About NTU Singapore
Nanyang Technological University in Singapore is the origin of this blog, Stamping Passports. We met each other while we were on exchange in the Fall semester of 2022.
We were both drawn to NTU Singapore because of its high rankings (3rd best in Asia and 30th globally at the time) despite only opening in 1991. It has a high reputation for innovation, its pretty campus and state of the art facilities.
Getting to & from campus
Let’s start with a downside of NTU: its campus is very far from Singapore’s city centre. It takes around an hour to get there, depending where you’re coming from.
To get there you’ll need to take the MRT on the green line (east-west line) to the stop Boonlay or Pioneer. From here you can take either the public bus (199, 179 or 179a) or the campus bus (green or brown bus). Read the next section to find out more on these.
Taxi’s (Grab or Gojek) are available and will take about 30 minutes. However, because of the distance, getting a driver can be difficult because not many want to drive to NTU. So try not to rely on it too much.
Read more: Check out our other Singapore blogs for more information on getting around
Getting around campus
NTU’s campus is very big, so it can take some time to get from one side to the other. Luckily, there are many busses going through and around campus. Some of which are free to use and others are public. We recommend downloading the NTU Singapore omnibus app to check which bus to take and how far away they are. The possible busses are:
- Blue bus – goes around campus clockwise (free)
- Red bus – goes around campus counter clockwise (free)
- Brown (weekend rider) – goes only on weekends from the lower half of campus to Pioneer MRT (free)
- Green bus – goes from the middle of campus straight to Pioneer MRT (free)
- 179 and 179A – goes from the lower half of campus to Pioneer and Boonlay MRT
- 199 – goes from the upper half of campus to Boonlay MRT
Living in an NTU hall
Before coming to NTU for your exchange semester you can request housing on campus through the “exchange portal”. Housing is available for everyone, however, you cannot select your room, you can only request your preference. The final room allocation is done randomly.
There are 23 halls on campus with a range of single and double rooms available. These can can either with or without aircon and a private bathroom.
An estimation of these prices can be found under ‘hall rental fees’ on NTU Singapore’s website, but they are subject to change.
Hall facilities
All the halls are quite big. The floors are specifically allocated to genders. In every hall, you’ll find pantries and laundry rooms. In some halls there are also lounges and some halls have balconies.
Besides that, many have shared facilities between a group of halls such as gyms, barbeque areas, sports facilities and study rooms.
Tip: For doing laundry, you need the new Singapore $1 coins – the machines don’t accept the old coins
Halls on campus
Nanyang crescent halls
This block consists of hall 7, Saraca and Tamarind. This is the area we are most familiar with as we both stayed in Saraca Hall (sadly without aircon). They are the youngest halls and have many single-rooms with a mix between aircon and no aircon. The facilities are quite nice with relatively clean bathrooms, laundry rooms, pantries, a study room (below hall 7), and a small gym. You’re lucky if you’re allocated this hall because it has what we think was some of the best canteens on campus.
Halls 1 and 2
These are two of the oldest halls on campus. We didn’t know many exchange students that stayed here and so haven’t been around much. These halls supposedly have a lot of history and are very active as many events and activities are organised by the hall board for its residents.
North hill
This is an area on the northern end of campus and consists of the halls Binjai, Banyan and Tanjong. These halls are all reasonably new and have good facilities, it has the biggest and probably best gym on campus.
Most of the rooms are singles with air-conditioning. These halls have a lot of balconies with good views (as it is on top of a hill), however the security is quite strict there.
North Hill also has a new-ish canteen with a lot of cuisines on offer. There is also some separate restaurants; an Indian, a mala hotpot and a bar called Georges. This is the only bar on campus and is not usually busy because they’re quite expensive.
Halls 4 and 5
These halls have big rooms when compared to the other halls. Since they are both near the Yunnan Garden, they have very nice views and are more quiet.
CresPion
Nickname for the halls Crescent and Pioneer. Very complex and maze-like structure that can sometimes be hard to get around and find the correct way. It has mainly double rooms and is built into a little swamp. It is near the edge of campus on the western side so easy and quick access with the bus to the city. Many things are going on here, but a bit further from the main spots on campus.
Hall 6
Known as the sports hall as its located very close to the sports facilities and has a large sports community. This hall is a bit older, but still looks quite nice and also has many double rooms.
Halls 10 and 11
These halls are located between Nanyang Crescent Halls and North Hill. The halls have many double rooms and look nice. They share a small canteen with a good (and cheap) mixed veg stall and a waffle shop.
Halls 12-16
These halls are all kind of in the same area between Nanyang Crescent Halls and North Spine. We clustered them all together as we don’t know that much about them. Many of them have their own (smaller) canteens. The halls are not the newest but also not the oldest. They are all only a few bus stops away from North Spine which is very ideal!
About your NTU campus room
When you enter your room you’ll notice that it is very basic and small. This may be a bit daunting at first but once you fit the rooms out with your own stuff it’ll feel more comfortable.
The rooms have a bed, a ceiling fan, a closet, and a desk. You’ll need to buy/bring everything else you’ll need for the 4 months like: bedsheets, pillows, clothing hangers, a bin, etc. As the room is extremely basic, it is nice to bring/buy things to make it feel more like home (photos, decorations, plants, etc.).
Tips for your room
- The bed mattress is very hard, so we recommend bringing a soft mattress topper to help with this
- Rooms open and lock with a “key fob” which is just an RFID tag. You also need this tag to get into other things like the hall itself, the bathrooms, study rooms, gyms etc. Make sure to always bring it with you. If you lose it, you’ll have to go to the administration office and pay S$50 for a new one. But they’re only open on weekdays, so if you’re like me (Aaron) and loose it on Friday night you’ll be locked out of your room all weekend.
- If you don’t have an aircon you should be careful of mould. Keep the fan running, leave the vents/windows open to keep the air circulating.
- Rooms don’t have a fridge, but it is nice to have one to store some milk or fruit or water. We bought ours second-hand for around $50. This can be done through the NTU second-hand telegram chat or with Carousell (look out for scams here though, they are quite common!). The good thing is that you can resell your fridge after the semester through the same platforms for nearly the same price.
Food at NTU Singapore
NTU’s campus is like a little village. There are endless possibilities to get food and drinks from, including canteens, supermarkets, food stalls, fast food chains, restaurants, cafes and late night food delivery services.
Canteens
Almost every hall has its own canteen. They consist of multiple small food stalls that sell different cuisines. Our hall (Saraca) had a canteen with Indian food, chicken rice, Korean, Western, noodle soup and a stall for drinks and waffles. This is super convenient as the rooms don’t offer much possibility for cooking. Most meals on campus range from S$3 to S$8.
Some canteens are better than the others, but this is very much a personal preference. Our favourites were Saraca’s canteen (especially the butter chicken with naan from the Indian and kimchi fried rice from the Korean) and North Spine, which had too many great options to name them all.
The opening times vary per canteen, day of the week and date during the semester. But for most, the opening times were around 9am and closing times were around 8pm with a small break in the afternoon. On Saturdays most canteens shorten their opening hours while on Sundays most are closed.
Supermarkets
On campus, you’ll also find multiple supermarkets. This is great for if you want to cook yourself or to buy fruits and other snacks. Close to canteen two, you’ll find a 7-eleven and a Giant Express. These are both pretty small so don’t expect to find too much here but they are good for the basics. 7-eleven is also open 24/7 so can be a last resort for a late night snack.
In North Spine (see more about this below) you’ll find a Prime supermarket. This one is slightly bigger and also has some basic items that are handy for your room. Such as a bin, laundry basket, pillow, cutlery, etc.
But if you like more of a broader choice when shopping, then there is a massive Fairprice supermarket in the Jurong Point mall. This is located at the Boonlay MRT stop, which is only about 20 mins away.
Fast-food, cafes & restaurants
Besides canteens, there are several places on campus to eat fast food. All of these are located in North Spine. Your options are: Pizza Hut, McDonalds, KFC, Pasta Express, Subway, Long John Silvers and more.
There are also some nice little sit-down restaurants here which can be a nice change from the canteen food.
If you’re an avid coffee drinker then don’t expect too much from NTU as the options are limited. There is a nice coffee place across from the OCBC bank at north spine, but other than that your options are starbucks or malaysian coffee from the canteens.
Late night food
If you’re up late studying (or just coming home from a night out) there are some options to cure your hunger. There are late night food trucks (that start around midnight) and deliver to each of the halls. They have a Telegram chat which you can join and be updated where they are/where they’re going.
There were 2 food trucks going around campus called Sloppy Bs and Rayday when we studied there. Sloppy Bs was a burger truck and Rayday was a noodle/chicken truck and were quite delicious.
If you miss out on those, there is always the 7-eleven that is open 24/7. Or grab eats, which is a food delivery service.
Heads up: You need paynow for food trucks, they don’t take cash
Campus facilities
As we said earlier, NTU’s campus is massive and has a lot on offer. It is well known for its state of the art facilities which we will share with you below. But before that, we think its necessary to highlight the two main areas on campus where a lot of the facilities are, North and South Spine.
North spine
Can be considered the main area on campus. This consists of the Lee Wee nam Library, a food court and big canteen, big lecture halls, many shops, and a kind of general assembly space.
You will likely spend a lot of time here, as it is a central meeting spot for many students due to its facilities and space. North Spine’s canteen is big and offers a wide range of cuisines. However, during lunchtime, it can get very crowded here.
They also have an NTU shop here where you can buy NTU Singapore merch like shirts, sweaters, tote bags, keychains and more. Very nice to have as a souvenir!
South spine
Is probably the second main area. As the name implies, this place is located more south in the academic area. You can walk from one to the other, this takes about 10 minutes. South Spine has many lecture halls, a bit smaller than the ones in North Spine, and several smaller classrooms for tutorials.
In South Spine you’ll also find a remarkable building called the Hive. This is a very interesting and aesthetic structure with a little library and tutorial rooms. Within the Hive, there are some small tables to sit and work from.
Other facilities
- Swimming pool – Has a 50m pool, diving pool and kids pool which looks very nice with palm trees all around it. Also has some sun beds so can relax in the sun. Have to book to use it through the NTU sports facilities website.
- Student Activity Center (SAC) – Located at north spine below the library. Its a big common area and has a range of things to do from videogames, table tennis, 8-ball, foosball etc.
- Sports fields – Has 3 full soccer fields, athletics track, volleyball, handball, tennis, basketball and netball courts, 3 indoor courts
- Gym – several halls have their own gym. There is one at North Hill and one at Saraca/Tamarind/Hall 7. The gyms are small and basic, but they are free to use and air-conditioned.
- Barbecue spots – many halls have barbecue pits that can be used. Even though you don’t see people use these often, it is a very nice spot to meet up and have some dinner.
- One stop – This place is where you’ll go for most of the admin while you’ll be at NTU Singapore. It is also located under the library. They take care of all the payments, documents, cards etc.
Studying
We found the whole process of applying quite confusing. Here we will try and highlight everything that needs to happen.
Application for exchange students
Before coming to Singapore, everyone gets introduced to an online portal. This portal is called the GEM Trailblazer Exchange/Study Abroad Portal. It is used by NTU to get all your personal particulars in their system, and for you;
- To accept (or reject) your exchange offer
- To apply for the student pass
- To apply for on-campus housing
- Submit health information
- Provide details about your arrival
- To request acceptance for courses you want to follow (read more below).
Course selection
Before being able to follow a course, there are two things that need to happen:
1) you need to be approved to follow the course (based on your level and prior knowledge)
2) you need to be selected. Some courses are very wanted and only have few spots to fill.
So even though you might be approved to follow, you still need to actually be selected. This selection is random and happens every few days.
Before the semester starts, you’ll receive a list of courses you’ve been selected to. The first 2 weeks of the semester are called “add and drop period”. During this time, you can request approval and selection for new courses or drop current courses you were selected to.
This means that the first 2 weeks of following courses is not crucial. Many people are still dropping courses or trying to get into others.
Study spots
- Business library: located in North Spine. This is quite a big library with many different spots, there are discussion spots, quiet zones, and rooms you can reserve for individual study sessions.
- The Hive: this is a really cool building near South Spine and the Yunnan Garden. There are many small tables on every floor at which you can sit and work. Also at the very top you’ll find tables with some chairs. These are both in open-air, but luckily there is quite some wind here which makes it feel cooler. Besides that, you can either go to the small Hive library or simply go inside one of the classrooms (if open) and sit here.
- The Arc: this place is not very big, but has some nice places to sit and work silently. If you need to collaborate or work in groups, you can reserve so called collaboration rooms here. They also have some couches for a bit more laidback study sessions or discussions.
- Lee Wee Nam Library: our personal favourite. You can only get in with your student card and you need to make a reservation beforehand. It is air-conditioned and there are many places to sit. However, it can get very busy during exam period, so make sure to make a reservation in time.
- In Halls: some halls also have small study rooms. The main one we often went to was the study room of hall 7. This is a small but air-conditioned and is always very quiet. So great for if you really need to get things done.
Social side of NTU Singapore
As we mentioned earlier, NTU only has one bar, called Georges, that is located in North Hill. It is not usually busy because they’re quite expensive. Because of this, most students will buy drinks from the supermarkets on campus and meet up somewhere to have some drinks.
Hazel's guestlist
Many of the exchange students like to party, so one student specific thing we need to mention is Hazel’s Guestlist. Hazel is a person who organises parties and events in Singapore for exchange students.
You can find these events on an app called Peatix (which is also where the tickets can be bought). These events are really fun, especially in the beginning of the semester as all the new exchange students attend.
Overall
Even though this post is already quite elaborate, there are still things we haven’t explored as the campus is just so big. We really enjoyed our time and we think NTU Singapore is the perfect place for an exchange semester.
The whole experience of studying abroad, living on campus, and meeting so many other international students was amazing!
