NUS Module Review AY16/17 Semester 1

This post was drafted in December 2016. 

1. EC3332 <Money and Banking I>

Lecturer: Dr Seet Min Kok

Unrestricted Elective/ 2nd major requirement

Workload: Tutorial participation- 15%, Mid-term test- 35%, final examination- 50%. (Midterm and finals are closed book examination)

What I like about this module: Learn more about Monetary policies and strategies by banks in the financial sector. In depth analysis of the initiation of the global financial crisis in 2008. How the various decision makers in the sector can make rational (or sometimes irrational ) decisions that can affect the economy. Basic Banking strategies for asset and liabilities management.

What I dislike about this module: Content heavy!!! Need to memorize 10 lectures worth of content. The questions in the midterms (open-ended questions) and the finals are not very straightforward like those in the tutorials.

Advice/ recommendation: If you have no/ little interest in Money and Banking or you have little prior knowledge in the topic, please don’t take this module. Or else it will be a dread to study the module for midterm and final exams. It seems that the lecturer has changed his style of testing his students for the exam. It used to be a very easy module as mentioned in other module reviews written before this semester.

Grade: B-

:((((((

2. MA3110 <Mathematical Analysis II>

Lecturer: Dr Graeme Wilkin

Major requirement

Workload: Mid term test-25%,  4 home works due fortnightly from week 4- 20%, tutorial participation- 5%, Final examination- 50%

What I like about this module: Analysis module that go in depth of the theories mentioned in calculus.

What I dislike about this module: Tricky true/false questions; tough assignment questions; unclear lecture notes.

Advice/ recommendation: Try to take this module under the other prof. Under this prof, he tends to test whether you truly understand your understanding and you can only do well if you can really do so.

Grade: B

3. MA3220 <Ordinary Differential Equation>

Lecturer: Professor Yu Shih-Hsien

Major requirement

Workload: Final Examination- 45%, Mid-term test- 25%, 4 take-home assignments- 20%, Tutorial presentation- 10%

What I like about this module: Concepts are relatively easier to understand. Questions tested skew towards calculations, which are tedious, but not difficult to do.

What I dislike about this module: The prof. Prof Yu is simply one of the most disliked prof in the department. Ask the seniors. Read other module reviews. He is able to teach, but his accent is hard to comprehend. If you understand what he is trying to teach, you can see that his methods are more concise. But he has this weird and inconceivable attitude that many students cannot accept.

He would randomly pick a question for a student to present for tutorial. And ALL students must present their answers during the tutorial. This means that you would have to do ALL his ~10 tutorial questions he assigns each week. Yes, you can definitely reap the rewards of doing his tutorial, but it becomes unbearable when he insists that you use his methods. This is especially true if you cannot understand him.

Advice/ recommendation: You can try taking this module if you already have a very good CAP. Erm… not very sure whether this is true, but all of us who took this module have a feeling that he “anyhow” calculate our final grade. Students who did well for midterms had no reason to obtain a grade of only B or B- as the finals was not that unmanageable.

Most of us scored B or B- for the module. Not very sure what happened.

Grade: B

4. MA3264 <Mathematical Modelling>

Lecturer: Dr Liu Jie

Major requirement

Workload: Final examination- 50%, Mid-term test- 20%, 4 Homework Assignments- 25%, Tutorial attendance- 5%

What I like about this module: Interesting to see how DE works in real-world context- in fields such as Biology (the logistic model) and Physics. Questions in finals were modifications of questions that the prof taught in lecture and tutorials. Just do them diligently.

What I dislike about this module: –

Advice/ recommendation: No point recommending because Professor Liu Jie left NUS at the start of 2018. 

5. SSA2209/PS2249/GEK2003 <Government and Politics of Singapore> 

Lecturer: Assoc. Prof Bilveer Singh, Tutor: Assoc. Prof Bilveer Singh

University Requirement- Singapore Studies

Workload: Tutorial participation- 20%, Essay assignment- 30%, Final examinations- 50%

What I like about this module: The module is very “live” and talks about political issues of Singapore. The lectures are very engaging and it analyses the current political landscape of Singapore. There were 4 guest lecturers for this modules and they are MPs in the Singapore Parliament. These lecturers gave great insights to what is going on “behind the scenes” of policy making and what drives the decision to be made.  Professor Bilveer Singh is very encouraging and does not dictate how we write our essays. He appreciates our analysis of the topic in the assignments.

What I dislike about this module: For tutorial participation, depending on your tutor, you may be required to comment on the political issue brought up during class. If you don’t, then you may be marked down on your participation. To make things worse, there may be students from Law who are very outspoken and hog up the entire discussion. Thank goodness I was in Prof Bilveer’s tutorial class as the class participation was graded based on a group project that he assigned to us.

Advice/ recommendation: If you are interested in politics and you have maxed out on your level 1000 limit, you can try taking this module. You just need to be aware of what is going on in the Singapore Political landscape to do well. Professor Bilveer is also kind enough to give obvious hints (in the last few lectures) on the topics that will be tested in the finals.

 

It’s been a long time…

It’s been 2 years since I last updated this space. Many things happened, many disappointments. Upon logging in to this account, I found that there are still people coming in to look at my module reviews. Hence, I have decided to keep up with the module reviews for AY16/17 and AY17/18. Module reviews for AY16/17 have the components (accurate as of the time when I took the module) while the module reviews for AY17/18 will be purely based on my memory.

The following is a brief update on what happened to me during the period of time when this space was left to “collect dust”.

Gone through the crappiest semester in AY17/18, Semester 1.

Went to Hanyang winter school in December 2017.

Finished my semester in May 2018.

Started working in Mid June 2018.

Graduated with Bachelor with Honours (Merit) in July 2018.

If you would like me to share my winter school or/ and my work, you can complete the poll below to indicate your interest:

I will write a post if there are more than 10 votes after next week.

It has been almost 1 and a half years since I have started working. Don’t get me wrong; I am satisfied with my job given that I graduated with less than stellar grades.

But… there are remnants of dissatisfaction from my undergraduate days. I am currently working with my “friends” from NUS. Trust me, it’s crap… especially when there are many unsettled grievances and they are now both your “friend” and colleague.

That’s all for now.

I am tired.

Like what other seniors had told me- Year 4 is hell. I am going through hell right now.

In year 1, our nice professors allowed cheat sheets. Some modules even allow up to 2 cheat sheets, which I thought that it was unnecessary sometimes.

Year 2- most modules only allowed 1 help sheet, which was fine.

Come year 3, there was no help sheet for modules that are heavy in calculation. No problem.

In year 4, there was no help sheet for almost all modules. There were tons of theorems to memorize. It was traumatizing. Why do they introduce a help sheet when they don’t intend to let us use it later in the course!? Then don’t introduce it in the first year!

Everything was traumatizing. It’s like living in a nightmare- a never ending nightmare.

When the day is bad, I try to pull it through. I go to sleep, hoping that I will feel better after that. Instead, I get nightmares of all the things that happened in the day. I can’t sleep properly at night, waking up several times to get out of the messy situation in the dream.

My waking life is already a nightmare. I sleep to get a nightmare. The infinite loop seems never ending. And it has been like this for the past few months.

I am seriously very tired. I have enough of everything. I just want this to end.

Being a math major was a mistake. The curriculum was tough, job prospect are poor and I am competing with future math professors. Nothing went well.

At first, I thought that it was just a matter of perspective. I believe that if I put enough time and effort,  I will do fine. I was so naive.

If heaven allows me to turn back time, I will never choose to do mathematics. I will never do an academic subject. I will do something more practical- like saving the environment or writing a business plan. I don’t want to waste time doing something that won’t do any welfare to the society.

Can somebody get me out of here? I just want to end everything. Right here, right now.

I just wanna warn any A-levelers or anyone who is choosing a college course here… NEVER EVER DO MATHEMATICS. IT’S DIFFICULT, DISGUSTING AND NOT WORTH THE TIME. DO SOMETHING ELSE. LIKE ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES, BUSINESS OR LINGUISTICS.

YOU CAN THANK ME LATER.

2016

2016- A year of ups and downs.

Simply one of the most exciting years of my life.

It started off badly. I was laid off by a tutee (no shame in saying that) Not my fault, it was his laziness to blame. I was tired, battered, and very upset that I can’t help a stubborn mule. Thank goodness that I had more time for myself and joined an ad hoc to engage myself.

First time overloading in NUS- proved to be a “not so daunting” task.

First time joining an ad hoc to keep myself busy. I was fearful of the potential politics that I may face. Fearful of commitment; fearful of challenges that I could be facing alone. However, it turned out to be a “more than” great experience. I was doubtful of my own abilities, but I met someone who recognized my strengths and gave firm acknowledgement. He made me comfortable with feeling vulnerable- which I perceived as a bad thing in the past. I am thankful for the great dynamics in my group. I was thankful for meeting that guy. FAITH IN HUMANITY RESTORED.

However, it was also the year of rejection. Someone I thought I knew didn’t turn out to be the way she is. Disappointment ensued. I try to keep a distance from her from then on. Things like this happens at times. But I am thankful of the group of people that I have met in my CCA. They made me realize that there are genuine people out there.

My first office job- a very pleasant experience. I must thank God for giving me such an opportunity. I was extremely lucky to work in a office with little politics, and a great exposure to how administrative work is like. Administrators are a bunch of hardworking people who work behind the scenes. Albeit thankless, they still strive to keep their work quality up.

Kicked start AY16/17- tiring semester as it started right after my contract ended. Easily one of the worst sems in NUS. (Hence module review for AY16/17 semester 1 will only be released in June 2017 when I am ready to talk about it).

To end off the busy year, I have treated myself to a trip to Taiwan. There was good food, good scenery on the mountains of Taipei and cold winds.

Of course, not to forget the guy who have permanently changed my way of perceiving things- the one whom I have met in my first CCA (mentioned previously). I have been frantically trying to contact him since the ad hoc ended in June. Tried looking for him in school- in vain. He seemed to disappeared in thin air. However, in the midst of looking for him, I keep what he have taught me wherever I went. Just to realise that meeting him wasn’t my only miracle, but the group of friends that I have met in NUS and my family whom have been trying to keep my head above choppy waters.

No matter where he is, what he is doing, I have stopped thinking and looking for him. Because I know he will be alright, he will be making the right decisions, doing things that are pretty something- and that’s his story to tell.

Have a great year ahead.

Note: This is written late at night after a tiring day. I did not bother to proofread, so please bare with any grammatical mistakes.

 

 

 

NUS Module Review AY15/16 Semester 2

This semester is the first semester that I tried overloading. It was okay at first, but it got chaotic towards the end 😦 Read on to find out more.

1. EC210 <Microeconomic analysis I>

Lecturer:  Dr Zhang Yang

Unrestricted elective/ 2nd Major requirement

Workload: Attendance-5%, Tutorial Participation-5%, 2 Homework Assignments- 15%, Midterms- 25%, Pre-lecture quiz- 4%, Finals-46%

What I like about this module: Clear explanation from the prof.

What I dislike about this module: Too many things to memorise, tough questions during midterms and finals.

Advice/ Recommendation: Be prepared to put in hard work and face the steep bell curve. This module is no easy feat. As a math student, I am so used to cheat sheets, that facing this exam that require an extensive amount of “memorizing” really tortures me. Maybe I got the crux of studying wrong. But, overall, this is still a good module to take if you wish to take econs module of higher levels.

Grade: B (Sian 😦 )

2. EC2102 <Macroeconomic Analysis I>

Lecturer: Assoc. Prof Serene Tan

Unrestricted elective/ 2nd Major requirement

Workload: Attendance and tutorial participation-20%, Midterm-30%, Finals-50%

What I like about this module: The concepts are pretty standard, no tricks needed to answer the prof’s tutorials and midterms. Higher level questions require more analysis, which meant that you need a very deep understanding of the concepts taught during the lecture. Contrary to what other economics students would say, I think that this module is much simpler that EC2101.

What I dislike about this module: Very steep bell curve, very difficult finals and very long questions (i.e multi-part questions). The prof’s lecture notes are highly haphazard and require reshuffling the content of the lecture notes and rewrite them such that I can understand it.

Advice/ Recommendation: I would advise that you take EC2101 together with EC2102. Especially under prof Serene Tan, macroeconomics is not polar opposites with microeconomics. Instead, I felt that they are complimentary to each other. For the first half of the semester, the context of the module is very much similar to the one of EC2101. Due to the haphazard nature of the lecture notes, I actually based my understanding on what I have learnt in EC2101.

Grade: B+ (Cause I screwed up my finals)

3. EC3303 <Econometrics I>

Lecturer: Dr Kelvin Seah

Unrestricted elective/ 2nd Major requirement

Workload: Tutorial Participation-10%, 2 homework assignments-20%, Midterm-30%, Finals-40%

What I like about this module: Well-written lecture notes, simple tutorial questions, clear instructions on use of STATA, very encouraging prof.

What I dislike about this module: Steep bell curve (especially for midterms)

Advice/ Recommendation: This is the type of module that one will either love or hate. For those who are very comfortable with statistics or mathematics, this module is really made for you. But for those who hate math or the like, this module is hell. What I would recommend (applicable for math majors only), is that you take this as a major requirement if you can’t do math modules well.

Another word of warning is also that the bell curve is very steep, if the paper is super duper easy. THIS IS SO TRUE FOR THE MIDTERMS. The prof is so lenient to the point that as long as you read his lecture notes carefully, you are able to answer his questions easily.

The downside is that the finals will be very long and tedious to do. Believe or not, multi-part questions can go up to part (f)/(g)/(h). Especially when you only have 2 hours for the paper, it is essential for you to answer straight to the point and be fast (and most importantly, accurate).

As for the prof, he is very encouraging and often attempt to make this module less dry by playing games and watching videos in the lecture. It was really commendable that he is putting in so much effort into teaching us!!

Last thing I wish to add on is that each assignment are to be done in groups of 3-6.

Grade: B+ (Screwed up midterms 😦 )

4. LSM1301 <General Biology>

Lecturer: Dr Wu Jin Lu, Dr Loh Chiang Shiong

Faculty requirement

Workload: 4 Assignments-40%, Finals-60%

What I like about this module: Interesting analogies and stories told by Dr Loh. In particular, I liked the story about how he always ponder why guys always give out roses for valentines’ day.

I also like how he teach us on the taxonomy! I will forever remember the scientific name of chicken- gallus gallus and rice- oryza sativa!! Hahaha, so next time when we want to order chicken rice in the science canteen, we will have to say gallus gallus oryza sativa!! LOL

And most importantly, there are no midterms and finals!!

What I dislike about this module: Dr Wu’s explanation. His accent is very strong and I ended up not understanding his lectures. I only understood his content through youtube videos and other resources from the internet.

Advice/ Recommendation: If you work very hard, this module is an easy A. However, since I was overloading, I did not spend a lot of time on this module. I would also advise people with zero biology background to abstain from this module (especially when you are tight on the number of S/Us you have) due to the high level of technicalities involved during Dr Wu’s lectures.

Grade: B (S/U-ed)

5. MA2213 <Numerical Analysis I>

Lecturer: Assoc. Prof Tan Hwee Huat

Major requirement

Workload: 4 homework assignments-20%, Midterm: 18%, Tutorial attendance/participation: 2%, Finals-60%

What I like about this module: Making the content of the level 1000 modules become more applicable in real life. Learning of computer arithmetic, interpolating polynomials, etc.

What I dislike about this module: 8 am lectures accompanied by Prof Tan’s constant digression from the main topic of the lecture notes. I would have to admit that I was sleeping in lectures.

Advice/ Recommendation: I would advice pure math majors to try this module out. To me, I would deem this module as one of the more useful ones as you will get to learn basic application of mathematics in real life. This is one of the modules you can consider if you wish to learn more about MATLAB.

However, as a word of warning, this module is not easy to score. Partly due to the steep bell curve (due to midterms) and challenging questions set for the assignments and finals. Do take extra effort to understand what you are learning instead of noticing the trend. Don’t get me wrong by the previous comment, Prof Tan is extremely approachable but he has a tendency of digressing. It’s okay if you are still blur after his explanation, you can ask him again.

And also, please take this module with your friends. The assignment can be very tedious and thus extremely easy to fall prey to careless mistakes.

Grade: B (*cries*)

6. MA3201 <Algebra II>

Lecturer: Dr Zhang Lei

Major Requirement

Workload: 5 homework assignments-10%, Midterms-30%, Finals-60%

What I like about this module: Resources are also readily available online. Prof Zhang is approachable.

What I dislike about this module: Almost everything.

Advice/Recommendation: A continuation and combination of MA2202 (Algebra 2) and MA2101 (Linear Algebra 2). We learnt mostly about ring theory, fields, ideals, Euclidean domain, etc in the first half of the semester. Then we moved on to study about module theory, irreducible factors, etc. in the second half of the semester.

WARNING: THIS IS A EXTREMELY TOUGH MODULE. I do not recommend it AT ALL. I think I have totally wasted my modular credits and time by bidding for this module!! Thank goodness Prof Zhang was very lenient. I could have failed with my terrible midterms and finals!!

This is only for students who took “S” modules for MA2202 and MA2101. I really did not understand anything from the lectures and I did not have a particularly good foundation in linear algebra. The content was very dry and I can’t focus after 45mins into the lesson.

The average for the midterms was a staggering 82/100!! I mean… for a class with 70% of the students previously “S” modules… it’s kind of normal. Not when you are in the class though… you will feel extremely terrible. I scored only 60/100 and I was pretty sure I was the last few in class.

To make things worse, the content for the second half of the semester was way way way way way harder to comprehend and I could understand nearly nothing. I am sure I screwed up the finals big time but the prof was extremely generous with the grading.

Oh what a module! Please don’t even try taking this module in AY16/17, no matter who the prof is. The content is just too hard to comprehend especially if you haven’t been doing well for your math modules.

Grade: B (extremely (& pleasantly) happy and satisfied.

To end of, the semester was not as hectic as I have expected but there obviously is a HUGE room for improvement. I will be better prepared since I will be overloading for the whole of AY16/17.

A random thank you note:

I have received some private messages that this blog has been providing readers with a lot of useful information for helping them to make informed decisions before their bidding period. Thank you for taking your time off reading this blog.

Eraser

Erasers, come in all shapes and sizes, but they all serve only one common purpose- which is to erase whatever past mistakes we have made.

That is only when you write with a pencil and paper. Can we really erase whatever mistakes we have made in our lives? Or rather, can we erase the past that we do not wish to associate ourselves with?

Admit it, all of us (including you) have that part of the past that we do not wish to mention.

Mistakes are often inevitable. Humans tend to err, so we learn our lessons and we move on. But what about us ending up in places we should not be in or people we should not be with? Most would say it’s due to bad luck and bad timing- being at the wrong place, at the wrong time.

Is there anyway to correct that? I really couldn’t figure out. Sometimes, I would wish to move away from these places and move to somewhere I should be or to get away from some people, just to find my own respite. However, it was due to bad circumstances and sheer bad luck that we often find ourselves in the most awkward situation ever.

If we could just live through it and conveniently erase that part of the past we have always wanted to get away with. But That will never happen.

Perhaps we should wait for the marks to fade, when people wouldn’t want to find out the truth that was so long ago. This is when we can slowly block out the past that we do not wish to associate with.

2nd week of school…

The start of a new semester, a new beginning.

But the seemingly “easy” semester had a rocky start. I am, even now, totally overwhelmed by the series of events at the start of the semester. It has nothing to do with my academic life, but it certainly made me doubt myself and my own “worth”.

I became entrenched in thoughts that I am worth nothing except for that piece of degree that I will be receiving in 2 years’ time.

Thank goodness I found this song that helped me get back on track again.

The singer, 邓紫棋  has also inspired me through her life story that she had shared on the Chinese show, 开讲了！You should also watch it if you have the time 🙂

I am also overloading this semester. The modules that I am taking are: EC2101, EC2102, EC3303, MA2213, MA3201, LSM1301.

Till next time 🙂

Last thought of 2015

2015 had been a wonderful year 🙂

Finally, I am hanging out with people that click. Although irritating people appeared and difficult times came, I was really grateful that my friends were there for me and encouraging me to move on. While looking through my diary, there is post that struck me. This post reflected my fear of being cheated emotionally. Till today, this fear still exists but subtle. I am afraid that this feeling will return and haunt me.

(The following is written on 28 April 2015)

This is the period for the finals. But my mind just could not stop pondering about things when I stop studying.

I started thinking about people. I mean “people” in general. Sometimes, I wander how can one be so sociable and have so many friends. And then out of the blue, I realise that my friendship, currently, is based on nothing but a set of lies- a bunch of lies that is totally necessary for me to stay afloat.

Some of you would rebut and said that I shouldn’t have done that. They must be thinking that true friends accept each other for who they are and what they have. BULLSHIT.  There was a time when my best friend dumped me when my life has taken a turn for the worse. That was the result of me being too truthful and naïve.

Then, some of you would say that my incessant lying would earn me more of such people around me. Well… I have my own way of doing this. I am not going to disclose too much about it… this is not the point of today’s entry.

Frankly speaking, I do not have many friends. I am very quiet but inside me, I think a lot. Yes, I have a lot of friends in my contact list and on my Facebook, but how many of them can I count on when I am in deep trouble? Such questions, I dare not ponder too deep. Therefore, I feel that I don’t have many friends.

Every time I meet someone new, I am happy to say that my social circle had widened. But another side of me bothered me a little: my social circle widen but does that mean that there is another friend to be there when I need it?

At times, I feel lonely. I don’t know who to open up to. If I share my true story to them, will they still accept me? I rather share my story anonymously to a complete stranger that I would never meet again than open up to my friends.

People, in general, thrive to be the best. And its obvious that every one wants the best for themselves, including friends who have good qualities. To be frank, everyone wears that mask when they are outside their house. No one wants to share their ugly side to someone whom they are friends with. Nobody wants an ugly friend, a friend who has many unwanted qualities, complicated background, etc.

Everyone lies to get what they want. Its just the extend of how they do it. For me, I just want good and kind people to be my friends, I just want quality companionship, that’s all I am asking for.

Although I am starting to walk out of this shadow, it is a matter of time that I will go back in again. I wish that things stay the way it is  next year. I want my uni friends to stay with me, through this adventurous journey in NUS.

Thank you for reading and wishing you a happy 2016.

 

NUS Module Review AY2015/16 Semester 1

Upon completing my last paper for the semester, I felt that the world on my shoulder is finally gone. This is by far the craziest semester ever. Now, I shall share my experience of the modules that I have taken this semester.

1. EC2374 <Economy of Modern China I>

Professor(s): Prof Hu Guangzhou, Albert

Unrestricted Elective/ Major Requirement

Workload: Class participation(10%), Case summary(20%), Debate(30%), Finals (40%)

Course material: Harvard Case studies (you will be required to purchase this online) and lecture notes (uploaded on IVLE)

What I like about this module: The application of economic knowledge on China’s economy, the evolution of the Chinese economy from 1978 onwards.

What I dislike about this module: Case summary and weekly debates. Very difficult finals.

Advice/Recommendation: For me, this module was supposed to fulfil requirements for my second major, which is economics. I will recommend this module if you already have good knowledge about China economy and how economical policies work. Apparently, due to the nature of this module, the group projects that you will be undertaking will help you in resume writing!! (This is especially true if you have no CCAs in NUS) However, if you feel that you are going to be bombarded by deadlines during the semester, then I feel that its is better for you not to take this module.

Grade: B

2. PC1326/GEK1521/ GET1013 <Physics in the life sciences>

Professor: Dr Wang Haifeng, Tutor: Mr Tan Meng Ho

Faculty requirement

Workload: Tutorial attendance (5%), 2 term tests (30% each), Term paper (35%)

What I like about this module: Get to learn about the application of physics in our daily lives as well as the anatomy of living organisms. Gives us an opportunity to learn physics, biology and chemistry in one module. The prof and the tutor are very approachable.

What I dislike about this module: Very steep bell curve. Too much content for one semester.

Advice/Recommendation: Honestly speaking, this module can pull up your CAP if your H2 physics was good. Content wise, there are too many topics covered over a span of 13 weeks!! To be exact, there are a total of 22 topics and for each topic, there are 2 subtopics. The 1^st subtopic covers the physics theory and the 2^nd subtopic cover the application of the physics theory in biology. Each lecture, the lecturer will cover one topic and these topics are likely to have no relation with each other. The upside of this module is that the topics tested for term test 1 and term test 2 are different. I.e. Term test 1 will cover topics taught before the midterms and term test 2 will cover topics taught after the midterms. However, the downside is that you only have a few weeks to master 11 topics before the term tests!! This is especially true for term test 2, when you have to study quantum physics. The worst thing is that the topics covered in this module seem to be more in depth than that of the H2 topics.

The term tests consist of 30 MCQ questions and you have 1.5 hours to complete. Seem like an overly easy tasks, eh? But let me warn you… for each wrong answer, 0.25 points will be deducted. So make full use of your time and make sure that no marks are penalized due to careless mistake.

If you have a strong foundation in physics, there is no need to worry about catching up with the syllabus. For those with no physics background (i.e. no H2 physics), please don’t even try. For those with H2 physics, you must consider whether you were struggling with physics back in JC.

Grade: B

3. MA2101 <Linear Algebra II>

Professor: Zhang DQ

Major Requirement

Workload: Midterm (25%), Tutorial Participation (5%), Homework Assignments (10%), Finals (60%)

What I like about this module: –

What I dislike about this module: Almost everything. From the difficult assignment questions to the difficult finals.

Advice/ Recommendation: Unless this is a requirement for you major/minor/whatsoever, please don’t take this module especially under certain profs… Not saying that prof ZDQ is bad, he actually goes through certain exercises in his lecture notes. The things he goes through are useful. However, when the tests comes, you will find yourself in the dark abyss. Actually, that feeling will come when you are studying for the module… Go search for MA2101 on google, you will find this module is manageable if it is taught by certain profs. But prof ZDQ is not one of them. His questions are very abstract and only the smarter ones can survive. His accent and handwriting poses another problem as well… So I shall stop here and not comment too much.

(HINT: Check the prof teaching this module.)

Grade: B- (Damn it!!)

4. MA2108 <Mathematical Analysis I>

Professor: Han Fei

Major Requirement

Workload: Assignments (10%), Attendance (5%), Midterm, Finals (I can’t really remember the weightage…)

What I like about this module: Clear explanation from the prof, Example of how the theorems are shown in the lecture notes and tutorials.

What I dislike about this module: No webcast.

Advice/ recommendation: I would highly recommend you to take this module under Han Fei. If you have a strong interest in Math after taking MA1102R, or any other mathematical modules that teaches proving techniques, this is a really good module. Make sure you master the tutorial questions and past year paper questions before going for midterms/finals. Be warned that this module, like MA2101, requires vigorous proving and have minimal computational questions.

Grade: A-  🙂 🙂 🙂

5. MA2202 <Algebra I>

Professor: Loke Hung Yean

Major requirement

Workload: Assignments (10%), Class participation (5%), Blog participation (5%), Midterms (25%), Finals (55%)

What I like about this module: Clear explanations from prof.

What I dislike about this module: –

Advice/ Recommendation: Before I comment on this module, I must say that pure math majors should try doing a module under prof Loke. He is really very clear in his explanations and explains fundamental concepts very well. This really made up for the crappy things that we have went through during MA1100.  He had taught us how to proof, which is important for future modules that we will be taking. The content of this module is really tough but he had always made it simpler for us to understand. Make sure you understand all the theorems and propositions well in order to do well for this module.

Grade: B+

This semester is the worst so far… with many deadlines and assignment due dates, I am glad that I have survived this ordeal alive!!

Merry Christmas and a happy new year!!

Confidence wearing thin…

This semester began with a bad start.

First, I had trouble securing 2 out of 5 tutorial slots, with the need to undergo manual tutorial registration.

But, that was a minor issue. Then came some friends of friends who told me that I have made some really bad decisions…

They said it wasn’t a good idea to take XX module in this semester because of difficult paper set by the professor. All that negativity, I really hate it.

Now, I have a debate tomorrow. I have ran out of ideas to rebut my opposing team. And now sitting in front of the laptop screen writing a late night post.

MA2101 (Linear Algebra II) and EC2374 (Economy of Modern China I) are the biggest burden this semester.

MA2108 and MA2202 are modules that I can hope to do well and yet there are people smashing my confidence.

PC1326 is my last hope. Just shush… don’t comment on this module and how bad my choices are.

I really don’t feel like talking tomorrow. Just give me back my peace. 😦