Stats + Econs Freshman Guide Part III

Recommended Module Progression

As mentioned in one of the previous part in the freshman guide, a double's major's curriculum consists of mainly EC or ST modules. You should aim to clear as many low level modules ASAP in order to unlock higher level modules. The last thing you want is to find yourself in a situation whereby you can only take 1 or 2 core mod in a semester because the others are locked. Do keep in mind that some of the modules are offered every semester while others may only be offered once per academic year. There are even modules that will be offered once every 2 academics years.

Below is the recommended module path which I will recommend. Only the core modules are listed. Fill in some non-core requirement and ensure that you take at least 5 modules per semester so that you can graduate within 4 years.

Year 1, Semester 1

ST1131

MA1101R

MA1102R

EC1301

There are not many choices of core modules you can take in your first semester. So, just fit in as many core modules as you can. Among the four, priority should be given to MA1102R and EC1301 as they unlock some of the higher level modules which you can take in semester 2. For those who are not confident in your math, you should also try to fit in MA1101R and take advantage of your ‘gradeless’ first semester

Year 1, Semester 2

CS1010

ST2131

MA2108

EC2101/EC2102

MA2108 is a nightmare for me. There is an alternative to this module, MA2311, but I am not sure how the difficulty compares. I heard from my friends that MA2311 is easier but they are only offered in semester 1, so if you choose the alternative, you might have to wait till year 2 sem 1.

 ST2131 unlocks ST2132 and ST3131 which unlocks most of the higher level modules, so you should clear it as soon as possible. 

While you can take CS1010 any time during your 4 years in NUS, I highly recommend you to take this module in your first year. As a statistics major, you will inevitably be required to write some codes for your higher level modules. This module will train you to think from a programmer perspective which will be highly useful for modules such as ST2137. 

Lastly, you can try to include an EC210X in this semester, but the chance of getting it is slim. 

Year 2, Semester 1

ST2132

ST2137

ST3131

EC2101

EC2102

ST2132, ST3131, EC2101 and EC2102 unlock most of the higher level module, so you should take them now. 

ST2137 will be one of the most useful modules you ever take in NUS. It teaches you how to use some of the statistical programing languages that are popular both in the academia and the industry. Pay special attention to R as you will be using it a lot of the rest of your time in NUS or maybe even after you graduate. Tips: you will have a huge advantage if you have taken CS1010 prior to this module.

Year 2, Semester 2 and beyond

If you managed to follow my recommended module path, you should be able to take most of the offered module in ST and EC from this point onward. Tips: if the math department offers ST3236, avoid it like a plague, unless your math is imbal.

 

However, whether you can successfully bid for the module you want is another story. As mentioned previously, be flexible and always have back up plan. If all else fail, go to the department and start crying and begging.

 

Stats + Econs Freshman Guide Part II

This is part II of the freshman guide. You may find Part I here. 

How to do well in the course?

This is probably a question that many will be wondering. To be honest, there is no secret to this question. Hard work is the key to success in this course.  Always clarify your doubts as soon as possible and do not let them accumulate. The study break before the exams is for you to recap the materials taught in the semester, and NOT for you to catch up on the syllabus. It is also important for you to at least attempt the tutorials before the lecturer release the answers even though they may not be graded. Understanding the solution is easy, the difficulty lies with coming up with the answer on your own, which is an essential skill in any exam.  

As a statistics student, there are a few math modules which are unavoidable. You need to recognize that mathematics in university is at a totally different level compared to JC math. Unless you have taken H3 math in JC or you are the type that have been wining math Olympiad since young, otherwise, the typical education route taken by most Singaporeans does not adequately prepares you for university math. It also does not help that, many foreigners are incredibly good in math, making the competition extremely steep.   

Past year papers are not always helpful. Shocking as this might sound to many who have been doing pyp religiously since PSLE, but based on my experience, pyp does not help most of the time, especially for higher level modules. The only exception is when the lecturer uploads the pyp himself and asks you to try it. This is because many modules are taught by different lecturers in different semester. While there are learning outcomes that the lecturers need to adhere to when planning the module syllabus, the focus of each lecturer can be very different. 

It is also important for you to set realistic expectation of your ability. It is not uncommon for freshmen who are young, energetic and full of dreams to come NUS hoping to achieve everything. Excellent grades, leadership position in CCA(s), and life of the party every weekend. However, the truth is, people who can do that are few and far between. For the majority of us who are not blessed with the ability to excel in everything, we have to decide which aspects of the NUS life we really want to pursue. Personally, I think that academic results weight quite heavily for statistics students. From the perspective of employers, he would probably want to hire a statistician who can provide the analysis he needs, and not someone who has excellent CCA achievement but do not know how to generate or interpret a regression model. This is especially so in the public sector as they do not hire any statisticians without a second upper at the very least. 

Lastly, tap on online resources for materials to prepare ahead for the semester. Before each semester, I always search online for materials of modules that I will be taking. For those who are new, you can start with http://module-review.com/ to find out more about the module such as the recommended textbook, the lecturer or the syllabus of the module. After which, you may try to google for free E-books or through website such as http://bookzz.org/. It is also not difficult to find blogs of current students sharing module materials; in fact, this is one of those blogs. Do feel free to contact me for materials of the modules I have taken before. Other useful blogs includes: http://beatingthesyst3m.blogspot.sg/ (Economics Major)http://elitistjerk.blogspot.sg/ (for Economics major), http://www.davejunia.com/2013/05/reflections-majoring-in-economics-at-nus/(Economics major), http://tropicallo.blogspot.sg/ (Statistics major).  Alternatively, you may also go to the nus forum at http://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/nus-305/ and make friends with us (but please do not treat us as your helpdesk). I obtained most of my module materials and the latest feedback on the module content and lecturers from the forum. I hope you may find it as useful as I do. 

Stats + Econs Freshman Guide Part I

Recently, there was a prospective NUS student, who contacted me seeking my view and advice on various issues pertaining to the academic life in NUS, particularly, as a double major student in statistics and economics. I remember I shared some of her concerns when I was a freshman too and it took me awhile to gather all the information I need as they are scattered all over the web. This prompt me to write a freshman-guide (well, sort of) to address some of the questions that you might have. Hopefully you might find it useful. Do note that whatever follows are based on my personal experience in NUS over the past 3 years only.

 

Module Biddings

Bidding of modules generally takes place about one week before the official start of the school term and is the main source of my hair-yanking frustration in NUS. I personally find the module bidding experience more torturous than any exams. For the freshmen, everything about CORS can be found here, and I shall not repeat them in this post. I will recommend you to spend some time understanding CORS before the bidding round begins. Tips: Don’t increase your bids unnecessarily during open-biding when you are being outbid. In fact, don’t bid anything until the closed-bidding starts. Otherwise, it will only inflate the min bid further.  

For students who are intending to do a double major in statistics and economics, most of your modules will be core-mods which will be bid using your P-points. All your G-points will be spent on at most 4 to 5 modules throughout your entire candidature in NUS unless you choose to overload on the non-core modules. The unfortunate news is that, as a double major, you do not get more P-points than your peers who are only doing a single major. This means that your P-points will have to be stretched over more modules. So far, I have already bankrupted my P-account at least twice over the last 3 academic years. 

At first glance,. the Module Preference Exercise (MPE) in FASS (for economics modules after you get approved by the statistics department to take the second major) appears to provide some relieve on your P-account as they might pre-allocate your indicated choice of module to you. In the simplest sense, the MPE works by pre-allocating modules to students who have indicated interest in taking the module in the coming semester. If the number of students interested in a particular module is less than its quota, then every student will be pre-allocated the module. If on the other hand, the number of students interested in the module exceeded the quota, then nobody will be allocated the module and students proceed to bid for them in CORS.  This is made slightly more complicated as there are different priorities when it comes to the allocation. More often than not, you as a second major in economics will not be pre-allocated modules that are popular or essential. This is because double major has the lowest priority (among students of the same year) when it comes to allocating the modules. 

 

As an illustration, assume that there are 200 slots in a particular module and there are 160 students from priority-1, 30 students from priority-2 and 20 students from priority-3 has indicated interest in the module. Then students from the first 2 priority will be allocated the module as their total number is within the quota. However, none of the priority-3 will be getting the module. This actually makes it much more difficult for the double major to secure the module. Instead of 210 students competing for 200 slots, it now becomes 20 students competing for 10 slots, and my experience have shown that the higher the bidder-to-quota ratio, the more points is needed to secure the module. 

Given how frustrating module bidding can be, I would recommend you to have some back up plans when you plan for your modules. Careful planning of modules is especially important for double major as we do not have many choices of module during the first 3 to 4 semesters. 

Program requirement

For those who have already seen the second major in economics requirement, you might be wondering what all those double-counting, preclusion and overlapping modules are about. It took me quite some times to finally figure out what modules I need to take in order to graduate as the relevant information are scattered around the internet. Luckily for you, I will be giving a summary of the modules that you need to take as a double major student. In short, you need the following modules in order to graduate:

·         96 MCs of statistics major requirement as listed here

·         40 MCs of economics second major requirement (after all the double counting)

·         4 MCs of Singapore studies

·         8 MCs of faculty requirement

·         4 MCs of arts GEM

·         4 MCs of sci/arts GEM

·         4 MCs of unrestricted elective module

 

Assuming each module you take consists of 4 MCs, then you will be taking 37 modules + FYP in total. You may notice that there is no breadth requirement in the list.  This is because the requirement is considered fulfilled under all those economics modules. Also note that the 2 modules for faculty requirement must have different prefix, i.e. you cannot take 2 PC modules to fulfill the requirement. 

I hope that this post would clarify some of your doubts. If there are anything still unclear, feel free to raise them in the comment section. As the title suggest, this is just part I of the series, there will be part II and III or maybe more coming up over the next few days, so do keep a look out.