Today is the release of results, and I just thought to quickly review the modules I've taken before I forget.
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CM2011 - ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY (3 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: A-
Comments: There are two lecturers for this course, Prof Webster and Prof Pumera. I found Prof Webster to be easier to understand. Prof Pumera mumbles and is quite soft, so I don't really know what he's talking about sometimes (even though I sit around the 3rd or 4th row). Watching the recorded lecture helps though. He is clearer in the recording.
Easiest chem core module this semester in terms of the difficulty of content and questions asked. Looking at the past year papers, the same few types of calculation questions are always asked. The rest would just be to take note of small details that you may have missed. For Prof Pumera's midterm, he asked questions that needed you to memorise details, like the size and length of the column for Gas Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid Chromatography, which I didn't think would come out. And in the finals, for Micellar Electrokinetic Chromatography, he tested to see if you remembered the critical micellar concentration of SDS, which I unfortunately did not remember. So do be sure to remember all details.
CM2021 - INORGANIC AND BIOINORGANIC CHEMISTRY (3 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: A-
Comments: This was a pretty difficult module for me, in terms of understanding the content. I also had some difficulty visualising molecules in 3D - a skill that is needed when determining the symmetry elements and point group. Either use the molecular kit to visualise or try to draw in 2D.
CM2031 - ORGANIC AND BIOORGANIC CHEMISTRY (3 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade:A
Comments: Some reactions overlap with those in CM1031, but most are new. You'll learn retrosynthesis, which will help you when you propose the synthesis of molecules. The tutorials are very useful, and a few parts of tutorial questions were even repeated in the midterms.
There were two Profs teaching this module, Prof Yanli and Prof Bates. Prof Bates will sometimes send you comments about how the cohort fared when marking his midterm and his share of the finals.
CM2061 - CHEMISTRY AND BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY LABORATORY 1 (3 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: A
Comments: 6 hour lab weekly and finals. Being in the Friday lab group, I've sometimes benefited from advice from the Thursday lab group. I spent a lot of time reading the experiment and trying to understand the steps before reaching the lab, because I'm afraid that I can't end on time.
For the finals, there was a short answer question (with many parts) based on an experiment procedure. It may not directly resemble the ones in the lab manual, but the same few techniques are used e.g. column chromatography, TLC etc. It also helps if you ask yourself why when looking at every step of the procedure so that you understand why you're doing it. It'll also help for the finals :) There was another section where you had to draw the structure of some common lab chemicals and reagents used in the experiments. There was another page also, but I forgot what was tested. Finally, there were 30 MCQs. The first 10 or so MCQs were related to the short answer question and the rest of the MCQs tested details in the lab manual.
ES8005 - ENVIRONMENTAL EARTH SYSTEMS SCIENCE (3 AU)
Type: UE
Grade: A
Comments: I took this module as I have taken H2 Geography. There is quite a lot of content to study, as per any Geography-related module, so don't take if you aren't prepared to remember a lot of things. There are 2 midterms and finals. The average for both midterms was about 31 and 33 out of 40. My midterm scores were 35 for both. There are some options to the questions that will make you go 'lol, seriously?', but there are also questions that test details that I don't remember reading before.
You'll need to have access to the recommended textbook, The Blue Planet - An Introduction to Environmental Earth Systems Science by Brian J. Skinner and Barbara W. Murck, but you can find an online pdf of the book, if you look hard enough. There are assigned readings every week, and the questions do test content that's in the textbook but not covered in the lectures, so do be sure to get hold of the textbook.
For the finals, it is 100 MCQs in 2 hours. There's plenty of time to finish the paper; most people left early. Many questions were repeated in the sample exam paper uploaded, so it isn't too difficult.
LJ9002 - JAPANESE LANGUAGE LEVEL 2 (3 AU)
Type: UE
Grade: A-
Comments: I remember basing my decision to take Japanese Level 2 based on the workload that I've had in Level 1. However, the workload for Level 2 is much much more that Level 1. There are either kanji or vocab quizzes every week, there is homework due every class, and there's a composition to be written as well. For the finals, you also have to write a composition. Two topics will be given beforehand so you can prepare. However, only one topic will come out. I've heard somewhere that the composition topic changes for different classes? Anyway I prepared both topics just to be sure.
The oral exam format is also a bit different. You'll still enter the room with another person, but each person needs to talk for a minute or so, then the other person will ask 3 questions. After that, the teacher will ask both people questions (they may be related to the topic or not). Then, it is the other person's turn to talk, and so on. 5 possible topics are given beforehand, and you'll be tested on 2 topics.
My tutor was Suhama Ayari, same as last semester. Apparently, from what I've heard, her classes are more engaging and entertaining. Some of my classmates went for make-up classes with other tutors and found the classes to be more quiet.
Was expecting to get an A as based on the written and listening scores (results for these two components will be emailed to you, so you can decide to S/U or not), my scores were much higher than the average. I think that my oral exam went well too. However, I don't think I put that much effort into my homework and composition exercise, so that could explain the grade I got. Remember to study and put in effort consistently and you'll do well.
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Tuesday, 27 December 2016
Tuesday, 28 June 2016
Y1S2 Module Review
I have finished my second semester at NTU! Have already gotten used to university life. Time for some more module reviews~
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CM1041 - BASIC PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY WITH LABORATORY (4 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: A
Comments: Most topics were covered in JC physical chem portion. There are some new equations and concepts to take note, but they are not hard. Taught by the friendly Sumod and physical chem expert Lee Soo-Ying.
CM1051 - BASIC BIOLOGY AND BIOCHEMISTRY (3 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: EX
Comments: I was exempted from this course as I passed the exemption test at the start of the first semester, however I have heard some things about the course. Firstly, the course has been revamped to focus more on biology instead of chemistry. Secondly, there are online lectures every week and a mass tutorial to clarify questions posted by students in the discussion board. As the first batch of students to take this revamped course, expect technical glitches (wrong answer being shown, inaccurate diagrams etc). What's worse is that notes are released after the lecture is over. Online lectures are released every 2 weeks, so notes for those topics will only be available after the two weeks are over. Better to make your own notes. On a happier note, finals are all MCQs, though there are also multiple-options MCQs so you must know the content well.
GC0001 - INTRO TO SUSTAINABILITY (1 AU)
Type: GER-CORE
Grade: P
Comments: Easy compulsory module. You can easily clear it within the first two weeks of the semester. Has 6 online modules with a 48h waiting period after the completion of the previous module's quiz, so you cannot rush to complete all modules at once or do it last minute. I found the content covered to be pretty interesting.
HW0138 - SCIENTIFIC COMMUNICATION I (2 AU)
Type: GER-CORE
Grade: A-
Comments: My first university course where I have to write an essay. I've been lucky to have an essay-less and presentation-less first semester, but I have to do it this semester. There are three assignments (Annotated Bibliography, Review Paper and Oral Presentation). The second assignment is done in pairs. Managed to get through the module even though I'm not good at presenting.
MH1801 - CALCULUS FOR THE SCIENCES II (3 AU)
Type: GER-CORE
Grade: A+
Comments: This math course is so much easier than MH1800. It doesn't cover as many topics as the previous course. The pace of lectures is also slower and lectures almost always end early (at least by half an hour). It mainly covers Differential Equations and Infinite Series. The lecturer (Conan) prefers to write out his lecture notes and use the projector instead of using powerpoint. Notes would be uploaded after lectures, but I find it more helpful to take down my own notes. It helps me keep focused and I don't have to deal with the large file size (he scans the lecture notes).
There is a graded assignment in the form of a group project or MATLAB. For the group project (around 5 people per group), we are expected to write about Differential Equations and its real-life applications. I didn't choose this option and done MATLAB instead. There are 3 graded activities for MATLAB, but you need to go through all the 12 activities to understand how to go about answering the 3 graded sections.
The midterm average was quite high because midterms were easy as long as you studied the content (which is not much). For finals I still found it okay as question formats were similar to PYPs.
BU8201 - BUSINESS FINANCE (3 AU)
Type: GER-BM
Grade: A
Comments: I took this module to clear my business GERPE. If you like calculations and can remember what AP/GP is, then this course is for you. If you like memorising, you may want to look at BU8301 instead. I did not find a need to purchase a financial calculator because my graphic calculator had a finance app. If you don't have a gc, then you may want to get one or a financial calculator.
I found the first few lectures hard to understand, but after constant reviewing, I managed to understand enough. There are seminars in place of tutorials, where you have to prepare tutorial questions beforehand and present them to the class. In the first class, you will be split into groups and randomly allocated one tutorial to present. Answers to computational questions are provided so that you know you are on the right track, but for other questions, you don't know if you are right until the teacher tells you so.
The midterms is done online at a computer lab. Each person is randomly allocated 10 questions from a huge question bank, so chances are that you won't get the same questions as your neighbours/friends. Questions are supposed to be easy (according to the lecturer). For the finals, I found them manageable and was quite confident of my answers.
LJ9001 - JAPANESE LANGUAGE LEVEL 1 (3 AU)
Type: UE
Grade: A
Comments: I chose to study Japanese as I love anime and Jap culture, and have been hearing the language for a long time. In terms of vocabulary, I didn't have to pick up as many new words because I already knew some basic words from shows. I had also self-learnt Hiragana and Katakana during the December holidays so that I wouldn't struggle so much at the start.
There are no finals. There are 4 quizzes and a writing exercise. In place of finals, there is an exam paper, listening comprehension and oral examination in Week 13. By a stroke of (good) luck, my Japanese teacher wasn't free on one day and decided to combine the exam, listening comprehension and oral examination into one day, one after the other. Did I mention that the listening comprehension is not repeated? If you missed it, good game. For the oral exam, our class was tested in pairs. At the start, the teacher asked us questions individually and we answered them. Afterwards, for the conversation part, we had to invite the other party to an event. If you are in the later batches, you can probably get to hear what your classmates were tested on.
MS800M - AN EXPLORATION OF SYMMETRY (3 AU)
Type: GER-STS (or UE depending on your choice)
Grade: P
Comments: This is an online course on Coursera spanning 8 weeks. It is pretty difficult, even though it doesn't appear that way. How many things are there to symmetry? Not a lot, right? Well, you are quite wrong.
It is important to keep to deadlines and remember to do peer marking, otherwise you could lose out on marks and fail. When I took this module, they had already adjusted it such that you need to do the Writing Exercise and get a decent grade to pass this module. I researched and saw that sometime back, some people didn't do the Writing Exercise and could still pass.
After the release of results (whether you passed or not), there were quite a lot of appeals, mainly for the Writing Exercise. You may want to check out some of the threads for stress relief :)
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CM1041 - BASIC PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY WITH LABORATORY (4 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: A
Comments: Most topics were covered in JC physical chem portion. There are some new equations and concepts to take note, but they are not hard. Taught by the friendly Sumod and physical chem expert Lee Soo-Ying.
CM1051 - BASIC BIOLOGY AND BIOCHEMISTRY (3 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: EX
Comments: I was exempted from this course as I passed the exemption test at the start of the first semester, however I have heard some things about the course. Firstly, the course has been revamped to focus more on biology instead of chemistry. Secondly, there are online lectures every week and a mass tutorial to clarify questions posted by students in the discussion board. As the first batch of students to take this revamped course, expect technical glitches (wrong answer being shown, inaccurate diagrams etc). What's worse is that notes are released after the lecture is over. Online lectures are released every 2 weeks, so notes for those topics will only be available after the two weeks are over. Better to make your own notes. On a happier note, finals are all MCQs, though there are also multiple-options MCQs so you must know the content well.
GC0001 - INTRO TO SUSTAINABILITY (1 AU)
Type: GER-CORE
Grade: P
Comments: Easy compulsory module. You can easily clear it within the first two weeks of the semester. Has 6 online modules with a 48h waiting period after the completion of the previous module's quiz, so you cannot rush to complete all modules at once or do it last minute. I found the content covered to be pretty interesting.
HW0138 - SCIENTIFIC COMMUNICATION I (2 AU)
Type: GER-CORE
Grade: A-
Comments: My first university course where I have to write an essay. I've been lucky to have an essay-less and presentation-less first semester, but I have to do it this semester. There are three assignments (Annotated Bibliography, Review Paper and Oral Presentation). The second assignment is done in pairs. Managed to get through the module even though I'm not good at presenting.
MH1801 - CALCULUS FOR THE SCIENCES II (3 AU)
Type: GER-CORE
Grade: A+
Comments: This math course is so much easier than MH1800. It doesn't cover as many topics as the previous course. The pace of lectures is also slower and lectures almost always end early (at least by half an hour). It mainly covers Differential Equations and Infinite Series. The lecturer (Conan) prefers to write out his lecture notes and use the projector instead of using powerpoint. Notes would be uploaded after lectures, but I find it more helpful to take down my own notes. It helps me keep focused and I don't have to deal with the large file size (he scans the lecture notes).
There is a graded assignment in the form of a group project or MATLAB. For the group project (around 5 people per group), we are expected to write about Differential Equations and its real-life applications. I didn't choose this option and done MATLAB instead. There are 3 graded activities for MATLAB, but you need to go through all the 12 activities to understand how to go about answering the 3 graded sections.
The midterm average was quite high because midterms were easy as long as you studied the content (which is not much). For finals I still found it okay as question formats were similar to PYPs.
BU8201 - BUSINESS FINANCE (3 AU)
Type: GER-BM
Grade: A
Comments: I took this module to clear my business GERPE. If you like calculations and can remember what AP/GP is, then this course is for you. If you like memorising, you may want to look at BU8301 instead. I did not find a need to purchase a financial calculator because my graphic calculator had a finance app. If you don't have a gc, then you may want to get one or a financial calculator.
I found the first few lectures hard to understand, but after constant reviewing, I managed to understand enough. There are seminars in place of tutorials, where you have to prepare tutorial questions beforehand and present them to the class. In the first class, you will be split into groups and randomly allocated one tutorial to present. Answers to computational questions are provided so that you know you are on the right track, but for other questions, you don't know if you are right until the teacher tells you so.
The midterms is done online at a computer lab. Each person is randomly allocated 10 questions from a huge question bank, so chances are that you won't get the same questions as your neighbours/friends. Questions are supposed to be easy (according to the lecturer). For the finals, I found them manageable and was quite confident of my answers.
LJ9001 - JAPANESE LANGUAGE LEVEL 1 (3 AU)
Type: UE
Grade: A
Comments: I chose to study Japanese as I love anime and Jap culture, and have been hearing the language for a long time. In terms of vocabulary, I didn't have to pick up as many new words because I already knew some basic words from shows. I had also self-learnt Hiragana and Katakana during the December holidays so that I wouldn't struggle so much at the start.
There are no finals. There are 4 quizzes and a writing exercise. In place of finals, there is an exam paper, listening comprehension and oral examination in Week 13. By a stroke of (good) luck, my Japanese teacher wasn't free on one day and decided to combine the exam, listening comprehension and oral examination into one day, one after the other. Did I mention that the listening comprehension is not repeated? If you missed it, good game. For the oral exam, our class was tested in pairs. At the start, the teacher asked us questions individually and we answered them. Afterwards, for the conversation part, we had to invite the other party to an event. If you are in the later batches, you can probably get to hear what your classmates were tested on.
MS800M - AN EXPLORATION OF SYMMETRY (3 AU)
Type: GER-STS (or UE depending on your choice)
Grade: P
Comments: This is an online course on Coursera spanning 8 weeks. It is pretty difficult, even though it doesn't appear that way. How many things are there to symmetry? Not a lot, right? Well, you are quite wrong.
It is important to keep to deadlines and remember to do peer marking, otherwise you could lose out on marks and fail. When I took this module, they had already adjusted it such that you need to do the Writing Exercise and get a decent grade to pass this module. I researched and saw that sometime back, some people didn't do the Writing Exercise and could still pass.
After the release of results (whether you passed or not), there were quite a lot of appeals, mainly for the Writing Exercise. You may want to check out some of the threads for stress relief :)
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Y1S1 Module Review
Since I only started to do a module review after my first year ended, bear in mind that this is based on what I can remember. I didn't register for any additional courses for the first semester and only took the modules listed in the timetable.
A quick background about me: I came from JC, took H2 Biology, H2 Chemistry, H2 Mathematics and H2 Geography.
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CM1021 - BASIC INORGANIC CHEMISTRY WITH LABORATORY (4 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: A+
Comments: I found this module to be quite easy. The first few topics are just a rehash of JC chem and it was a bit boring sitting through the lectures. The toughest bit of this module (for people who took JC chem) is probably Molecular Orbital Theory. If you do not have any chem background, rest assured that the lecturer (Sumod) is very understanding and explains even basic concepts thoroughly so that you can understand. There is another lecturer (Rei) teaching Bonding, Hybridisation and MO Theory. There are some overlaps in content between the two lecturers (which is intentional) but it can make lectures even more boring for people who have taken JC chem.
As for lab sessions (CM1021 and CM1031 labs alternate every week), I don't distinguish between the two modules' lab sessions so I shall just write a general post about lab work. Coming from a JC where we just do titration in J2 to prepare for practical exam, I don't have much experience and exposure in lab work. Luckily, the first experiment was titration, although they have much more sophisticated titration equipment than my JC. For the first year, we are paired with another student, so there's no need to panic if you are like me. However, you will still need to do the necessary preparations (taking LAMS quiz and reading up on the experiment procedure before lab).
There are two midterms and finals. Midterms by Sumod are all MCQ while midterms by Rei have some MCQ and some short-answer questions. They are manageable if you understand what you are studying; I managed to get full marks for both midterms. Finals were pretty easy too, without many hard questions.
CM1031 - BASIC ORGANIC CHEMISTRY WITH LABORATORY (4 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: A
Comments: I love organic chem, so this module was fun for me. There were many new things I learnt, so even people who take JC chem need to properly watch the lectures. Besides learning about the different functional groups, Structure & Bonding and Acids & Bases are also covered. There is new content in almost every chapter (if I'm not wrong) so you need to pay attention to every chapter.
I don't remember much about the midterm, but I think it was all MCQ. The finals had its mix of challenging and standard questions. I was quite well-prepared for this exam, having done many PYPs and compiled reactions for each functional group together. I like how organic chem questions can be easy or hard. I especially love deductive questions. Sorry, that was not very helpful :D
CM8002 - FORENSIC SCIENCE (3 AU)
Type: GER-STS
Grade: B
Comments: This course consists of two parts. One part (before teaching week) consists of online lectures and assignments on Coursera which are not counted towards the final grade. However, it provides the content tested for finals and the case studies are good practice. After teaching week, people from various organisations (usually people from the Forensic Science division in HSA) talk about a particular section in forensics (e.g. DNA, handwriting etc) and sometimes share recent cases. These lectures are not recorded but are interesting, so it would be good to attend. Some information is even tested in the finals.
Midterms consist of all MCQ. Questions are projected on the screen and you are given around one minute to answer each question. In case you missed a question / to allow you to check, questions are repeated once. Remember to study your lecture notes properly! For the finals, there are MCQs and a case study. You have to read the case scenario and provide a logical explanation for the questions. One reason why I didn't do well for this paper was because I didn't really understand the scenario and couldn't think of logical explanations at that time. As for the MCQs, besides lecture content, sometimes current cases are tested as well, so you would do well to read the articles posted in NTUlearn and do some extra reading on your own.
MH1800 - CALCULUS FOR THE SCIENCES I (3 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: A-
Comments: I have heard from my poly classmates that they find it challenging, maybe because they have not touched Mathematics for a long time. I find things a bit easier, since I have learnt some things before and know how to use (and own) a graphic calculator. This year (AY15/16), the lectures are posted online, with the lecture time slot being reserved for 5 clicker questions. Hence, we are expected to watch and understand the content before the lecture time slot, which I remember to be on a Monday. There is also quite a fair bit of content every week, so if you are not consistent with watching the lectures, it may be easy to fall behind. There's also a 1h tutorial, but I think it's too short given the amount and difficulty of questions. I'm lucky that I had a kind tutor who took it upon himself to extend the tutorial by 1h for anyone who wanted more help with Mathematics. There's optional Lab sessions for people who want to learn MATLAB. I tried a few exercises but stopped when it began to get difficult.
I cannot remember anything about midterms (or if there even is one). As for finals, I did the PYPs and found it manageable.
ML0001 - ABSOLUTE BASICS FOR CAREER (1 AU)
Type: GER-CORE
Grade: P
Comments: This is a compulsory online module. Not much to say about it except to keep to the deadlines and don't leave things to the last minute.
PH1801 - FOUNDATIONS OF PHYSICS I (3 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: P
Comments: This is a pass/fail course for undergraduates, so there's not much to worry about even if you dislike Physics. There were 2 lecturers for this course, Dr Zhang Baile and Assoc Prof Phan Anh Tuan. Dr Zhang taught the first part of the course on Mechanics and there were always real-life demonstrations of physics experiments in lecture. It helped to keep me engaged even though I usually feel sleepy upon looking at anything with Physics. Prof Phan taught the second part on Thermodynamics and I found him less interesting than Dr Zhang. Sorry!
There was an all-MCQ midterm and finals with a mix of MCQ and structured questions. Interestingly, we could vote for how hard we wanted our midterms to be and the format for finals. Naturally, everyone wanted the easy option :D For the finals, even though the open-ended questions were more challenging, there were enough easy questions in the MCQs to allow students to pass easily.
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A quick background about me: I came from JC, took H2 Biology, H2 Chemistry, H2 Mathematics and H2 Geography.
--------------------
CM1021 - BASIC INORGANIC CHEMISTRY WITH LABORATORY (4 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: A+
Comments: I found this module to be quite easy. The first few topics are just a rehash of JC chem and it was a bit boring sitting through the lectures. The toughest bit of this module (for people who took JC chem) is probably Molecular Orbital Theory. If you do not have any chem background, rest assured that the lecturer (Sumod) is very understanding and explains even basic concepts thoroughly so that you can understand. There is another lecturer (Rei) teaching Bonding, Hybridisation and MO Theory. There are some overlaps in content between the two lecturers (which is intentional) but it can make lectures even more boring for people who have taken JC chem.
As for lab sessions (CM1021 and CM1031 labs alternate every week), I don't distinguish between the two modules' lab sessions so I shall just write a general post about lab work. Coming from a JC where we just do titration in J2 to prepare for practical exam, I don't have much experience and exposure in lab work. Luckily, the first experiment was titration, although they have much more sophisticated titration equipment than my JC. For the first year, we are paired with another student, so there's no need to panic if you are like me. However, you will still need to do the necessary preparations (taking LAMS quiz and reading up on the experiment procedure before lab).
There are two midterms and finals. Midterms by Sumod are all MCQ while midterms by Rei have some MCQ and some short-answer questions. They are manageable if you understand what you are studying; I managed to get full marks for both midterms. Finals were pretty easy too, without many hard questions.
CM1031 - BASIC ORGANIC CHEMISTRY WITH LABORATORY (4 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: A
Comments: I love organic chem, so this module was fun for me. There were many new things I learnt, so even people who take JC chem need to properly watch the lectures. Besides learning about the different functional groups, Structure & Bonding and Acids & Bases are also covered. There is new content in almost every chapter (if I'm not wrong) so you need to pay attention to every chapter.
I don't remember much about the midterm, but I think it was all MCQ. The finals had its mix of challenging and standard questions. I was quite well-prepared for this exam, having done many PYPs and compiled reactions for each functional group together. I like how organic chem questions can be easy or hard. I especially love deductive questions. Sorry, that was not very helpful :D
CM8002 - FORENSIC SCIENCE (3 AU)
Type: GER-STS
Grade: B
Comments: This course consists of two parts. One part (before teaching week) consists of online lectures and assignments on Coursera which are not counted towards the final grade. However, it provides the content tested for finals and the case studies are good practice. After teaching week, people from various organisations (usually people from the Forensic Science division in HSA) talk about a particular section in forensics (e.g. DNA, handwriting etc) and sometimes share recent cases. These lectures are not recorded but are interesting, so it would be good to attend. Some information is even tested in the finals.
Midterms consist of all MCQ. Questions are projected on the screen and you are given around one minute to answer each question. In case you missed a question / to allow you to check, questions are repeated once. Remember to study your lecture notes properly! For the finals, there are MCQs and a case study. You have to read the case scenario and provide a logical explanation for the questions. One reason why I didn't do well for this paper was because I didn't really understand the scenario and couldn't think of logical explanations at that time. As for the MCQs, besides lecture content, sometimes current cases are tested as well, so you would do well to read the articles posted in NTUlearn and do some extra reading on your own.
MH1800 - CALCULUS FOR THE SCIENCES I (3 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: A-
Comments: I have heard from my poly classmates that they find it challenging, maybe because they have not touched Mathematics for a long time. I find things a bit easier, since I have learnt some things before and know how to use (and own) a graphic calculator. This year (AY15/16), the lectures are posted online, with the lecture time slot being reserved for 5 clicker questions. Hence, we are expected to watch and understand the content before the lecture time slot, which I remember to be on a Monday. There is also quite a fair bit of content every week, so if you are not consistent with watching the lectures, it may be easy to fall behind. There's also a 1h tutorial, but I think it's too short given the amount and difficulty of questions. I'm lucky that I had a kind tutor who took it upon himself to extend the tutorial by 1h for anyone who wanted more help with Mathematics. There's optional Lab sessions for people who want to learn MATLAB. I tried a few exercises but stopped when it began to get difficult.
I cannot remember anything about midterms (or if there even is one). As for finals, I did the PYPs and found it manageable.
ML0001 - ABSOLUTE BASICS FOR CAREER (1 AU)
Type: GER-CORE
Grade: P
Comments: This is a compulsory online module. Not much to say about it except to keep to the deadlines and don't leave things to the last minute.
PH1801 - FOUNDATIONS OF PHYSICS I (3 AU)
Type: CORE
Grade: P
Comments: This is a pass/fail course for undergraduates, so there's not much to worry about even if you dislike Physics. There were 2 lecturers for this course, Dr Zhang Baile and Assoc Prof Phan Anh Tuan. Dr Zhang taught the first part of the course on Mechanics and there were always real-life demonstrations of physics experiments in lecture. It helped to keep me engaged even though I usually feel sleepy upon looking at anything with Physics. Prof Phan taught the second part on Thermodynamics and I found him less interesting than Dr Zhang. Sorry!
There was an all-MCQ midterm and finals with a mix of MCQ and structured questions. Interestingly, we could vote for how hard we wanted our midterms to be and the format for finals. Naturally, everyone wanted the easy option :D For the finals, even though the open-ended questions were more challenging, there were enough easy questions in the MCQs to allow students to pass easily.
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