The Myth of Meritocracy

School administrators, writes Senior, understand best of all that intelligence tests for young kids are "practically worthless as predictors of future intelligence....Rather than promoting a meritocracy, in other words, these tests instead retard one. They reflect the world as it's already stratified--and then perpetuate that same stratification."

...

Intelligence is a process, not a fixed, gene-determined, thing. This process begins very early on, before we can even really see it, and we therefore often confuse these early, invisible stages with some sort of innate giftedness. Then we test kids and report the results as innate differences--this one is gifted, this one is not. This one has extra promise; that one does not. We send the "gifted" ones to good schools with small class sizes, better-trained teachers, better infrastructure, better relationships with parents, and higher expectations. We send the apparently-unpromising kids to under-funded, teach-to-test schools with minimal expectations.

And then we tell ourselves that we live in an educational meritocracy.
- David Shenk

and more: The Junior Meritocracy (By Jennifer Senior)

Food for thought: How about Singapore's case of testing ten-and-twelve year olds and putting a select few into the Gifted program?

Are you a thinker or do-er?

Many of the grad students I have encountered over the years can be broadly classified into 2 types - the thinkers and the do-ers. Thinkers refer to those who are typically strong in the academic theoretical concepts, and are very much at home playing with complex mathematical equations and the like. Do-ers on the hand, are more comfortable building machines/equipments from the ground up and are very much hands-on, somewhat like those 'garage scientists' we used to read about when young. The research groups that the grad students choose to join very often mirror their status as a 'thinker' or a 'do-er'. Rare are the few who are both 'thinker' and 'do-er'.

Most of the Singaporean students I met here in the US are more of the 'thinker' type, and I suspect it has a lot to do with our academic background (majority with 'A' level qualifications) - the 'A' levels stress more on theory than practicals and the fact that most Singaporeans don't have the luxury of having a 'workshop' room in their house. Plus we are more used to buying what we need off the shelf.

Using myself as an example - as an 'engineer' I did not build my first working machine (a unique 3-flow heat exchanger) until my undergrad senior year capstone project as part of a 2-person team. It was a steep learning curve to say the least - we were given only 5 weeks to

1. get a prototype up and running
2. provide analytical solutions that predict the steady state temperature profiles of all 3 fluid streams and
3. verify the temperatures experimentally.

You can imagine the sense of accomplishment I felt when everything worked as it should (which is not always the case in research).



That said, I am still more of a thinker than a do-er although the years of being a grad student and now a postdoc have made me into more of a do-er.

No prizes for coming second

I got my first rejection for an academic faculty position. It is a brutal world in academia, and there is no difference between the 2nd place or last (especially when there is only ONE opening). At least I got a rather detailed rejection letter, instead of the generic thank you for your application type. I wonder if it is so because of my PhD advisor (they are friends).

To: takchek
Subject: Re: My application

Hi takchek,

I am sorry to have not communicated with you earlier, but we were still in the process of making decisions. Your application made it to the final top five (out of about 650 candidates), but we had only money to bring in one person from out of state (Ed: seriously?!), unfortunately, so I was not able to invite you up for the final campus interview and visit.

Your application was very strong and the committee was quite impressed by it, and especially by the relevance of your previous research work and your proposed plans fit nicely the focus areas that the department has targeted. Ultimately the final decision was made based on both research experience and the candidates' clear commitment and evidence of excellence to undergraduate teaching (Ed: my Achilles' heel) at a leading liberal arts college.

I wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors.

Sincerely,
Chair, Faculty Search Comittee

The section below pertains to Philosophy, but it applies to the physical sciences and engineering as well (to the best of my knowledge). I was most likely penalized for the 3rd point, and will need to improve on this to be competitive.

How did we prune our field from 637 to 27? An important selection criterion was holding a Ph.D. from a good university. Members of our department earned their Ph.D.s at Columbia, Harvard, Oxford, and University of London. Additionally, City College is known as the “Harvard of the Proletariat,” with distinguished alumni that include nine Nobel Laureates, more than any other public institution in America. Our faculty members are expected to live up to this legacy.

A second criterion was research and publication. We looked not only for quality and promise of quantity, but also for originality. Creativity and individuality are assets for philosophers. We did not want candidates who merely parroted back what they had been taught at graduate school.

Third, we needed evidence of undergraduate teaching ability as well as versatility. We offer a broad range of electives to a diverse student body; a narrow focus does not serve our pedagogic needs well. Most applicants submitted extensive teaching portfolios including syllabuses, reading lists, student evaluations, and observations by senior professors. We looked for evidence of outstanding teaching ability, variety, and potential for curriculum development.

Finally, we wanted evidence of administrative service. Ideally, the candidate would also possess some ability to raise research funds, although this is not too prevalent among philosophers. Even so, a good many applicants had raised funds: either minimally in the form of postdoctoral fellowships, more broadly for organizing conferences, or most notably for research projects (either solo or collaborative).

Sigh.

Strong wings, deep roots?

MORE than one in five of the top students from the 1996-1999 A level graduating cohorts are not working in Singapore today. And of those from the same batches who went on to universities overseas without a scholarship bond, more than one in three are today carving out careers outside the country.

Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong gave these statistics on Saturday to illustrate the urgency of getting young Singaporeans to sink roots here even as they become more entrepreneurial and break out into the global economy.

'If more and more of our bright students do not return, this begs the question whether our success in giving them wings to fly far and high will result in our eventual decline as a nation, especially as we are not even reproducing ourselves.

'No nation will be able to sustain its growth and prosperity without sufficient talent, much less a small country like Singapore without natural resources,' said Mr Goh.

He was speaking to more than 1,000 guests at the 70th anniversary dinner of Chung Cheng High School last night. He urged schools to help students retain their emotional bonds to Singapore, 'so that they think of Singapore as the home which nurtured them, and want to contribute in some ways to the country of their birth'.

To do this, he suggested that schools inculcate in the young certain values, such as being appreciative of those who help them advance in life; and not taking for granted the academic, sports and arts programmes they can enjoy here and abroad, when many children elsewhere cannot.

Mr Goh hoped that the end result of such teaching would be students who have strong links with their schools, close ties with their friends and a strong sense of responsibility to their families - even if they choose to live, work and even settle down overseas.

Switching to Mandarin, Mr Goh said: 'I hope Chung Cheng and our schools will give two lasting bequests to our children. One is strong wings; the other, deep roots.

'Like wild geese that migrate each fall, young Singaporeans should be equipped with the courage, strength and adaptability to venture to distant lands in search of opportunities. But when spring returns, they will come back, as this is their home.'

Indeed, Mr Goh further argued in English, helping young Singaporeans stay rooted here was the most important challenge facing the Education Ministry. This is because the number of young Singaporeans working overseas will grow, given that the education system is producing more and more students equipped with the right skills to go global. - Goh Chin Lian, Straits Times, 28 June 2009

Goh Chok Tong is at it again. These guys at the top still have yet to get it, haven't they? To digress a little, it is nice to see my batch being one of the highlighted ones. LOL.

In addition to the numerous comments posted elsewhere on this issue, I have another one for the Men-in-White. Tell your underlings in the Civil Service/TLCs there has been a mis-communication between the top and middle management levels.

Some overseas Singaporeans are invited to apply for positions back home. Apparently one has to apply at that particular time 'cos the head honchos who are on the campus visit team will be collecting the resumes personally and then passing them on to their HR staffs for priority processing. If you apply outside of this particular time window, your resume goes to a black hole and nobody knows anything about the status of your application.

Meanwhile, the persons in question get offers from the overseas companies/universities which offer much, much better opportunities for their personal growth and career development (even in the current difficult economic conditions).

I can already provide a few real-life examples - Google vs. NUS; Microsoft vs. NUS/A-star; UC-Berkeley vs. NUS/A-star. (A-star in these cases refers to their RIs)

Talent appreciation? Phui! Go on, continue bringing in your planeloads of Indians and PRCs; most of whom see Singapore anyway as a stepping stone to the West and I daresay not exactly 'foreign talents'.

Economic Stimulus Job Opportunities in Academia

The money is getting out. If you want to do research in your dream school, now it's the best time to grab the opportunity.

From my department's Secretary for Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Scholars:

Subject: Economic Stimulus Postdoctoral Job Opportunities at Duke

Duke University anticipates receipt of award funding from the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), also known as the Economic Stimulus Act. Postdoctoral positions may be available as a result of this funding. If you would like to express interest in a potential postdoctoral appointment at Duke, please visit: http://www.hr.duke.edu/jobs/stimulus/

Postdoctoral position listings may also be found at http://www.postdoc.duke.edu/openings_at_duke.php

If you are interested in applying for the positions and meet the
eligibility requirements, please activate your application soon. If you know of other colleagues who might be interested in this Economic Stimulus opportunity, please forward this email to them.

Obama's New Deal for Academia

I will be honest upfront - things were really looking bad for us folks in academia (and pretty much everyone else too) in last few months. Well, they still are, but things are looking up with the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (the economic stimulus package) signed by President Obama on Feb 17.

In an email last semester, my PhD advisor actually had to send out a letter to the group (in addition to a pep talk during the regular group meetings) with encouraging words:

Dear group,

This (financial crisis) is a good opportunity to clarify and reinforce the positive things about our group. First of all, my primary concern is, and will continue to be, the welfare of my students. I will do anything (legally of course) and everything to keep your work going and with the best resources possible, and to help you make the most of your time here.

I know that situations like this can cause stress to rise and may lead to uncertainty among the group. First, I want to assure you that this will not fundamentally alter our ongoing research plans.

Secondly, it is obvious that the composition of our group is changing rapidly…mainly because of graduations. This is a good thing and it is normal. People are supposed to graduate and leave. So, there will be turnover in any organization. I wish that the group number were not fluctuating so largely, but that is only partially within my control. Grants get funded at unpredictable times, and about 5 years ago I had a lot of grants get funded all at once. I had a bunch of students join the group. Now those students (you know who you are) have finished or close to finishing.

The group size is small right now, and it’s going to get smaller temporarily, and this is intentional.

Let me explain:

In order to avoid this type of fluctuation in the future I have been attempting to take on only 1 student a year for the past two years. I have been writing only enough proposals to support this rate of growth (so I don’t have to take 3-4 people at once). So, this is part of a greater plan to provide more stability in the future.

Thirdly, about funding: Professors who have been in this business for 40 years (like the department chair) will tell you that they have never seen funding as tight as it is right now. So, writing only a few new proposals to grow the group 1 student per year is risky, which is why I was not planning originally to take on 2 this year. Another issue is that my current projects are non-overlapping –purely by chance – the main projects get renewed at the same time (January) each year. This means that at the end of the year I have to be careful – just like you do at the end of each month. So, if I look over your orders more carefully it is simply for this reason. It doesn’t mean that support for your project is going away and should not be a cause for your concern. I’ll take care of, and worry about, the funding. You guys (and gals) can worry about the research.

The quantity and quality of research output, and the type of job you get, and how long it takes you to graduate is rarely a direct function of the quantity or type of funding anyway. It is true! Some of the most highly-cited papers have come from poorly-funded research, not only in my group but in general throughout science. And some of the most well-funded work has produced few papers. I have other sources of funding to keep ideas afloat between big grants. It is not an impediment and I have always gotten the funding I sought.

When you go on a job interview, no one will ask how much funding your advisor had! What is important are the indicators of the quality and quantity of your work: how many papers, presentations and in what journals / conferences.

I am confident that our research is on the cutting edge and that each of your projects is going to lead you to an exciting career. For example, the number of citations of previous students’ work from my group is at an all-time high. It is among the highest of any associate professor at this university. My h-index is 20.

I will talk more about these things at our next group meeting, and until then my door is of course open to speak about this.

Regards,

Prof X

Yesterday my postdoc advisor had the whole group summoned:

Congress had given federal granting agencies (NSF, NIH, DOE) stimulus money for colleges to spend. There are opportunities for us in getting some of that package money. I want to help Congress spend those money and I want each and everyone of you to come up with ideas by Friday on how to tack on our existing NSF, NIH and DOE grants with more funding.

Focus on the "near-term" and ready to start projects, as these are especially advantaged in this environment.

Government-Wide Timeline

All agencies are under significant pressure to begin distributing the funding in the stimulus bill to States, organizations, and individuals as quickly as possible. The overall timeline announced by the Administration for the next few months is:
• February 19, 2009: Federal Agencies to begin reporting their formula block grant awards.
• March 3, 2009: Federal Agencies to begin reporting uses of funds.
• May 3, 2009: Federal agencies to make performance plans publically available; to begin reporting on their allocations for entitlement programs.
• May 15, 2009: Detailed agency financial reports to become available.
• May 20, 2009: Federal agencies to begin reporting their competitive grants and contracts.
• July 15, 2009: Recipients of Federal funding to begin reporting on their use of funds.

In addition, the Office of Management and Budget has set targets for implementation of programs by the agencies. Individual agencies have additional deadlines; for example, NSF, NIST, and NASA have been directed to deliver a spending plan to Congress by April 18, 2009.

I live in exciting times...plus it helps that I am in involved in the development of new, clean, renewable energy sources, one of the hottest areas (pun unintended) of research right now.

The 9 common types of PIs

J.W.Yewdell, Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology 9, 413-416 (May 2008)

*

Writing a research statement/proposal is taking far longer (and more difficult) than I had anticipated. How would you know/guesstimate how much you can accomplish in the next 3 - 5 years? It's like writing fiction.

*

NTU is on an aggressive hiring spree for my discipline. The department concerned wants to expand by another 20% over the next 5 years.

The final stretch to the PhD

It is no joke when my seniors say that the ABD stage is the hardest part of Grad School. Even the university is concerned enough to set up a Doctoral Thesis Support Group.

Dear doctoral student,

The University Counseling Center is offering a support group for doctoral students who are working on their thesis. The purpose of the group is to provide a mutually supportive environment for doctoral students to address the academic, professional, and personal challenges involved in completing a doctoral thesis.

Common topics addressed include: maintaining motivation in the face of obstacles, setting achievable goals, and working effectively with one's advisor and committee. The group ideally consists of 6-8 members who can make a commitment to attending weekly sessions that last 1.5 hours. Group members are asked to maintain confidentiality regarding group discussions.

Prospective members will have to meet with me for 15-30 minutes to determine whether the group could be helpful to them.

Warm regards,

(University) Counseling Psychologist

I must remind myself: the best dissertation is a done dissertation. Must avoid the "Dissertation as Magnum Opus" trap. This is what years of conditioning in Grad School have done to me. From someone who used to strive for nothing but As and distinctions, to one who will be happy to just pass.

Education in Singapore

I found this at the Singapore Art Museum on Christmas Day. (Yes, I was at the museums on such public holidays... Nothing wrong with being at the museums; pondering over the exhibits beats squeezing with the crowds at the malls)

I can't remember the exact wording, but it certainly wasn't flattering...

Gild the lily Ivy

The Dangerous Wealth of the Ivy League. The Gilded Age of America's Higher Education has begun.

The stark difference (at least in terms of the infrastructure and the cars the students drive) can be seen in an East Coast City which has 3 major universities - a private, extremely selective and wealthy college, a state flagship and a second third tier public institution that is mainly a commuter school. Just like the wards in a hospital, you have the A class, B class and C class.

A case of 锦上添花 vs 雪中送炭.

Asian Stereotypes in the US

I was reminded again of this on the flight to Philadelphia. I made the mistake of wearing my school's T-shirt for the trip. There was this very annoying WASPish mother sitting next to me, and she made many comments about my (Grad) school and major to her 'precocious' daughter on her left.

Some youtube videos on the various Asian stereotypes, which I first saw on PS's blog:



Related: Asian and College Pressure.

Excuse me, are you an elite?

I have very probing readers. They give me lots of ideas about topics to blog about, and can even tell me what most Singaporeans may think what I am simply based on my educational background. So today accidental elite girl, or AEG asked said, after reading the reply by sunny flowery:

sigh.. see. . the christians = old school elite

You are the 'elite' whether you like it or not. It doesn't matter if you don't behave like one, or don't think you are; but your education is privileged and in 'meritocratic' Singapore, you are considered a member of the elite. Whether or not you choose to behave like one is another matter.

My background is very humble, but if you were to look at my academic record, schools I went to, what I studied, and the fact I am still getting an education, I am probably classified as 'elite'.

With my background.. I could have ended up as a checkout girl at NTUC, just as easily as I will be ending up with a PhD. Living off the state, not paid taxes, I don't worry about money because I am fairly confident I will be ok. Not rich..because scientists never are.

I think I have been pretty unsullied by financial troubles living in singapore brings to you, because i am still at student at 30. But sure.. when the time comes to 'grow up', get married etc..oh boy I will be in trouble.

(M)Any of your friends who are scholars etc think they are not is delusional.

"We will all deny strongly. There is this 'guilt' factor, to admit anything like it."

Yeah.. the guilt. I know. But deep down in the bottom of your heart you all know you are. You guys are educated, you have options, you have skills, you aren't trapped in Singapore. The world truly is your oyster.

"I mean, it's not hard when u have mckinseys, goldman sachs coming down to your campuses to recruit"

To deny that these opportunities present themselves to you because you are the educated elite smacks of hypocrisy.

She asked for anonymity, but agreed to a pseudonym. I suggested 'elite girl' or 'little miss elite', but she said those are too Wee Shu Min-ish. So we settled on 'AEG'.

Perhaps you can post this question on your blog and ask your readers

"Am I an elite?"

since i reckon many of your readers are also part of the educated elite

I then posed this to loiseaurebelle, and she has duly blogged about it our subsequent conversation.

I guess you can call this post her (lr's) prequel. But I take no responsibility for what she had written about me, or what the Gahmen thinks about us.

Edit: Sze blogs about this too.

Mortar Boards for All? Or not?

This past week the Straits Times published many complaint letters from Singaporean parents whose kids did reasonably well in the A levels but fail to secure places in the local universities.

Suggestions such as freeing up the use of CPF monies to finance overseas undergraduate education, opening more universities and/or places in Singapore for the 'average' A level holders (The California model) were raised.

Open access or research/academic excellence with extremely selective criteria? Can the two coexist in a single institution? The current Sg public tertiary education system is clearly inadequate. While the number of slots available is obviously scarce, the public (rightly or wrongly) sees foreign talents as adding unnecessary competition to the local college going pool.

Recommended reads: Higher Education subsidies, and the situation with US state flagships.

Expect to see more of such letters next year, Dragon babies or not.

Ease CPF-funds rule for overseas study

MY DAUGHTER scored As and Bs for her A levels but failed to get into the law faculty at NUS and SMU. Neither did she qualify for her second choice - accountancy. She was offered her fifth choice.

Unless one has excellent grades, the influx of foreign talent and scholars has rendered it increasingly competitive (and difficult) for good to average performers to secure a place in the local universities. This has been exacerbated by the drive by the universities to attract top talent that would have otherwise qualified (with scholarships) for the likes of Oxford and Cambridge by offering double degrees, scholarships and tie-ups with overseas institutions.

It is shocking to learn that some students with four As failed to qualify for even an interview with the medicine faculty this year. Students with excellent results of A1 (General Paper) and four As also failed to qualify to study law at NUS.

These students may have to venture overseas. Ironically the four As would have secured them a place at some of the top international universities.

However, they may be deprived of pursuing their dreams by the very high cost of a tertiary education overseas.

My daughter has secured offers from UK universities to study law. An estimated $250,000 is required for the three-year course. None of the banks I contacted is prepared to offer a study loan for overseas tertiary education. All they could offer are the usual overdraft and personal loans, with collateral and at an interest rate of prime plus 1 per cent.

CPF Ordinary Account funds can be used for local tertiary education but not for overseas studies. I have written to the Ministry of Manpower but to no avail.

The ministry should consider allowing the use of CPF funds for overseas tertiary education, perhaps capping it at a certain limit, or come up with other solutions.

Singapore's goal of becoming an education hub would be questionable if the people's educational aspirations cannot be accommodated.

Ong Cher San

---

Did son just miss the mark or ...?

I WAS disappointed when my son, with As in all four subjects (three sciences and mathematics) and distinctions in two 'S' papers (one of which was Chemistry) and a B4 in the General Paper, could not obtain a place in the pharmacy course at the National University of Singapore (NUS).
But I was more disappointed with not knowing by how far he missed obtaining a place or whether he should not have applied for the course in the first place because, with his results, he had 'no chance'. I wonder what the A-level scores of the last qualifying student for the pharmacy course were.

It seems far easier for an O-level student to 'know' why he did not qualify for a polytechnic course. I have seen the polytechnics provide booklets with information on the aggregate O-level score of the last student to be admitted to each course in the previous year. Special requirements needed (e.g., minimum score for certain subjects) were also included.

There is also the Joint Admission Exercise booklet for secondary-school students with similar information.

I urge the local public universities to come up with the same. The universities should not refrain from doing so on the grounds that admission criteria change from year to year. The polytechnics do caution that the information they provide is meant as a guideline but the data remains very useful for students and their parents.

If there are non-academic criteria and other preferences for certain courses, lay them out too. It cannot be too difficult.

Tan Tor Seng

Another one closes

Last year, it was Johns Hopkins. I wonder how much money the tax payers have lost this time.

University of New South Wales Singapore campus to shut in June

By Pearl Forss, Channel NewsAsia

Posted: 23 May 2007 1715 hrs

SINGAPORE: The University of New South Wales will close its campus in Singapore next month.

The announcement came less than two months after its grand opening. The school says it is running into financial problems because enrolment was lower than expected.

Its target was 300 students in its first semester. But it only got 148 students, 100 of whom are Singaporeans.

Students have already paid their fees, which range between S$26,000 and S$29,000 a year. UNSW says these students will be offered a place at its home campus in Sydney. There will also be scholarships to help with the cost of travel and accommodation. The decision to shut the campus comes as a shock to many students. The scholarships offered are supposed to be based on needs and not on academic achievements. But most students Channel NewsAsia spoke to were not quite convinced. Many had chosen the Singapore campus because they could not afford to go to Australia.

And though the school is helping out financially with the scholarships, it is not clear at this point in time how much exactly the school is willing to fork out. Still, the university claims that about half its students have indicated that they would like to go to Australia to continue their studies. Most of the local students who enrolled in the university come from the polytechnics. “It’s quite an inappropriate time, with our exams coming as well. If they decide to close down after one semester, they should have done adequate research to see if this whole university was even feasible in the first place,” said a student. “Knowing that the school is a creditable one, it is unbelievable that this thing can happen,” said another.

“I do not know what is the next step I need to do. To transfer to another school or go to Sydney? What is the option for us? Now, they have not known what are the private institutes we can go to to transfer in Singapore,” said a third student.

The school says that it is also in talks with local institutions and other universities in the region to offer these students a place to continue their education. But this is little consolation for the 48 foreign students who wanted an Australian degree and Singapore cost of living. “The school is offering us to go back to Australia to study, but I cannot go back. I end up paying something like $30,000 and I can do nothing. I’ve spent the money and yah, it’s pretty hard for me now,” said a student from Hong Kong. ”I hope not to go back to Indonesia. I’m seeking to go overseas because it’s a better education but now this happens, it’s a bit confusing for me,” said a student from Indonesia. “Before this, I was in Los Angeles. I was going to go to UNSW in Sydney but I ended up coming here because Singapore is also a good place. It’s a good name, it’s a good school, so I thought I’ll give this a try, moved everything from LA, came here….I don’t know what I’m going to do right now,” said a student from the US. UNSW has already invested over S$22 million (AUD$17.5 million) in its Singapore campus. It was invited by Singapore’s Economic Development Board in 2004 to establish what would have been the first private comprehensive university in Singapore.

The EDB refuses to reveal how much it invested in the school. The episode is clearly damaging to Singapore’s aim to be a global schoolhouse. But the EDB, which drives the global schoolhouse initiatives, believes it will still reach its target of attracting 150,000 international students by 2015. There are currently 80,000 foreign students in Singapore.

Aw Kah Peng, EDB’s Assistant Managing Director, said: “The learning point is that we have to continue working very hard. Truly, with every institution, it will be different. With each one, we have to put everything we can to think about all these issues of whether we can make it work, how long it will take for us to make it work, what will it take for us to make it work. We will then have to step forward on that basis.”

UNSW says it would have stayed on in Singapore if it has been allowed to scale down its student enrolment numbers to 2,000 students by 2012. But this would be quite far from the original bargain with the EDB which had set a target of 15,000 UNSW students by 2020.

The UNSW closure does not mean that the EDB will no longer work with the school.

The EDB says there are many areas of cooperation between UNSW and Singapore which are mutually beneficial.

These include foundation schooling for university entry, research collaborations, University of New South Wales school competitions and joint programmes with Singapore institutions.

EDB says it will continue to pursue these areas and strengthen its relationship with UNSW.

Professor Fred Hilmer, Vice-Chancellor of the University of New South Wales, said: "Last year....we actually had much stronger demand in Sydney than we had in the previous four years. I think one of the things we've learnt, and it's really for Singapore to draw its own lesson, is that geography is really important. When a student says he wants an Australian degree, what he really means is, 'I want the experience of living in Sydney', and not just in educational terms but riding a surfboard, doing the other things a lot of students in a campus like ours, do."

Supply and Demand at Brand Name US Colleges

News reports from the NY Times, WSJ and Bloomberg on selective colleges getting even more selective. Just a decade ago, such extremely competitive admissions (based on my experience with peers applying together from Ghim Moh JC) were restricted only to a few select US colleges. Teachers would only write LORs (letters of recommendations)/encourage the best (defined by their 3 S-papers, Science/Math Olympiad medals etc etc) to those applying to HYPSM and Caltech. I am still not sure if it is true, but the word going around was that these universities had set a 'low quota' for successful Singapore applicants.

The applicant numbers are rising, but the places available are still pretty much constant.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

This article reminded me of the students from a certain high school. But who am I to criticize? After all I am a beneficiary of the system. Hence my snigger when friends say they want to go to New Orleans to help rebuild the city. Yeah...right.

Purpose of an Education

7366 asked:

what is the purpose of an education - like seriously speaking? Since you're a grad student - can you share some insights about life in general and why you chose this path?

Elia answered it for me:

I think the most valuable part of my undergraduate education was learning how to ask *good* questions and learning how to find ways to get them answered.

loiseaurebelle:

“Some universities teach skills. Some give you an education. Skills eventually become obsolete. But you’ll always have your education.”

Well actually, I was first exposed to it in DHS and it was from a Chinese teacher (Ha! I bet you thought I learned nothing from my Chinese classes.)

"学问! 你要学就要问。没人知道你就要自己找。"

I have many questions about the natural phenomena around us. I don't think I learned enough as an undergraduate to know the answers. That's why I am in Grad School. And I am still learning how to ask *good* questions and tear down fallacious hand-waving, hocus-pocus theories.

Trust me, there are aplenty of these in the physical and engineering sciences, especially when it comes to the frontiers (think nanotechnology).

The bottomline is never to accept anything at its face value.

------------------------------------------------------------

Whatever may be the limitations which trammel inquiry elsewhere, we believe that the great state UNIVERSITY of WISCONSIN should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the TRUTH can be found. - Plaque at the entrance to Bascom Hall, UW-Madison.

------------------------------------------------------------

As an aside, there is this. (tip: ashke)

4As Sad, 2As Happy

The New Paper on Monday had three articles on last year's A levels results. There was this focus on some RJC students being embarrassed to get 'just' 4As.

Do we attend school to get educated, or to ace some standardized exam? Granted, in Singapore's context, one's performance that exam might make or break him/her (like a place in the first choice course in the local university or a PSC scholarship, Ha!), but what difference does it make between (AAAA A1 DDM) and (AAAA A1 DDD)? Geez.

Know what you are getting into

I am sure many of takchek's visitors had already read this. If you have not, I strongly recommend it. :)

Below is part of a letter my senior had written to the powers to be (circa Jul 2005), as an honest feedback on the NSS program. Unsurprisingly (and unfortunately), it wasn't taken too kindly by a body allergic to criticisms and was dismissed unceremoniously.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

It is with great regret that I learned that the controversy surrounding scholarships and bond breaking has recently resurged. I hope you will allow me the opportunity to share some of my thoughts on the issue of scholarships and the cultivation of local scientific talent.

Having entered university at a time when government agencies failed to recognize the value of a doctorate, my contemporaries who discovered their latent passion for research during their undergraduate experiences were faced with the unenviable position of deciding between breaking their bonds or forgoing the pursuit of their newfound passion.

Prior to the introduction of doctoral scholarships, I had often counseled junior college students with a passion for scientific research to forgo the allure of a prestigious scholarship, and to stay at a local university to pursue their undergraduate education, and thereby retain the freedom to pursue a doctoral program. For those who aspired to an undergraduate degree overseas, I would encourage applying for financial aid, even when it had the potential to adversely affect the admissions decision.

I have always maintained that is foolish to deny one's passions and to deceive oneself into thinking that one will overcome any initial discomfiture with the idea of a bond, particularly when one has the financial means to support an overseas education. For a Singaporean student who is uncomfortable with the idea of a bond, the laissez-faire attitude that pervades most foreign universities would only serve to amplify such misgivings.

Predictably, in our prestige-conscious society, few students were willing to decline a scholarship for such intangibles as passion and job satisfaction, much to their and the nation's eventual regret.

With the advent of the National Science Talent Search and the National Science Scholarships instituted by A*STAR, I had high hopes that future generations of aspiring Singaporean scientists would not have to face the difficult decision that many of my contemporaries had to.

Regretfully, the many retroactively applied policy changes that characterized the last few years of the National Science Talent Search and National Science Scholarship program has tempered my initial enthusiasm. A particular case in point includes the decision to modify the terms of the scholarship associated with the National Science Talent Search to restrict the service obligation to an A*STAR research institute, as opposed to serving in any research facility in Singapore. Perhaps more widespread in terms of its impact for students currently serving national service was the decision to eliminate many of the top-tier universities from the list of approved undergraduate institutions.

While I agree that a scholarship agreement should not be undertaken lightly, and should be entered into in good faith, retroactively applied policy decisions put scholars in an awkward position, since alternative funding opportunities such as financial aid are no longer open to them midway through their education. Perhaps more importantly, such policy reversals serve to erode the credibility of A*STAR, which can have important consequences in terms of its ability to attract and retain scientific talent.

On a more practical note, might I suggest that in addition to the selected overseas institutions that are pre-approved, A*STAR should consider allowing potential scholars to pursue their education at another institution if they are able to provide a cogent argument about why their university of choice would provide scientific and intellectual opportunities that are unavailable at pre-approved institutions.

As for the issue of minimum GPA standards for the conversion of BS scholars to the PhD program, valid concerns have been raised about the issue of grade inflation, and the temptation to undertake a less challenging and rigorous program of study in order to adhere to the minimum GPA standards. Singaporean students are by nature risk-adverse, and this policy only serves to accentuate that behavior, which is an unfortunate trait to have in a research scientist.

Perhaps what frustrates me most about the situation is that I see great potential in terms of the significant investments in infrastructure that A*STAR has introduced into the Singaporean research and development community. But it behooves us to remember that as a nation-state, our greatest assets are our people, and bureaucratic policies that unnecessarily alienates our young scientists have no place in the agency charged with promoting research and development.

Life starts anew AFTER leaving Singapore; Oh, and jury duty too

I speak from a male Singaporean perspective of course. And no, I am not going to to rant again about how much of a time-and-mind wasting activity National Service is was to most of us. I am just glad that I have the option of not returning and be subjected to wearing that fugly No. 4 (plus whatever push/flavor of the day the gahmen wants the herd to go into).

Oikono (Wharton/Penn), quitacet (Columbia) and 7366 (WashU)'s experiences were very similar to how I felt in my first year away from home. We may all have different dreams, but we chose to come to the US to pursue them (and going beyond grades).

But many Singaporeans do not have this luxury. That nation has done itself in somewhat with the Pygmalion Effect. I am not even referring to some generic compatriot; I looked at the sad eyes of several of my (distant) cousins and neighbors' kids who are not doing well in school, of how their parents (and I am guessing their teachers too) had given up and branded them as 'gone case'.

I do have my teachers to thank for believing in me. Not for some though. And they still leave an imprint on me, albeit in the non-academic sense. I am, in a nutshell, the most confident insecure person you will ever meet. I am still a work in progress. When I was young, I longed to fit in and finally at 21, I stopped trying. I simply went to a new environment overseas. I have not looked back since. Hopefully never ever.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Insanepoly:

Many of them come brimming with hope and passion. Yet beneath it all, I can’t help but also noticed a lack of self confidence, a lack of belief in their own abilities. Its almost as if deep down they doubt they will ever be able to produce something good. I look into their eyes, I see self-doubts and a fear of failure. Its ridiculous to see some of the students sit infront of their workstation and they’re almost afraid if they do something wrong, the computer will explode or something.

I don’t know why, perhaps its our education system but I don’t for one second believe we don’t have what it takes. Yes, our enviroment may not be condusive for creativity but hell, if flowers can bloom in the desert I don’t see how even an adverse enviroment can stop one from exercising his own creativity. You have to work harder, that’s all. And above everything, you have to believe in yourself. And that’s all it boils down to, if you don’t believe in yourself, that in and of itself is already a major obstacle and perhaps that’s why many people stop improving as an artist. Perhaps its because subconsciously they don’t believe they will be any good, so why bother to practice, why bother to improve. They let the opinions of others beat them down, they let their lack of self confidence bear them down, and that’s sad.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

In my snail mailbox today, there was a letter from the county's "Office of Jury Clerk" addressed to me. First thought that came to my mind - Shit.

Trial by jury is a fundamental principle of our system of justice. Jury service is therefore both an opportunity and an obligation of every American citizen. Your name has been electronically drawn by random selection from a list of residents in this county as a potential juror pursuant to state law. You are being considered for jury service in this county. Your cooperation and willingness to return this form is greatly appreciated.

COMPLETE AND RETURN WITHIN SEVEN (7) DAYS

That was not all. On the envelope enclosed, the top-right hand box has the wording: "Place stamp here. Post Office will not deliver mail without proper postage."

WTF?! 1. I am not a US citizen. 2. You are asking me a favor, and I have to cough up money to send you the stupid form?!

Now, if only I am that lucky in winning the green card lottery...

Little Asia on the Hill

Continuing series in the press about over-representation of (East) Asians in top US college campuses.

Alternative to the first link.