Reasons for Merger and Alignment Plans for Yale-NUS College and other NUS Schools, and Impact on Students' Educational Experience

Ms Nadia Ahmad Samdin asked the Minister for Education whether support can be provided to students who have accepted an offer for the cohort starting 2022-2023 in NUS' Yale-NUS College, Faculty of Engineering or School of Design and Environment but who wish to change University or school given the recent merger announcements.

Ms Foo Mee Har asked the Minister for Education (a) what are the considerations behind the closure of Yale-NUS College and its planned merger with the University Scholars Programme (USP) into the New College; (b) how the various key stakeholders were consulted; and (c) how much public monies through the Ministry's subsidies, grants and funding have been spent on Yale-NUS College since its inception.

Mr Shawn Huang Wei Zhong asked the Minister for Education (a) what are the considerations for the forthcoming merger of the Yale-NUS College and the University Scholars Programme; (b) what measures will be taken by the Ministry to safeguard the interests of the existing students; and (c) what are the plans for the future college.

Miss Cheryl Chan Wei Ling asked the Minister for Education in light of the closure of Yale-NUS College (a) how will this impact the quality of education for the students; and (b) what will be done to address potential concerns about credibility of the degree and post-graduate opportunities.

Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim asked the Minister for Education in light of the announcement that Yale-NUS College will cease operations by 2025 (a) how will NUS ensure that students enrolled over the course of the next four years will be able to enjoy an uncompromised educational experience; (b) whether there will be any reduction of fees or option for transfers in the event that there is a compromised experience; and (c) how will NUS ensure that the Yale-NUS degree retains its value in the future, in particular for graduates of the programme.

Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim asked the Minister for Education regarding the decision to merge Yale-NUS College and NUS' University Scholars Programme (a) what are the motivations behind the decision; (b) whether financial factors feature in the decision; (c) whether Yale University provided any indication of willingness to continue the partnership beyond 2025; (d) why was the decision not conveyed to the student body in advance, closer to the announcement of the new College of Humanities and Sciences; and (e) whether the faculty and student body of Yale-NUS College were consulted before the decision and if not, why not.

Ms He Ting Ru asked the Minister for Education in light of the announced merger of Yale-NUS College and NUS' University Scholars Programme to create the "New College" (a) what have been the other alternatives considered and why are these options not taken; (b) when was the decision for merger made; and (c) what is the assessment on the impact on NUS' and Singapore’s international academic standing from this decision.

Mr Raj Joshua Thomas asked the Minister for Education (a) whether he can shed light on (i) the decision-making process behind the merger of Yale-NUS College and NUS’ University Scholars Programme (USP) and (ii) the potential implications on collaboration between NUS and other foreign universities; and (b) whether NUS will provide refunds to Yale-NUS College and USP students who prefer to withdraw.

Mr Leon Perera asked the Minister for Education (a) whether there are any key performance indicators for the Yale-NUS College and what was the assessed performance on those metrics; (b) what has been the past impact of the Yale-NUS College on admissions into NUS; (c) whether there are future plans for a dedicated liberal arts college; (d) what are the plans to preserve Singapore’s reputation for quality tertiary education partnerships; and (e) whether student activism at the Yale-NUS College played any part in the closure.

Mr Speaker, Sir, I invite Members to ask their supplementary questions together after this; and if Members are satisfied with the answers, Members may wish to withdraw their Oral and Written PQs slated for 14 September or after.

Mr Speaker, Sir, the Members’ questions broadly fall into three areas: first, the reasons why the National University of Singapore (NUS) decided on the merger; second, the decision-making process; and third, support for students, faculty and staff in the transition.

Let me start with the first, the reasons for the merger. Mr Speaker, Sir, 21 years ago, NUS established the USP. USP started as one of NUS’ early ventures in offering a broad-based, interdisciplinary education to students. Today, it is a very successful residential living and learning model that admits around 220 students each year and has produced about 2,500 alumni to date.

Ten years ago, NUS and Yale University established YNC. The aim was to establish a new unique education model that draws on the best traditions of both the East and the West, with a multidisciplinary curriculum. YNC has an intake of about 250 students each year. More than 800 students have graduated from YNC thus far. It is autonomous within NUS, but as part of the wider NUS family, it taps on the resources and facilities of NUS. The YNC degree is awarded by NUS. This decade-long partnership with Yale University has given NUS valuable insights into interdisciplinary liberal arts education and its defining features such as the integration of residential living and learning.

Over these years, the rest of NUS too has continued to evolve and innovate to remain relevant to the needs of our students and country. Today, NUS is one of the leading universities in Asia and the world. And in one international ranking, the QS World University Rankings, NUS is ranked 11th in the world. However, NUS, like all our other universities, cannot remain static in the face of a changing and in many ways, more challenging world; NUS will have to continue to evolve. So, in our quest for excellence, it means that we must continue to learn from the best internationally, while charting our own path forward with confidence. This is what brought us thus far; and this is how we will go forward.

In a more complex, uncertain and even fragmenting world, our universities must enable our students:

(a) to be more global in orientation and exposure, able to connect the East and West; North and South;

(b) to be more able to solve complex issues with greater interdisciplinarity and versatility, connecting various disciplines, from STEM to the Arts; and

(c) to be more confident of our own value in creating new ideas in context, for Singapore and the world beyond.

Against this backdrop, NUS has charted a bold roadmap of educational innovations since 2018, geared towards delivering a common curriculum with more flexible pathways and more interdisciplinary learning, to develop in students greater intellectual versatility.

Part of this roadmap includes the establishment of the College of Humanities and Sciences (CHS) in December 2020, which brought together two of NUS’ largest faculties to offer students multiple pathways across the Humanities, Social Sciences, and Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).

This will be followed by the establishment of the College of Design and Engineering (CDE) which will similarly transform the experience of our engineering, architecture and design students.

The New College is a third important step in this roadmap. It was motivated by NUS’ vision of further developing an immersive living and learning community, where students majoring in over 50 different disciplines can come together to inquire, interact and learn from one another.

YNC and USP share many common features, including smaller group teaching, a common curriculum and residential living and learning. Both YNC and USP graduates go on to enjoy similarly excellent employment outcomes, contributing in different sectors. The New College will bring together the best educational features of both YNC and USP. With the New College more fully integrated with the rest of the University ecosystem, its students will benefit from greater exposure to a wider range of disciplines compared to just YNC alone.

Mr Speaker, Sir, when we first decided to set up YNC, we knew that it would cost more. The cost of education of a YNC student today is more than double that of a Humanities or Science student in NUS. Likewise, both tuition fees and Government funding are more than double. But we accepted this because we saw value in having a liberal arts college in our tertiary education system. YNC had hoped to raise over S$300 million to reach an endowment fund size of around S$1 billion, with Government matching and investment returns. This would then have reduced the burden on the annual operating income of fees and Government subsidies.

YNC has done its utmost in raising funds, but through no fault of its own, has not reached its target. Transitioning to the New College will give us economies of scale and reduce costs to some extent. This will be an important consideration but not the main motivation for the change.

NUS has learnt much from its partnership with Yale and in operating YNC, and it has affirmed the value of a liberal arts educational approach. NUS has decided that it is time to build on the best features of YNC and USP, and to take a step forward to expand access and enhance the scope of its educational offerings, by merging YNC with the USP.

Let me now touch on the second issue of the decision-making process and the stakeholders' concerns.

The launch of the New College is an important move. It has also implications for many stakeholders, not least for the YNC community of students, parents, faculty and staff. I understand the sadness and sense of loss and uncertainty they may feel, especially for those who have played a part in building up YNC over the past decade.

Allow me to address the decision-making process and how students and all the affected stakeholders will be supported.

First, the decision-making process and the timing of the announcement. In early-July 2021, NUS initiated discussions with Yale University. Yale acknowledged NUS’ vision to bring together both YNC and USP into a New College that would not bear Yale’s name. The YNC leadership was informed in the same month. The NUS Board of Trustees endorsed the decision in early-August 2021 and the YNC Governing Board endorsed the transition plans in late-August.

In July, the issue of timing was also discussed with Yale and jointly determined. While the partnership would only end in 2025, both parties felt that the responsible thing to do was to announce it early rather than to hold back. It would have been bad faith to delay the announcement and continue to admit students who would not be able to complete their education in YNC, or to continue to hire faculty, beyond this juncture.

The announcement was thus planned for August, after the YNC Governing Board considered and endorsed the broad transition approach. This allowed faculty and staff the maximum time – between now and 2025 – to work through the details of the transition. This also means that YNC’s 2021 intake would be its final cohort. The Class of 2025 cohort would have the full four years to complete their undergraduate studies at YNC.

Some have also asked why was there no consultation with the current student body and staff. NUS did not do so because the decision involved discussions between the senior leadership of two Universities and with their respective Boards, on sensitive issues of strategy and finance. Instead, NUS, once having settled the broad parameters, wanted to give maximum time for the transition to occur and for the stakeholders to be involved in working through the transition issues.

Second, students, parents and alumni have asked how the move affects the stature of the YNC degree. Today, YNC graduates graduate with a YNC degree that is awarded by NUS itself. NUS and YNC have assured all current students that they will graduate with the same degree as their predecessors.

NUS and Yale are both globally renowned universities which are well-recognised by employers, including the public sector and postgraduate institutions. I am confident that the YNC degree will continue to be highly valued and its past and future graduating cohorts will remain in good standing, even beyond 2025.

Beyond 2025, NUS will continue to provide supporting documentation to explain the context of YNC and what a YNC degree conveys, and provide letters of recommendation or referees if alumni need them.

Third, concerns around how the merger will affect current students, faculty and staff. Students in YNC will continue to have access to the full range of majors and minors currently offered by YNC until 2025.

I know that many YNC students are actively involved in student organisations and look forward to a fulfilling campus life during their time at the College. The establishment of the New College will open new possibilities for students of YNC, USP and the New College to interact and collectively participate in active and inclusive student life in the next few years.

For faculty and staff, no one will be made redundant as a result of this merger. YNC is an autonomous institution under NUS; YNC faculty and staff have been and remain part of the NUS family. NUS has committed to honouring all existing employment contracts. YNC leadership have been engaging faculty members to hear their concerns and discuss possible options for faculty members after the merger takes full effect in 2025, four years ahead of time.

The YNC Governing Board, comprising NUS and Yale University leadership, will continue to steward the College until its transition in 2025.

I know some students and parents may, nevertheless, have lingering concerns and we respect the preferences of those who may wish to consider other options. NUS and YNC will engage them and provide assistance where they can.

Mr Speaker, Sir, Ms Nadia Samdin and Mr Leon Perera asked about the future of liberal arts education in Singapore. NUS is, in fact, building on the foundations of YNC and USP, as well as the lessons gleaned from the collaboration with Yale University. It wants to make the distinctive feature of education in YNC and USP more inclusive and more accessible. The New College will maintain the spirit of independent inquiry and inclusivity that characterise YNC, USP and NUS.

Some have asked about the impact of the merger on academic freedom in Singapore. On this topic, I would like to make two points.

First, there had been similar concerns about a perceived lack of academic freedom when YNC was established. They proved unfounded. In fact, few believed then that YNC would live up to its ambition. Even fewer would own it. It is, perhaps, ironic and a testimony to NUS and YNC’s efforts all these years, that YNC is now seen as a paragon of academic freedom in Singapore.

Second, YNC's current policies on academic freedom were, in fact, framed by taking reference from NUS' practices relating to academic freedom and these practices have remained unchanged since. The Faculties of Arts and Social Sciences in NUS and other Autonomous Universities also have had a long history of teaching and research, including on potentially sensitive and difficult topics, long before the establishment of YNC. They are highly ranked globally and attract distinguished scholars. It would be grossly unfair to faculty members in NUS and other Autonomous Universities to suggest that their teaching or research is in any way less rigorous, of lower quality or less free than that of the YNC faculty.

Mr Speaker, Sir, our universities must continue to adopt a globally oriented and inclusive posture to stay relevant in the world and keep striving to improve. Many of our newer institutions were started in partnership with leading global universities, so that we can learn from the best globally. These partnerships have generally progressed, evolved and matured as intended. In some cases, they come to a natural end at the checkpoints designed into the initial partnership agreements.

Meanwhile, our universities continue to seek out new partnerships where we can benefit from the experiences of others and where we can value-add to the relationships meaningfully. We have much more to learn from others, not just from universities in the United States, but equally from Europe, Asia and elsewhere. But to be an attractive partner for others, we too must find our own unique value propositions. We cannot and should not be a cloned version of others, no matter how successful they may be.

Yale has been a longstanding friend of NUS and a visionary partner in the YNC College. We are glad that Yale has agreed to play an advisory role in the New College as a pioneering member of the College’s international advisory panel. We are also open to exploring other collaboration opportunities with Yale University in the future.

Mr Speaker, Sir, this brings me to the questions on the New College and what it will look like. Members of Parliament have asked how it will improve the overall student experience compared to today and what resources will be invested.

The New College will retain the best elements of both institutions, including a residential component, YNC’s practice of small-group teaching, a common curriculum and an overall immersive experience. I expect the New College to also have a global orientation and welcome a diversity of international students to forge a vibrant student body.

In setting up the New College, NUS is not starting from scratch. It will tap on the experiences of the faculty and students of both YNC and USP, and build on their strong foundations and rich traditions. Students and faculty from YNC and USP have been invited to be part of the New College planning committee. I am sure they will have much to contribute to make the New College a success.

With the benefits of scale, education in the New College can be much more inclusive, affordable and flexible. It would offer a wider choice of majors and minors, particularly in STEM disciplines, compared to YNC, and a student experience that seeks to combine the best features of both YNC and USP. With closer integration with the wider NUS ecosystem, all NUS students will also be able to benefit from and access the New College’s facilities, resources and community.

The Ministry of Education (MOE) is committed to supporting the New College. We expect that the tuition fees and costs per student will be lower than that at YNC, in keeping with the vision for the New College to be a more inclusive, affordable and accessible model of education.

Some have asked whether NUS can deliver this enhanced ambition and whether there will be an impact on its overall standing. There is no reason to believe why a University like NUS, which has grown in strength and reputation over the years, cannot continue to achieve great things.

In closing, Mr Speaker, Sir, the establishment of the New College marks a new chapter in inquiry-driven, interdisciplinary education for NUS and for Singapore. The NUS and YNC leadership are committed to supporting the YNC and USP communities through the transition and to making the New College a success.

This move brings exciting new opportunities, so my hope is that we look ahead and move forward together.

Last week, I had the chance to speak with student leaders from YNC and USP. I listened to their hopes and concerns, and encouraged them to work together on the journey ahead. I have every confidence that we will take forward the legacy, spirit and communities of YNC and USP together.

I have two supplementary questions for the Minister. Firstly, what is the extent of integration between YNC and NUS today, and how would this change with the merger? Second, the Minister mentioned that costs were a relevant consideration but not the main motivation for the merger. Can the Minister elaborate on how the financial sustainability was factored into this consideration and how the New College would be made more financially sustainable?

Mr Speaker, Sir, as an Autonomous College within NUS, YNC has its own governing board and it has autonomy to make decisions relating to student admission, curriculum and non-curricular matters such as student development, faculty and staff matters, as well as resourcing expenditure, hiring and other administrative matters.

YNC takes in about 250 students a year compared to NUS' intake of about 7,000 students a year.

As YNC is a four-year residential programme, students live in and are part of the residential colleges that are exclusively for YNC students.

YNC students primarily take modules that are offered by YNC but they may opt to take modules that are offered by other NUS faculties.

YNC's facilities, such as the multi-purpose hall, fitness centre, computer laboratory, study areas and lounges are dedicated to YNC students' use and therefore, only accessible by them.

The New College will be more integrated with NUS compared to YNC. It will not have a separate governing board but will instead have an international advisory panel. This will become clearer as the Planning Committee engages stakeholders and formulates its vision and plans for the New College in due course.

For now, NUS expects the New College to be more inclusive and accessible to students in four ways.

First, fees will be lower than YNC fees, making it a more affordable and more attractive option for more students.

Second, the New College can attract students from across a wider range of discipline. Today, YNC students who want to benefit from the immersive residential and interdisciplinary experience in YNC can only choose their majors from 14 options. In future, students from the New College will be able to enjoy immersive residential and interdisciplinary experience and access a whole range of about 50 possible majors across NUS, enabling them to interact with a greater diversity of students.

Third, compared to the USP experience today, the New College students will potentially have a richer residential life component.

And fourth, the New College facilities and resources will be accessible to all NUS students.

The Planning Committee is now engaging the various stakeholders and I look forward to their report.

On the second supplementary question by Mr Patrick Tay about the cost issue, let me first reiterate that the overriding reason for this move, as NUS has shared, is the vital role of a broad-based interdisciplinary education and our job to reimagine the higher education and how it will fit into our country's plans going forward so that we can develop a new generation of students that are much more global in their perspective, much more able to connect the East and the West, the North and the South. So, that is our higher goal.

When YNC was first established, the Government recognised that education in YNC will cost more because of its smaller size and unique education model. But we were prepared to invest in building the new facilities for YNC and we accepted this because we saw value in having a liberal arts college in our tertiary education system.

On the specific numbers, on a recurrent basis, YNC is more costly. In 2020, MOE provided around $48 million to YNC in operating grants per year for about 1,000 students in YNC. On a per student basis, this was more than double that of a Humanities and Science student in NUS on average, reflective of the higher cost in education. Beyond the operating grant, MOE has also provided capital funding for YNC's infrastructure and matched donations to YNC's endowment fund.

When NUS consulted MOE on its plan to merge the YNC and USP programmes together to form the New College, we were supportive of this for two reasons.

First, because this is in line with our broader push for Institutes of Higher Learning to expand their interdisciplinary approach to education. Second, because it will make education much more affordable to many more NUS students in keeping with NUS' ethos and mission as a public university. Prof Tan Eng Chye, President of NUS has articulated the reasons for the merger in his recent op-ed over the weekend. I think it makes sense for him to have the interests of the wider NUS student population and the whole NUS at the forefront of what he is doing with his leadership team in NUS.

Merging YNC and USP to form the New College therefore allows NUS to combine the best elements of both sides and to achieve economies of scale to allow us to scale this experience to many more students in part or in full across NUS.

Thank you, Mr Speaker, Sir, and I thank the Minister for his responses. I have two supplementary questions.

The first is given that the intention is to make the liberal arts education more accessible, how much larger does MOE expect the cohorts to be, given that it is to be noted that the current projected 500-student cohort for the New College is not actually that much bigger than the current combined cohorts of USP and YNC, as well as to what extent will the composition be made up of Singaporeans as well as foreign students?

Second, given that potential students will be applying for the next admission cycle in the coming months, will MOE guide or require the New College to set out its admission policy and confirmed majors to be offered, for example, so that potential students and parents can make considered decisions, given that this is a fairly short amount of time?

And Minister, if I could just go back to the Question No 13, my original PQ: if MOE will consider facilitating any assistance to those who had to forego other universities in order to take up this offer?

Mr Speaker, Sir, let me deal with the supplementary questions in order.

First, the scaling up of the education. The more interdisciplinary approach to the education system will not be just confined to the 500 students in the New College. Some of the best elements that we have been able to learn from these two traditions is that we will be able to scale this even to students beyond those that are going to be at the New College. So, yes, for a start, I think the Planning Committee is looking at 500 or a bit more for the New College, but there are elements of this that will actually percolate to the rest of the NUS ecosystem. That is the first one.

Second, today, YNC takes in about 40% of its cohort from the international student community; NUS takes in about 10%. Going forward, for the initial planning parameters of the 500, what is the balance between the international and the local students will still have to be decided by the Planning Committee. I would look forward to NUS coming back to us on this.

On the third issue about the admission policies for the next batch, yes, indeed, NUS is now making clear the offerings for the subsequent batch as early as possible so that they have the maximum time before they sign up for the different courses – for the next batch which will matriculate next year.

On the fourth question, yes, NUS will definitely provide assistance to staff and faculty, as I have mentioned, for those who want to make alternative plans.

I thank the Minister. I have two supplementary questions.

The first is, as part of my original Parliamentary Question, what other options and alternatives were considered and why were they not taken?

Secondly, what do you feel is the impact on the future possible tie-ups and also, some of our existing tie-ups, for example, Duke-NUS? There is a certain impression given that maybe, even though we might approach other external parties for similar collaborations in the future, will we then suddenly decide that actually, we have had enough, we have benefited enough, we are going to forge ahead. So, I think that really ties into our academic standing and our reputation.

Mr Speaker, Sir, I thank Ms He for her two supplementary questions.

First question: what other options have we considered? In fact, the President of NUS, Prof Tan Eng Chye had laid it out in his op-ed. There are various options to consider but the most important thing is to remember what are the guiding considerations in deciding on any option.

There are two guiding considerations. One, to make sure that we develop a generation of students that are much more global in their perspective, much more able to apply interdisciplinary approach to problem-solving. Second is to make sure that the whole experience in our Universities is much more inclusive, much more affordable, much more accessible to a wider number of students.

It is based on these that we decided that amongst the various options, whether to continue the current model, to merge the USP with YNC or to even develop a separate model as someone who would have said, that amongst all these different models, NUS has decided that the best way to achieve both objectives that I have just illustrated is to combine the USP and the YNC programme together to make it much more affordable and accessible to many more students.

On the Member's second supplementary question about our posture towards the international partnerships with other foreign universities, indeed, as we speak today, we are in the process of building up new partnerships with other universities across the world. And why are we doing so? For two reasons.

First, we must make sure that we continue to learn from the best. I am personally not very taken by ranking per se, because even if a university is ranked high or low, there are elements in the university that we can learn from. It does not mean that a highly ranked university is good for everything and another university that is not so highly ranked, there is nothing that we can learn.

So, I think we must take a very open approach to considering partnerships with others to make sure that we continue to learn from them and to take the best aspects from these partnerships.

On the other hand, as I have mentioned, when we go into a partnership with any foreign universities, we must also bring value to other people and we cannot just copy on the basis that they are better for us. Even if we try to learn from others, we must be prepared and be confident to chart out our own way to have our own unique value propositions. And that is how we will continue to go forward.

At this point in time, I do not think this partnership coming to its natural checkpoint, will have any implications for any of the other partnerships that we are in or exploring with others.

As I have mentioned in my Parliamentary Question reply, actually for every partnership, we have milestones to check to make sure that both parties find it mutually beneficial for both of us to continue that relationship. And at times, when it comes to a natural conclusion, we must be prepared to chart our own way forward, develop our own unique value proposition so that we can even be more attractive to other partners who would want to work with us and that we must continue to work together.

Thank you, Sir. Sir, I have one supplementary question for the Minister and that is coming back to my original Question No 20: whether NUS will be prepared to provide refunds to newly matriculated students of Yale-NUS College and for existing students, whether they will be allowed to look at alternatives, like transfers to other courses or to other programmes.

Mr Speaker, Sir, the answer is yes. NUS is in contact with the students who may want to consider other options and to see how we can best render help to them.

NUS is taking a bold step today for the future. Can I ask the Minister what would the Minister define as success for NUS and the students, given its vision for its interdisciplinary education?

Mr Speaker, Sir, this question will take me quite some time to answer but I try to cut to the crux. I usually try not to have more than three key performance indicators (KPIs) for the organisations that I work with.

But it is a serious question. What is my definition of success for NUS and what is my definition of success for NUS students? I would say three for NUS and three for the NUS students.

First, to me, in time to come, I will consider it a success if NUS produces quality graduates that are much more global in their perspective, able to connect the East and the West, the North and the South; that these students will be able to provide unique solutions in context to the challenges that Singapore faces and if possible, to make a contribution to the rest of the world. So, first is the quality of our students in being able to be an integrative force for the world.

Second, NUS will continue to be successful if NUS continues to remain humble and learn from the best in the world, while at the same time, being confident to chart out its own way forward, so that NUS is not just copying from the best in the world but instead, in the process, create something new, create something better that in and of itself becomes a valued partner to the rest of the world.

Third, that NUS, as a University, will help to reinforce Singapore's standing in the world because we stand for openness, integration, inclusivity. That we provide solutions in context for the world just as we provide for ourselves. So, these are my three KPIs for NUS.

How do I consider whether NUS students are successful? First, let me declare this. I do not measure NUS students' success just by how well they do for themselves in the type of income that they earn or the type of jobs that they get. And that is because simply, NUS takes in the best from every cohort. And as a society, as a country, we expect them to perform well, perform way above the average. That is to be expected. But in my own sense, I would like to see the success of NUS students defined in three ways.

Number one, they define success beyond themselves for the country. Number two, they define success beyond themselves for our people. Number three, they define success beyond themselves for our future. And let me explain why.

For NUS students to be individually successful, that is to be expected because they are the cream of the crop from every cohort in Singapore. But we want them to have a sense whereby their definition of success is not just about they, themselves, but how they can help Singapore defy the odds of history and continue to be a shining beacon, not just in Southeast Asia, but across the world and in history.

Number two, we want NUS students not to only define their success of again how well they do for themselves, but how well they enable the rest who are less privileged, perhaps less talented than them, to come along so that we can forge one people together, we can forge a nation together, we can forge that solidarity together, notwithstanding the forces that threaten to pull us apart.

Last but not least, we hope that the NUS students' success will be defined by not just how successful they are in this generation but by how successful they enable the next generation to be, perhaps to be even more successful than this generation.

If the NUS students can embody this spirit of being successful beyond themselves for the country, for our people and for our future, I think NUS and NUS students would have done Singapore a great service for many generations to come. [Applause.]