer batch will graduate at the end of the next academic year.
Here is a general review of my two-year experience in Tembusu College:
Modules
Writing modules I & II
The objective of these modules is to introduce academic writing skills to students. I think there is a tendency for some students to forget that, and expect to learn more 'content'. However, because the focus is on essay writing, lecturers only introduce as much content as is needed to write a paper.
The modules I took were well-balanced, and not too heavy (though I know many who thought otherwise). There were required readings only for the first six weeks, after which the rest of the semester was dedicated towards developing a research paper. The paper writing process was broken down into steps which I found helpful for developing good writing habits.
For my level II writing module, my lecturer took a hands-free approach and let the class give mutual feedback for our assignments. This was around the time I learnt that for such modules, you only benefit as much as you give. Overall I was quite happy with both writing modules I took.
Junior Seminar
Junior Seminars (JS) are taught by our Fellows (writing modules are taught by CELC). So these modules are where you'll see variations between the colleges. Although Tembusu College doesn't have a declared theme, our Fellows mostly come from a research group interested in STS studies – Science, Technology and Society. Hence, our modules are taught in that framework, which considers society's interactions with science and technology.
This module is also ungraded... which has different implications to different people. The ideal is that by relieving us of the pressure of grades, we may pursue the Junior Seminars with more intellectual curiosity. Obviously many students don't take it as such. It also takes many students by surprise just how much work is given in a JS? I suppose this stems from an expectation that ungraded modules should give less work. The reality is that the JS is quite demanding, because it goes through content more thoroughly than in a writing module. And students still have to write essays for both.
Personally, I found it stressful juggling the demands of the JS with my graded modules. Some people choose not to commit so much effort to their JSs, others found the workload light. It varied.
I think this is where the module potentially suffers most, because it's less able to compete with graded modules for students' attention/ effort. Perhaps Junior Seminars could be restructured to lighten the workload especially in the latter half of the semester when the graded projects start? The same problem recurs with the Senior Seminars, actually, and I'm not sure if there's a straight-froward solution to this problem.
Senior Seminar I & II
The Senior Seminars (SS) are, conceptually, the most interesting of UTRP's modules. The entire cohort takes one topical module that can be approach from various disciplines/ perspectives. Lecturers of different disciplines each teach a seminar class or two. The concept has a lot of potential to provide students a rich and diversified learning experience. It is only a shame that this arrangement was not fully exploited.
Firstly, both SS were over-structured. There was too much prescribed content and structure which seemed to have restricted individual lecturers from exploring the topic in their field of expertise. Likewise, the assigned projects (particularly for Climate Change) were a bit lame. The model-building for Climate Change looked like what could have also been done in a Primary school Science fair. Not only that, I thought the assignment restricted students the form in which students could articulate their responses to the topic.
As mentioned, because the SS are ungraded, it also has problems competing for students' attenion/ effort. This problem was most evident with the plenary attendance. Plenaries are held biweekly, where the module cohort gathers for a forum-like session. Although I think the intention was to engage students in discussion, the plenaries turned out to be like lectures with a perfunctory Q&A section at the end. Some of these plenaries were actually quite interesting, if they were attended at all. Climate Change was the most problematic, mostly because quite a few of the lectures were very dense/ dry, and the Fellows tried to enforce attendance taking (which backfired). Thankfully, there were improvements on both aspects with Biomedicine in Singapore, where they scraped attendance taking and had at least one memorable panel discussion. The upcoming run of Climate Change seems to have no plenary at all, so all the contact time will be in lecturers' respective seminars. In that respect, the SS seem to be heading in a good direction.
Residential facility
Rooms
All the rooms are tiny! But it's sufficient, I suppose. You can get a room in a suite and/or with air-conditioning. Basically a suite mimics an apartment: six rooms, living room and toilet. Living in a suite can be really fun if you've got good suite mates... they also tend to be communal spaces for other residents on the same level. Corridor rooms (not in a suite) allow more control over privacy though.
Rooms are furnished with a table, swivel chair, cabinet, mobile pedestal, book shelf, bed and bed frame. There's space for more storage (shelves, shoe racks and such); hopefully they'll provide more in future.
Toilet
Toilets are decent. Cleaned regularly. Unfortunately, no en suite.
General facilities
Within each college there's lounges, laundry, pantries, storage (for the holidays). There's a lounge on every level, and its furnishings (cushions, tables, and Foosball tables) vary with the houses. Every few floors (specifically, each House) has a television.
The pantry sucks. There's a common fridge, microwave oven, induction cooker, hot/ cold water dispenser and sink. Some cabinets too, which no one really uses. I'm not sure what the cabinets are for though, since it is so hard to cook in these pantries. It's just such a shame that the college has made cooking so inconvenient though. Pantries can be a great communal space were residents can interact over food. Sometimes, cooking is part of the learning experience too. Yeshey, a Bhutanese student, cooked traditional Bhutanese dishes for a sharing session about her culture. There's also an Interest Group for making food, and I know House gatherings and level parties which could use a better equipped kitchen.
Theme rooms
Tembusu has five theme rooms: a library, a music room, a games room, a creative studio, and a discussion room. They are pretty nicely done up, though sometimes there are maintenance problems when students don't look after the rooms, or when they leave non-residents to use it. Hopefully future students will continue to look after them.
Food
There's no lack of food when living in a college. There's a compulsory meal plan, to encourage communal eating. Six breakfasts and dinners a week. The food is decent, though quickly tired of. Every day there are about five options: noodles (dinner only), Asian, Western, Indian (dinner only) and Malay style food. Vegetarian option available, though not very good. At breakfasts there's free-flow bread (white and wholemeal), spreads (kaya, peanut butter, jam, margarine). Free-flow cornflakes, oatmeal, yougurt once a week each. Coffee, tea, hot chocolate, soya milk (the last two are rotated). Dinner, it's free-flow soup, salad and cordial. Most meals are accompanied by a serving of fruit, some breakfasts there's juice.
There are many food place in uTown too. Most popular are the Italian (Sapore's) and Korean (Hwangs) restaurants. Two food courts, and two fast food chains (Subway and Fish&co. Express). There's also a Hong Kong restaurant (don't go), Cedele, Starbucks, Sakae Sushi (don't go), Taiwanese snacks, and a vegan place (Central Park). Oh, and a Fairprice express, and Cheers.
You won't starve in uTown... though you might go broke quite quickly.
Computer commons
There are three commons in the Education Resource Centre. One Macs, one PC and another one for beta testing computer (I think). Printing and photocopying available. It's a nice place to study too, until everyone from NUS comes over during the exam periods.
Sports
Each college has its own multipurpose hall (MPH), open to its own students for booking. In Tembusu, there's equipment for badminton, dance, cycling, floorball (and perhaps I missed a few). The Stephen Riady Centre has dance studios, sports courts, a gym and a pool (though that is mostly used for sunbathing).
Non-academic programsSports
Each college has its own multipurpose hall (MPH), open to its own students for booking. In Tembusu, there's equipment for badminton, dance, cycling, floorball (and perhaps I missed a few). The Stephen Riady Centre has dance studios, sports courts, a gym and a pool (though that is mostly used for sunbathing).
Fellow-run
There's the intellectual programs, often called Teas, which are geared towards exposure to different fields, and to discussion. These are generally very interesting; worth the visit.
Student-run
The most generic of student-run programs are the Interest Groups. There are also the big, annual events like Orientation (read here and here) and Open House (recently renamed Open Day).
There's a good variety of activities in Tembusu, so you definitely won't be bored. The good thing about Tembusu is there are opportunities for initiatives. So long you are willing to pursue an interest, doors will open. Of course there are limitations, but so far the colleges are a fairly safe place to take risks in the spirit of learning anyway.
Everyday Student Life
Cost
Expensive. Nearly everything about staying in uTown isn't cheap: the rooming rates, the meal plan, the foodcourts and restaurants... not saying the prices aren't justified (single rooms, five options at dining hall and generally better quality food), but that doesn't make living in uTown very affordable for everyone. I know there are bursaries and scholarships meant to help those who need a money boost too, so keep a look out for those.
Location
The good thing about uTown is that it is self-contained. The flip side is that traveling anywhere from uTown is rather inconvenient. The two are somewhat related: that uTown is so self-contained makes leaving the place seem unnecessary, hence inconvenient. And even if its location may not be 'central', its not very hard to get around. There are shuttle buses between uTown and the rest of NUS. They've recently revised the bus routes so that one of the services goes to Kent Ridge MRT station. Also, uTown is short bus ride away from Clementi and Bouna Vista stations, and about a 15 - 20 minute walk to the Dover one.
Interaction
One cool thing about the college is that you get to meet people from everywhere – different faculties, different nationalities, different interests. There are people at different stages their studies, freshmen, seniors, graduates, fellows. So far Tembusu has maintained diversity. The best part is that Tembusu has a fairly open culture, in that it's easy to meet new people and make friends here. The structures and culture promote this too: college events, the meal plan, suppers, House events.
The catch is that it takes initiative. On one hand there's the abundance of activities, and on the other the choice not to participate. That means you can easily moderate the frequency of your interactions in Tembusu (or for any other college). The pressures to participate don't seem as strong as that of the halls, nor as weak as the residences.
***Updated: 5 August 2013
Events
Okay I forgot all about this until recently. Ever since last academic year, the field at uTown (town green) has been the choice spot to host events and concerts. The nice way of saying this is you'll get to enjoy the sounds of the events from your room. Sometimes there are pretty good bands playing. But most times it's just a lot of loud music. And these come with sound checks and practices too... At the moment these events aren't particularly frequent, and don't end too late either. Let's hope they stay that way.
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