While on study abroad, Life Sciences students can enhance their understanding of the discipline by taking specialist courses that Yale-NUS does not offer. These courses may even count towards major requirements. Students can also take part in laboratory work or research while abroad, allowing them to pick up new skills and possibly inspiring them to pursue a particular topic for their capstone.
Hear from our Life Sciences students
Fangchen Zhu (Class of 2019)
Spent a semester and summer abroad at Yale University, working in a research laboratory at Yale School of Medicine.
I chose to go to Yale because I wanted to work in a laboratory there and also because they offered neuroscience and cognitive science classes, which were not offered in Yale-NUS. It was a truly eye-opening experience to learn about the development in understanding human cognition, and it got me interested in artificial intelligence and machine learning. After coming back from my semester abroad, I spent more time learning about computational methods to use in my research in the future.
Qian Hui Tan (Class of 2021)
Spent a semester abroad at Harvard University
During my time at Harvard, I took a graduate-level class in cancer biology at the Harvard Medical School. Classes were taught in a series of courses, where clinician-scientists shared their current research, and students then led journal clubs to critique papers. One of my most inspiring moments was learning about the ingenious mechanism behind PARP inhibitors, with my professor smiling proudly as he talked about patients who survived up to 10 years with the development of this novel drug. In addition, I also studied Ancient Greek medicine. I delved into writings by Thucydides, Galen, Hippocrates and Lucretius to understand how ancient societies grappled with plagues and pandemics, and how that illuminated our experience with COVID-19.
Where to go for Study Abroad
Life Sciences students should talk to their Pre-Major or Major Advisors, other Life Sciences faculty and, most importantly, the Head of Studies to find out more about prospective places or programmes for study abroad.
Some of the institutions that Yale-NUS Life Sciences students have gone to include:
- University of British Columbia, Canada
- Harvard University, USA
- Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Chile
- Uppsala University, Sweden
- University of Copenhagen, Denmark
- Yale University, USA
For the full list of Yale-NUS partner institutions and to learn more about the study abroad application process and credit transfer process, click here.
When to go for Study Abroad
Life Sciences majors generally pursue a study abroad programme during their third year (Semester 1 or Semester 2), or during the summer.
