I hold a UTAR degree with CGPA 3.75, and relevant research experiences (Research assistant, conference, co-authored)

Any opinions if I should give it a try?

Blofeld

Of coz u should try.

But try to look for scholarships, research assistantships, funding first. Write to the potential supervisors there and ask them as well.

Otherwise, you can do it MPhil locally first.

Then only later try again to register at NUS for a PhD.

Thanks for the info! If I may ask, are you also from UTAR? If so, would you mind to share your postgrad pathway?

No, i'm not. I did my undergrad in IPTS and then my PhD in IPTA.

There's another forumer here who did his undergrad in an IPTA and his PhD in NUS. But he has not logged in here for over 5 years.

I see, have you finished you PhD? I heard it's way challenging to graduate from IPTA, is it true?

yes i have completed.

Ppl have always said that it's harder to pass a PhD in IPTA compared to IPTS.

Probably, there's some truth in it because an IPTS lecturer cannot afford to be nonchalant and unconcerned about their students. If there are complaints, the lecturer will be in hot soup.

On the other hand in IPTA, there are so many complaints against a particular lecturer and yet no action is taken against the lecturer.

But then again, the research facilities in IPTA universities have always been superior compared to IPTS universities.

I think I'm eligible to answer this .. because I went through this ..

You can try but the chances is rather low .. very competitive to get a scholarship .. it took me 3 years to secure one .. and I have quite a number of publications .. I had had about 10 before I secured a spot .. and now they require the stupid GRE requirement .. making it more competitive ..

The easiest way to get in is by doing so ..

Get up an RA position in NUS .. show how capable you are .. you will need a solid support from your supervisor .. else the chances is almost non-existent .. because you have to compete with many Chinese students that are from top PRC University .. and most importantly they are willing to self-fund .. scholarship is close to non-existent too because they are mostly given to Chinese students because of co-funding from China ..

In short .. scholarship is hard unless you can build your cable .. I went through the hard way .. by proving myself with strong publications .. a fren of mine .. went through the easy way .. as aforementioned .. but he didn't secure a scholarship .. but his supervisor was willing to fund him

I would say .. don't think PhD in NUS is all high up .. nth special here except money

This post has been edited by malz89: May 16 2023, 11:51 PM

I appreciate the sharing! And it's discouraging to know it's way more competitive than I would have expected.

Yes, I do consider to work as an RA first there, hopefully I can get one as I saw there are many positions advertised on Careerjet.

Did you apply to University in Hong Kong (eg. HKU) back then? Cause I heard one will automatically awarded with the Postgraduate scholarship (which is 18,000 HKD per month) once they get accepted. Is it as competitive as in NUS?

Well, you have to compete with a pool of talents, especially for PhD. Frankly speaking, neither NUS nor NTU are their first choice, usually these Unis are their 2nd/alternative option when they get rejected by the Ivy Leagues

But, don't be discouraged, you can just proceed to submit your application. Chances may be slim but not to none. They may offer you a Master instead of PhD (no scholarship for this).

To secure an RA, never apply through portal because those job posted on portals are for the sake of procedure (someone has already filled that posiiton). Instead, google up a supervisor of your interest, send an email to him/her ask for a position.

I have never applied to other universities aside from NTU (which I was working as an RA), but surprisingly got accepted by NUS.

I did a Master in IPTA before I worked as an RA in Singapore. So, I had quite a long history of research prior securing a position.

This may sound a little harsh.

Frankly speaking, in UTAR, the facilities available for research is close to non-existence, I was there, so I know, unless you did your research in Sg. Long campus (yet still suffer from consumables). I was at both campuses so I had the privilege to compare.

Pursuing a Master/PhD in IPTA is not a bad option either, the top 4 RU in Malaysia have quite strong fundings (if you can't secure an RA/PhD position in Sg).

My best suggestion is to try out RA in either Sg (which could be very demanding) or in Msia (more relaxing). Decide if you would like to pursue of master/PhD. I have seen many drop outs .. too many students to be frank ..

Don't pursue a postgraduate if you are only interested with the title. It will bring you no where, do it only if you're into research. If you're a protocol person, I would say just forget it. If you're a person who always try to make protocol simpler by understanding the fundamentals, yes you're on the right path.

even JIJAN SEMAN that previously claimed to have 7 "PhD"s before and Kantoied numerous times by netizens can get "PhD" from IPTS (ASIA E "UNI") AeU... joker.. lost any respect for that so-called 'Uni'.

Its proof enough IPTS easily passes PhD candidates:

https://www.bharian.com.my/bisnes/usahawan/...ri-ipt-tempatan

U want to do Masters/PhDs - do it in IPTA/Govt Unis (Malaysia or Abroad)... Malaysian IPTA's PhD degree more respectable than Malaysian IPTS PhD degree...

I'm also surprised he could pass his PhD

But then who knows if he is really good in writing.

NUS would be a good phd.

You can try but you should prioritize choosing a good supervisor instead.

A good supervisor will have consistent publications in top tier journals and conferences. So, he/she knows and can teach you how to do proper and good research.
He/she most probably has a lot of good connections, including other professors from other universities, industry, etc. You will need his/her help in the future where he/she will leverage his/her connections to help you.
He/she will definitely have multiple fundings secured and continue to do so to support his/her laboratory. This is important because attending conferences cost a lot of money. Some will hire you as RA or tutor to support you financially with the fundings. Some fundings even pay you allowance just to do research that is aligned with the sponsor's target.

"Top" universities usually have more fundings and the ranking will make your resume looks good. But the competition will be very high to secure a scholarship. Meanwhile, as long as you performed well and published in some good journals and conferences, you should still be able to pave your own way for a bright future even though you are not attending those "top" universities.

Knowledge and experience are still the most important thing for employers, either in academia or industry. In order to gain as much knowledge and experience as possible during your phd, you don't want to have financial problems that will distract you from focusing on your research. So, instead of getting into a top university but unable to secure a scholarship and your supervisor cannot help you financially, it is probably better to look for other supervisor that can help you, even though he/she is not in a top university. Sometimes, these non-top universities have so many scholarships and the chances of getting one is so high because of less competition there. Some of these scholarships might be sponsored by private organizations, which may ask you to join some of their events as their scholarship holder. It is actually a good way to know more people from the industry. Building your own connections is always good.

Still, I think you should still try to apply to NUS or any universities you are interested in. But do your own research on which supervisors are doing the research that you are interested in, then contact them. Make an appointment and talk to them either physically or via video call. Ask questions that concern you. There is not stupid questions here as you are new. So, it is normal that you don't understand a lot of things in the field. If they think you are not suitable for their laboratory, but they like you and have suitable connections, they usually are willing to recommend you to their peers.

Good luck!

As a UTAR graduate, I would suggest not to limit yourself to only Malaysia or Singapore universities on pursuing Master/PhD.

Try explore more universities options in overseas such as Germany/Sweden/Norway/Finland/China/Taiwan/etc.

For example in China, you can apply for Tsinghua/Peking/UCAS/USTC Master/PhD that fully English taught.

Sorry if I may sound a bit condescending on this. You're over-estimating UTAR's cert .. I doubt you would even be shortlisted for those aforementioned universities ..

Do you know how hard to get to tsinghua/peking? I do see those students in NUS .. reason? They couldn't get admitted to their alma mater .. that's how competitive it is ..

UTAR cert may easily get you a job .. but won't secure you a scholarship to pursue postgraduate .. to be frank.. I doubt it is recognised international? But I could be wrong ..

Sorry perhaps I'll just add an analogy

Compare Proton and Perodua

Proton (P1) has more fundings (one of the Research local uni)

Perodua (P2) self-sustain, well at least from what I understand (UTAR)

Both are made in Malaysia, but P1 has a longer history, people would know. On the other hand, P2 is younger, and many associate it with cheaper option.

And yes, this is what UTAR looks like.

Basically, both are equally good, but being in a local would be better because of history. UTAR has been churning a lot of graduates, just like P2. Just a car for people to move around (akin to find a job).

So selling P1 and P2 in Malaysia is never a problem. But, what if you sell it somewhere else? Will others buy? Yes, likely but the chances is lower .. perhaps people would go for P1 because at least it is something heard of?

UTAR is good, but unfortunately even locals would often associate it as a Chinese University .. kinna like they love to equate it to UITM ..

Unless UTAR can once an for all break the stigma .. and market herself better .. else not possible ..

Quality > quantity

Even with quality but you produce quantity .. just like how P2 is .. people would still prefer toyota .. if they can afford it

This post has been edited by malz89: Jun 15 2023, 11:06 PM

Speaking as UTAR graduate, a lot of my friends studying in China (Top 985 universities)/Singapore (NUS/NTU)/UK/US for postgraduate with full scholarship, and doing great in industry Forbes Global 500 MNC companies as well.

So I doubt why UTAR is not recognized internationally.

Perhaps UTAR graduates/alumni did not promote themselves most of the times, very low profile.

This give public perceptions that UTAR is only locally recognized in Malaysia, but in fact not.

Well, in fact I'm a UTAR graduate. Sorry, I would have a different opinion on this.

What you're highlighting is just the tip of the iceberg. To be enrolled into all those aforementioned universities; I can certainly say with a degree from UTAR, definitely gonna be hard.

Those who have enrolled to renown top universities would definitely have more exposure than a degree per se. Well, not saying UTAR is bad, just that the stigma is there. I would say I gained most of my knowledge from there.

Overall, I would say through the years, trying to move up. With my degree only, it wasn't an easy path. I needed to be more proficient, build up myself in numerous ways to prove myself.

So, what I'm trying to say is, try not to paint a too rosy picture for fresh graduate. They have to learn that sacrifices are needed to move up.

Of course there is challenging in UTAR if you want to compare with Top 5 Public Unis (UM, USM, UKM, UPM and UTM), definitely UTAR dont have similar resources to compete with. Well I don't think other home grown private university have significant advantages too if compared to UTAR.

Luckily UTAR graduates still performing well in both industrial and research sectors if they are keen to.

If one person have reputable university degree but don't willing to learn more after that, I don't think he will able to enroll into all those aforementioned universities easily for Master or PhD level too.

Yes, I do agree on your points. UTAR was where I built up my foundation. From curriculum point of view, no qualms it does provide quality education. But, in term of research, RU thrumps .. haha.

Anyway, for those who are interested to know more about postgraduate studies in NUS may visit the NUS graduate session that will be held in KL this month. From 24th to 27th.