NUS guide: entering university! 🏫🎓💯: post #290 — TG.ME

CourseReg Round 3 opens at 9 a.m. (tomorrow, 3 Aug) and closes 12 p.m. the following day. For seniors, you will be able to overload—this means taking more units than the usual workload. Some may consider bidding for courses in excess and then dropping specific courses later on. (E.g. you may already be at the usual 20 units workload, but if there is another course you prefer but could not get, you can bid for that and if you successfully get it then you can drop the less preferable course afterwards). Freshmen are generally not allowed to overload unless you have the limit specially waived by appealing. Why some people overload: It may sometimes be strategic to overload extra courses you are unsure of, then narrowing down to which courses you really want to take after trying them out. This is because if you drop a course by week 3, it won't show up in your transcript / or if you drop a module before recess week, it would only show up as a 'W' grade with no effect on GPA. This way, you may be able to opt to keep only the courses you expect to do well (which you may have a better sense of by that point in time) and be more likely to get stronger GPA. (that said, it may also be unstrategic to do this if it means you can't cope in the first few weeks) Of course, a more common reason to overload is because you may want to have an easier workload in your final years in uni! In fact, if you are able to overload enough across multiple semesters, you would be able to finish your degree earlier, i.e. graduate earlier. This can mean major savings in school fees and time, e.g. paying a semester less of school fees. However, overloading is not always recommended and is ultimately a personal decision that requires you to balance various pros and cons and what you’re personally able to have on your plate in a semester. If you found these useful, do share our channel @NUSguide with your friends/juniors — we share uni tips/hacks throughout the year! 🙌🏻