My NUS Part-time Master Experience

Half-year after I finished my bachelor’s degree at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) majored in Information Engineering, I decided to take a part-time master's degree in Computing at National University of Singapore (NUS). After 5 semesters, I have officially graduated from NUS with a CGPA of 4.81 (out of 5) in the Master in Computing (Computer science specialization) degree. If you want to know

• Why do I take the part-time master and does it worth it?
• How is the workload as a part-time master's student?
• What’s my course schedule and most recommended courses?

Then this blog suits you well!

Overall experience

The learning experience in general is great and contributes to a better self.

Why do I take the Master in Computing (Computer Science specialization)?

• As my bachelor's degree is not purely in Computer science, there are some Computer science fundamental knowledges that I want to learn more.
• Continuously learning something is the key to catching up with the world.

Why do I take the Master's program part-time?

• My focus in life is still on the career side. If you are aiming to do research, then it is strongly suggested to do full-time with a research track or directly go for PhD program.
• I can earn money and get a higher degree at the same time! ;)

What are the benefits of doing a part-time Master's program?

• Learn new stuff
• A wider range of job opportunities
• Enrich your free time
• A sense of achievement

There are some other tips that I would like to add on

• Try to enjoy the courses instead of focusing on the grade, you will have less pain. Within a limited time (as you will also need to do a full-time job), find a balance between learning stuff and aiming for the best score.
• It works best if the course content can be associated with your working content, but if it doesn’t, then the course should suit your interest.
• It is better to take earlier than later if you want to have a Master’s degree. Your career will progress with time, and you will need to invest more and more time in your work as you are being a more and more important person. At that time, on the one hand, you don’t need to take a master's degree, and on the other hand, you don’t have time to take a master's degree.

My Course Schedule

In general, I took 2 classes per semester, one is of heavy workload, and the other one is of medium to light workload. The rough workload distribution according to my experience is shown in the diagram.

What does the workload mean?

• < 50: on average 3 (out of 5) working days need to be fully spent on coursework, and on average 0.5 (out of 2) weekend days need to be fully spent on coursework
• 50–70: on average 4 (out of 5) working days need to be fully spent on coursework, and on average 1 (out of 2) weekend days need to be fully spent on coursework

• 70: all working days need to be fully spent on coursework (sometimes need to stay up until very late), and all weekend days need to be fully spent on coursework

My course schedule is shown below, I did not mention the detailed course assignments here as I believe they can be found online

Overall, I enjoyed my journey to earn a part-time Master’s degree as I get to learn more new knowledge, but I have to say it’s very tough. It is recommended if you do not major in Computer Science during your Bachelor, but want to be a Software Engineer/Data Engineer! It costs 51k SGD at my time, so think twice before you apply :P