I was from JC! In JC, I studied Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and Economics. I liked Mathematics, especially because it was the easiest for me, maybe?
Initially, I didn’t really know what I wanted, so I considered Business since it was more of a general course. But when NUS’s Open House came along, I saw Real Estate, and I thought it was quite interesting. So for me, you can say that my decision was based on my interest: I was just more interested in that path.
It seemed somewhat similar to Business, and there were also elements of finance. It was partly because of my interest in property – it’s similar to business, but in a real estate context. It was really a preference thing for me. I like working with spaces, rather than abstract numbers like stocks. When you see property, you can do so many things: asset management, valuation; the list goes on!
The whole course for real estate is 4 years.
Real Estate is one of the more structured and rigid courses, and most of the core modules for me are fixed. That means that we kind of just see the same people in the same lectures for most of the semesters—so if you don’t like your classmates, I guess that’s not good.
So far, for my first semester, I took urban planning modules. If you don’t really know what urban planning is, it’s a bit like this. You know how we have plots of land? URA will kind of designate different plots of land for different land use -then you kind of see what the different kinds of land uses are, and why one plot of land is more suitable for a purpose than another plot of land. Maybe they’ll ask why you might want this to be a residential area instead of a commercial area, or whether you should build shopping malls or factories. Sometimes it’s really common sense: people need shopping malls, but you just need to have the reasons to explain why and justify them. So I think exams for urban planning modules are a bit of smoke, it’s a lot of writing.
For my second semester, I had Economics, Statistics and Finance.
After the first two years, you can specialise if you’re interested! For Real Estate in NUS, we only have one specialisation, and it’s in Real Estate Finance. I’m thinking about taking it!
Also, we have this concurrent degree program: it’s some master’s program for Urban Planning. If you want to take it, your program would be 4 years and an additional one year, so you’ll graduate with two degrees: a BSc in Real Estate, and also a Master of Urban Planning.
I would say that the course isn’t easy in terms of content. But maybe the bell curve is less steep? Considering how the course is one of the least competitive to get into (lower cut-off points), generally, it’s not uncommon to see some people that may not be as hardcore. As such, the bell curve is just not as scary as some other courses.
So far, I find it quite interesting, since the people that I’ve met in my course joined Real Estate because they’re passionate about and interested in it, not because they have no choice but to go there.
Honestly, I think that to do well in RE, you really have to be all rounded. For example, for the first semester’s Urban Planning modules, you could say that it’s a bit closer to the arts side. But for the second semester’s Economics and Mathematics Modules, you’ll have to be better at maths and numbers.
This semester, I have 4 core modules and one UE (unrestricted module). There’s a lecture every week, and every lecture is about 2 hours, and for RE, there’s a 2 hour tutorial every alternate week. In other words, that means that one module alternates between 2 and 4 hours every alternate week. If you plan properly, you can get free days!
I wouldn’t say that my workload is very hardcore actually. I think it’s quite chill, actually. As compared to maybe FASS, we don’t have as many readings!
I think the biggest misconception comes from the low cut-off scores for admission into Real Estate, and most people would think that only the people with worse scores would go into Real Estate. I think this causes the course to have quite a bad image, or an image that it doesn’t really deserve.
Some people may think that courses with low scores might mean that you have fewer career prospects. But personally, I think it’s not true, since the RE sector is really broad. For example, we have this thing known as valuation: every year, your parents will probably need to pay property tax, right? So how it works is, there are actually valuers at IRAS who do property valuation to tell you how much tax you have to pay. On the other hand, there are consultants who specialise in leasing that can advise clients on the types of tenants they should lease out their spaces to in malls.
So I really wouldn’t say that career prospects are limited. It’s true that courses like CS might become more popular with technology, but I don’t think RE is a dying trade: no matter what, you’re still going to need shopping malls, retail outlets and a house to live in.
I think that the value of real estate is sometimes overlooked, and I believe that what my professor says is true; that people tend to take spaces for granted.
Initially, I did get questioned a lot on why I joined the course, and I did doubt myself at times. However, looking back, I know I’ve made the right choice and I can’t see myself not studying RE.
I strongly believe that when it comes to selecting a course, people should always make their choices based on their passions, for there will definitely be downs, and you need the passion to keep you going.
When I went into Real Estate, my initial goal was to work in a bank and do asset management, and investing in REITs – I haven’t exactly delved into the specifics of REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts), but given google’s definition, REITs are basically “corporations that own and manage a portfolio of real estate properties and mortgages”. By managing these income-producing properties (e.g. rents), they actually make money. So when you invest in REITs, you’re investing in the properties which the company has, and somewhat become the owner of those properties.
After hearing other options, I’m currently exploring them. For my upcoming internship, I will be working under IRAS at their property tax division to do valuation.
Besides IRAS, there are also firms like Knight Frank, CBRE, Colliers International and JLL which recruit Real Estate graduates. These companies mainly provide real estate services, such as valuation, leasing and even investment management. I don’t have experience in any of them yet, but the point is that Real Estate is definitely more than you think it is. As long as you’re open and willing to try new things, you’ll definitely come across something that you’ll enjoy.
Generally, when I take UEs (unrestricted modules) and GEMs (general education modules), I get to see people from other courses! Everyone will have to take the general education modules, and so you’ll definitely get to meet some people outside your course.
As for international students, sometimes, I get to meet a few exchange students. But generally within RE, there aren’t many international students.
I used to stay in PGPH (NUS’s Prince George’s Park House), and I would say I’m quite inactive in my hall. However, I joined a few CCAs that mainly do volunteer work, so that’s another platform where I meet people outside of my course.
Uhhh… I would say follow your passion lor.
The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the interviewees and do not reflect the official policy or position of any institution. They are also not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, class, individual or organisation.
The information contained in this website is intended to provide general guidance only. It should not be relied upon as professional advice and does not 100% guarantee admission into any course.
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