How to Apply

How to Apply

Prepare

1. Explore and narrow down your choices

• This phase takes a long time.  It is best to start exploring while you are still in JC.

• You should apply to at least three courses of your choice in different universities (Reach, Target and Safety) so that you can make an informed decision. 

• Learn more about choosing a suitable university and course here.

2. Check out subject pre-requisites and selection criteria

Base criteria for applying

To apply to the AUs, you need to have: 

For AY2025 and before:

• 3 H2 passes in content subjects, 1 H1 pass in content subjects, Project Work and GP/KI in the same sitting

• Meet one of the following Mother Tongue Language (MTL) requirement:

  • A minimum of ‘S’ grade in H1 MTL or General Studies in Chinese or H2 Mother Tongue Language & Literature (MTLL) taken at ‘A’ level

  • Pass in MTL ‘B’ syllabus taken at ‘A’ level

  • A minimum of D7 in Higher MTL taken at ‘O’ level

For AY2026 and after:

• 3 H2 passes in content subjects and GP in the same sitting

• Meet one of the following Mother Tongue Language (MTL) requirement:

  • A minimum of ‘S’ grade in H1 MTL or General Studies in Chinese or H2 Mother Tongue Language & Literature (MTLL) taken at ‘A’ level

  • Pass in MTL ‘B’ syllabus taken at ‘A’ level

  • A minimum of D7 in Higher MTL taken at ‘O’ level

Subject Pre-requisites and Selection Tests

Some university courses have specific subject pre-requisites and selection tests. For the latest and detailed requirements, please access the university websites:

Alternatively, login to our College Portal here to view the summary under the ECG Repository.

University Admissions Score (UAS) (Click here for the UAS Calculator.)

The universities select candidates based on their UAS, which is the sum of the rank points for subjects that are considered in the calculation of their UAS. The table below shows the corresponding rank points for each grade.

The UAS is calculated as follows:

For those with A-Level results from 2024 or earlier:

• three H2 content-based subjects

• one H1 content-based subject

• Project Work

• GP taken in the same sitting as the content-based subjects

• The maximum points for H2 and H1 subjects are 20 and 10 respectively. Maximum number of points is 90.

• Your H1 MTL results may be considered if it improves the UAS.

• H3 papers taken at the A-Level examination are not considered in the computation of the UAS. Candidates who have taken H3 programmes may be considered for admissions under Aptitude-based Admissions (ABA).

• NOTE: If you are applying in AY2026 and AY2027, your UAS will be computed based on 90 points and rebased to 70 points. If you are applying from AY2028 onwards, your UAS will be based on the revised computation method (i.e. 70 points based on 3 H2 content-based subjects and GP + Pass in Project Work and MTL).

For those with A-Level results from 2025 onwards:

• the three H2 content-based subjects

• GP taken in the same sitting as the content-based subjects

• The maximum points for H2 and H1 subjects are 20 and 10 respectively. Maximum number of points is 70.

• Your H1 MTL and/or the fourth H1/H2 content-based subject may be considered if it improves the UAS.

• H3 papers taken at the ‘A’ Level examination are not considered in the computation of the UAS. Candidates who have taken H3 programmes may be considered for admissions under Aptitude-based Admissions (ABA).

Indicative Grade Profile (IGP)​

• To help students select university courses based on their UAS, the universities release an indicative grade profile every year.

• ​Please note that meeting the previous year’s grade of a course does not guarantee admission to that course for the next year. 

• Other universities do not release an IGP as they select students based on a holistic criteria.

• Click here for the UAS Calculator. Use the calculator to compare your UAS with the UAS of the 10th percentile IGP.

Selection Criteria

In order to be

• selected for a course (without interview)

• shortlisted for course interview

• shortlisted for scholarship interview

your UAS should ideally be better than the UAS of the 10th percentile IGP.

What if your UAS falls below the 10th percentile UAS of your desired course?

Aptitude-based Admissions (ABA)

• If your UAS falls slightly below the 10th percentile UAS of the IGP i.e. 2.5 points, you may opt to apply via aptitude-based admissions.

  NUS

  NTU

Under  ABA, the university will consider factors besides academic grades and admit applicants on other bases, including demonstrated ability and interest, work experience, leadership, community service and exceptional talent, subject to a minimum level of academic competence.

NUS First choice Bonus Points Scheme

• If your UAS falls slightly below the 10th percentile UAS of the IGP i.e. 2.5 points, you may continue to apply to NUS due to the First choice Bonus Points Scheme​.

• This scheme only applies for courses that do not require an interview or selection test.

​It is highly recommended that you apply under ABA scheme for both NTU and NUS even if your grade profile meets the minimum criteria for the previous year.

Apply

1. Apply to all universities concurrently

• Apply to each university via the individual university online portals. 

  NUS

  NTU

  SMU

  SUTD

  SIT

  SUSS

• The application deadline is 19 March for all AUs.

• Application to NTU-NIE via NTU.

• Application to Duke-NUS is via the various programmes under each university.

• Apply for university scholarships at the same time. The scholarship application may be separate or together with the admissions application.

2. Request for teacher references

• Follow the guidelines stated here for teacher references.

3. Write your personal statement and prepare for interviews

• Follow the guidelines stated here for personal statement writing.

• Follow the guidelines stated here for interviews preparation.

4. After you submit your application, apply for scholarships and financial aid

• Besides university scholarships and financial aid, you should also apply for organisation scholarships. Find out more about scholarships and financial aid here.

Achieve

1. Accept offers via Joint Acceptance Portal

• Successful applicants are required to accept the admission offer online via Joint Acceptance Portal by the deadline shown in your electronic offer letter.

• The windows for acceptance are:
  1st window: 2 January to 24 May 2024 (for offers released before 24 May)
  2nd window: 1 to 18 June 2024 (for offers released between 25 May and 18 June 2024)

• As the Common Acceptance Portal is the same across the six AUs, you may be offered a course of study in more than one university.

• However, you are only allowed to accept one offer from one of the six universities if you have been offered by more than one university.

2. Appeal after release of application outcome

• You may wish to appeal against the admissions decision of the university. 

• Generally, you would need to submit an essay to outline reasons for appeal.

• In your essay, you should focus on

  • new achievements not previously stated in your original application

  • new circumstances not previously stated in your original application

  • how you can contribute to the university in non-academic areas

• If you have received offers already, please accept one of the offers as you await the outcome of appeal.

3. Information for returning NS men

• The AUs will reserve a place for you if you are serving full-time National Service (NS) in Singapore. You will only enrol after the completion of your full-time NS obligation, or if you are granted disruption by MINDEF

• Some applicants may wish to apply for a change of course while serving full-time NS. You can submit a fresh admission application during the admissions window of the current batch or email the admissions office.

• Your reserved course will be automatically withdrawn if your new application is successful.

• If you changed your mind and do not wish to accept the new course offer, it would be advisable for you to:

  • Submit an appeal during the appeal period to reinstate your previous reserved course. The success of your appeal will be at the discretion of the University, and

  • Accept the new offer, while waiting for the outcome of your appeal.

• If you are unsuccessful in your new application, you will remain in the reserved course if you had accepted the reserved course earlier.