Yale-NUS College welcomes over 190 students to the Class of 2019

Singapore’s first liberal arts college continues to attract talents from a wide variety of backgrounds and interests

198 exceptional students from around the world will form the Class of 2019 at Yale-NUS College, keeping the College on track with its plans to grow its class size to 250 students over the next few years. With the arrival of these new students who possess both stellar academic credentials as well as extraordinary extracurricular interests and accomplishments, Yale-NUS continues to expand the diverse and global nature of its student body, which will stand at over 500 students with its third intake. The talented applicant pool confirms the interest in Yale-NUS’ innovative liberal arts and science curriculum.

In all, Yale-NUS attracted more than 8,500 applicants from all over the world. Singaporeans (over 60%) continue to make up the largest pool of students in this year’s intake, similar to the previous two cohorts, and hail from 27 schools across Singapore. Our international students come from 25 countries, including for the first time, students from El Salvador, Jamaica and Tunisia. The nationalities in the Class of 2019 that are most frequently represented are the United States, China and India.

The College adopts a holistic approach in evaluating applicants and welcomes well-rounded students, who not only possess strong academic credentials, but are also brimming with innovative ideas, entrepreneurial spirit, strong communication skills, and deeply involved in their communities.

Yale-NUS Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid, Kristin Greene, says, “We thoroughly enjoyed getting to know our prospective students through the application and interviewing process and are overwhelmed at the exceptional talent of this third class at Yale-NUS College. Besides being academically outstanding, they are incredibly diverse in their interests and beliefs, contributing widely to their communities.  They have a passion and drive to not only learn about themselves and the world, but also to build the legacy of Yale-NUS College. We look forward to having them on campus soon.”

Risa Shindo, Class of 2019, who hails from Japan and has been living in New York for the past ten years, is one such student who has participated in initiatives that impacted the community. Over two summers, Risa volunteered in Ishinomaki, one of the southernmost cities along the Sanriku Coast in Japan that was heavily damaged by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. There, she lent a helping hand to the fishermen who were short-handed, and found the volunteering efforts extremely enriching. Risa says, “Although this was a voluntary effort, the programme itself was very two-way. In exchange for lending a hand to the fishermen, I learnt a great deal from my host, the Abe family, about their lives at home and at sea, and also how they survived the earthquake.” Risa later returned to New York and retold the stories of the Abe family, raising funds through a concert with some of her peers.

Singaporean Sean Cham, Class of 2019, is the mastermind behind the photography project Yesteryears which is widely popular on social media. He says, “I wish to improve my craft in both areas of performing and visual arts as I see merit in both. I hope that one day, art would become more relevant to the common man on the street, and I intend to delve into more arts-related research during my time in College,” Sean adds, “Having a pool of like-minded students as well as dedicated and experienced faculty members, alongside opportunities for overseas immersion, I’m sure my time in Yale-NUS College will be a meaningful and exciting one.”

As the first liberal arts college in Singapore, Yale-NUS offers a distinctive curriculum and residential programme that encourages active learning, adaptability and critical thought. Students are exposed to an interdisciplinary inquiry-based curriculum which enables them to master a broad body of knowledge and techniques, taught by a globally diverse faculty of leading educators and researchers who are passionate in mentoring and teaching. Leveraging on the immense interest and high calibre of the applicant pool, the College’s plan to grow its class size remains on track. At full capacity, the total expected student population will be 1,000 students, with 250 students in each class. The Class of 2019 will be the first cohort of students to start their Yale-NUS education in the College’s permanent campus at 16 College Avenue West, Singapore 138527.

Yale-NUS College Class of 2019 at a glance:

Yale-NUS College at a glance:

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