Category A

Definition of Category A applicants

Applicants (regardless of nationality) presenting the Singapore-Cambridge GCE 'A' Level results.

New admission requirements for new 'A' Level curriculum (i.e. H1/H2/H3 subjects)

With effect from 2006, students entering Junior Colleges (JCs) and the Centralised Institute (CI) will be offered a new ‘A’ level curriculum, which aims to provide:

• More breadth and options
• Greater focus on Thinking and Communication Skills
• Holistic Education

Applicants (regardless of nationality) appearing for the new ‘A’ Level curriculum (i.e. H1/H2/H3 subjects) examination in November 2007 must meet the following minimum requirements to apply for admission to NUS in 2008:

1. Pass in at least two subjects at H2 Level and offer either General Paper (GP) or Knowledge & Inquiry (KI) in the same sitting.
   
   
2. Meet the Mother Tongue (MT) requirement for admission by having one of the following:
   
   
   
   • a minimum of D7 for the higher MT paper taken at the 'O' Level examination.
     
     
   • a minimum of ‘S’ grade for the H1 MTL paper or General Studies in Chinese.
     
   • a minimum of 'S' grade for the H2 MTLL paper taken at the 'A' Level examination.
     
     
   • a pass in the MT 'B' Syllabus paper at the 'A' Level examination.
   
   

   If a candidate is exempted from MT as approved by MOE, the MOE-approved subject-in-lieu will be considered as the MT subject.

   Candidates who are unable to fulfil the MT requirement for admission but satisfy all other admission requirements will be admitted on a provisional basis. During their course of study, they will be required to attend the MT course conducted by the University or attain the minimum requirement as listed above by retaking the MT paper at the ‘A’ Level examination before they are allowed to graduate.

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For computation of the University Score, the best four content subjects (ie. 3 H2 and 1 H1 content subjects, with at least 1 content subject to be from a contrasting discipline) either GP or KI grade taken in the same sitting, as well as H1 Project Work, will be considered. The maximum points for H2 and H1 subjects are 20 and 10 respectively. 

The best MT subject grade (e.g. 'H1' MT or 'O' Level higher MT) will be considered only if the candidate provides the result for consideration. The University will include it in the scoring only if it raises the University Score of the candidate.

Please note that though it is not mandatory to include the MT results in the computation of the University Score, you are required to meet the minimum requirements for MT as stipulated above.

Please note that H3 papers taken at the 'A' Level examination are not considered in the computation of the University Score. 

If your new ‘A’ Level subject combination is beyond the norm, selection for admission will be as follows*:

*    Please note that the above table is extracted from the MOE website at: http://www.moe.gov.sg/cpdd/alevel2006/university/beyond.htm and is accurate as at September 2007.

For more information on the new ‘A’ Level curriculum, please refer to the following:

• Main MOE website on the New ‘A’ Level curriculum 2006: http://www.moe.edu.sg/education/pre-u/curriculum/
• New course & subject prerequisites to NUS courses: click here
• New ‘A’ Level curriculum grading system: http://www3.moe.edu.sg/cpdd/alevel2006/experience/exams.htm#grading
• FAQs: http://www3.moe.edu.sg/cpdd/alevel2006/faqs.htm

As of now, the existing practice of having additional admission requirements for some faculties or schools, such as interviews, portfolios, and aptitude tests, remains unchanged. 

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Mother Tongue Bonus Points
Students who have done well in their higher MT subject (Chinese, Malay or Tamil) or MT subject (Chinese, Malay or Tamil) at the 'A' Level examination are eligible for MT bonus points on condition they pass the required modules in their respective MT subjects:

1. Chinese Language or Chinese Studies.
2. Malay Studies.
3. South Asian Studies.

1. Two bonus points for applicants who attained at least an E grade H2 MTLL;
2. One bonus point for applicants who attained at least an A grade in H1 MTL;
3. One bonus point for applicants who attained at least a B grade in H1 General Studies in Chinese; and
4. Students offering any combinations of MT-related subjects are allowed to accumulate the MT bonus points allocated for each subject, including a combination of H1 MTL and H2 MTLL.
5. The cap on bonus points will be three.
6. For more information, you can visit MOE’s website at: http://www.moe.gov.sg/cpdd/alevel2006/faqs.htm#Q29.

The MT bonus points will be added to the Singapore-Cambridge GCE 'A' Level component for computation. The use of bonus points to gain admission to NUS is similar to the award of bonus points for admission to the Junior College Chinese Language Elective Programme.

Applicants who used the MT bonus points for admission to the Arts and Social Science course will have to sign an undertaking at the point of acceptance.

For more information on the use of bonus points to gain admission to MT-related courses, you can refer to MOE website.  

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Consideration of SAT I
SAT I scores are no longer considered in the computation of the University Admission Score.

However, SAT I scores can be used to meet the minimum subject requirement for Law-related courses, ie.

if an applicant did not obtain the minimum B3 grade (for old syllabus) / B (for new syllabus) for General Paper (GP) or a good pass in Knowledge & Inquiry (KI) (for new syllabus) required for Law-related courses, he may submit his GP (at least a C6 / E grade) together with a minimum score of 700 for SAT I Verbal or Critical Reading, to satisfy the subject requirement.

Only SAT I Verbal or Critical Reading scores obtained in the 5 years leading up to 1 April of the year of application will be considered. For applications closing on 1 April 2008, the validity period for SAT I Verbal or Critical Reading score is from 1 April 2003 to 1 April 2008 (both dates inclusive). Therefore the last acceptable test date for SAT I score is 26 January 2008 (April/May 2008 SAT I scores will not be considered).

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Discretionary Admission
Up to 10% of vacancies will be set aside for consideration of exceptional candidates for admission to NUS. For such candidates, other factors besides grades will be taken into consideration. The following are some samples of exceptional achievements that the University may take into consideration :

1. Medal winner at the International Olympiads (Biology, Chemistry, Informatics, Mathematics and Physics)
2. Winner in the National Science & Talent Search
3. Represented Singapore in Arts and/or Sports
4. Active participation in community service and volunteer programmes.
5. Work experience relevant to the course applied for (supporting document/s is/are required)
6. Key leadership positions in community organisations, sports and athletic clubs, etc (outside school)

In addition, applicants can provide information on awards/honours that they have won. If candidates wish to be considered under this scheme, they should provide the details in the 'Discretionary Admissions' section in the online application form. They should follow up by sending supporting documents to NUS.

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Online Application for Admission
Admission exercise for AY2008-2009 will open three working days after the release of 2007 Singapore-Cambridge GCE ‘A’ Level results in March 2008.

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Application Guide
Please click here for more information.  The revised guide for each academic year will only be ready around mid/end February of each year.

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Candidates taking the existing/current ‘A’ Level Curriculum (i.e. ‘A’/’AO’ subjects) will not be disadvantaged when they apply for admission in 2008. You may like to refer to our website at: http://www.nus.edu.sg/oam/apply/cata/index_oldcurriculum.htm for more information.  You are strongly encouraged to visit our website regularly for more updates.

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