alumni

Contributed by Ishita Samtani
Editor's Note: Our guest blogger featured this month is Ms Ishita Samtani, Admissions Manager at Duke-NUS. In this blog feature, she gives us insights on Admissions at Duke-NUS from her perspective.

Ishita is the Admissions Manager at Duke-NUS

Teamwork, Creativity, Pioneering Spirit, Clinician-Scientist Training, Servant-Leadership, Unique TeamLEAD Curriculum, Curiosity, Innovation, Breaking Barriers, Transforming Medicine and Research, Vibrant Multicultural environment are some words that come to my mind when I think of Duke-NUS.   I have been working in Admissions at Duke-NUS for nearly four years and not a day goes by when I am not asked “How do I get into Duke-NUS?” from a prospective student.  Duke-NUS is a unique school in that it takes a certain mindset to fit in our school whether you are student, faculty or staff.  

After working in University of California San Francisco, which was founded in 1864, for 9 years, I find it so refreshingly challenging and fun to be part of a school in its nascent state as it strives to find its niche in Singapore and the rest of the World.  Each year we get hundreds of applications and we only accept 56 extremely talented and committed students.  Although competitive MCAT scores and strong grades are an important admissions criteria, equally important are also the interview results and the application - which includes the essays and letters of references.  As Duke-NUS aims to produce highly trained clinician‐scientists, emphasis is also placed on the candidate’s research experience upon application. Our teaching curriculum is based on Team- based learning and as such the Admissions Committee looks for candidates who are able to adopt and embrace this mode of learning with relative ease and can function well in team settings.   The Admissions committee also looks for those who have demonstrated their passion for medicine and humanity by consciously seeking and engaging in various humanitarian or medically-related volunteer activities.  Rather than examining a candidate's academic record or personal achievements in isolation, the admissions committee adopts a more “holistic” review process.  Thoughtful consideration is given to a wide spectrum of an applicant's qualifications provided in their application, their personal circumstances and academic strength in comparison to the overall strength of the applicant pool.  

The diversity of backgrounds has proven to immensely enrich the academic and clinical experiences of students at Duke-NUS.  Students enter with a Bachelor’s, Master’s or a PhD degree in varied disciplines such as Arts and Humanities to Science and Engineering from leading academic institutions within Singapore and from around the world.   Several countries are represented in our student body and unique among them are Nepal, Greece, Poland and Zimbabwe.  The age range of students also varies, some are freshly graduated undergraduates, while some are older and have obtained their degrees and gained several years of work experience, many are single and some are even married with children.   
I would encourage prospective students to take a few minutes to read the article written by Chia Ghim Song, a student from our Pioneer Class in the Jun 2011 Edition of Vital Science titled “Medical Memories and Journeying Forth”. Ghim Song has beautifully described his four year journey at Duke-NUS and how he has had to break several barriers of age, career and culture to get to where he is now.  This article encapsulates the true Duke-NUS experience from a student’s perspective.   This would be a good starting point for those who want to consider applying to Duke-NUS.  

Interestingly, about one third of our student population hold a Bachelor's degree in Engineering. One of our sucess stories, Dr Lim Kheng Choon, was a Mechanical Engineer in the Republic of Singapore Air Force  before he joined us as a medical student at Duke-NUS. To futher spur on these group of "engineers turned medical students", an interest group MedTech has also been set up at Duke-NUS. In this blog post, we talk to Eric Cher, a current 2nd year student about his journey from engineering to medicine thus far.

Eric's Journey so far.

Dina Ho (DH): Why did you choose Duke-NUS?
Eric Cher (EC):I decided to pursue a postgraduate medical degree and Duke-NUS was certainly the choice. In particular, the small faculty-to-student ratio and the mission of training clinicians with an interest in research and innovations really caught my attention. The strong emphasis on peer learning and self-discovery at this very early stage of training will definitely prepare us for the ever-changing medical field.

DH: You were studying Biomedical Engineering before, why did you choose to study medicine?
EC: I am very interested in medical devices and how bioengineering can be viewed from a patient-centric perspective. With an engineering background, coupled with a good medical education, my future practice will certainly allow me excel in the area of design and innovation.

DH: Now that your first year is over, tell us how has first year been so far?
EC: The first year has been extremely challenging and yet fulfilling. The amount of knowledge imparted and retained by us during this period is simply amazing. One of the greatest challenges as a new medical student is learning this new medical language and how to think like a doctor. Having said that, my experience is definitely not without fun. Through the various community service activities, classes and time spent together, great friendships are forged. This fun, joy and ease around my fellow classmates, has played a critical part in creating an unique learning atmosphere.

DH: Tell us about a community service activity that you were involved in at Duke-NUS.
EC: I headed this year’s Project Karen – an overseas medical trip to Huay Kao Lip, Chiangmai, first started by a group of passionate students from the Class of 2011. Not only did we conduct basic health screening to the villagers, we also taught them basic dental hygiene and first aid. On a social level, our interaction with the villagers and children has made this trip exceptionally memorable.
In order to further promote community service and to emphasize the importance of contribution, we have also started a Facebook page called Duke-NUS Community Service to showcase some of our work and to connect like-minded people together.
As the VP of Community Service, our vision for the upcoming year will be to extend our outreach of influence and to promote a more vibrant community within Duke-NUS

DH: What significant roles did faculty members play towards your 1st year here?
EC: Faculty members here played a critical role in our development. Given our demanding course requirements, our faculties understood how important it is stay focus and move along steadily towards being a competent physician. I am particularly grateful to my College Masters as they are always there when advice is sought.

DH: What are your aspirations after 4 years at Duke-NUS?
EC: I aspire to be a good surgeon and a medical device inventor. My future practice will be motivated by an inquisitive mind, one that seeks to improve the current healthcare practice. As a doctor-engineer, I want to work towards the developments of products that are not only innovative, but practical and patient-centric.

DH: A word for future applicants of Duke-NUS?
EC: If you are thinking about applying to Duke-NUS, my advice would be to look into areas that will make you stand out among the many high achieving candidates. Besides exceling academically, prospective students need to evaluate their performances in the other aspects such as community involvement and interpersonal skills. This will be a long marathon and interested students has to be clear of what they want ultimately in life.A little bit more about Eric:
In his spare time, Eric likes moving around Singapore to try out different types of cuisines. Having spent a significant amount of the week in school, Eric takes every opportunity of such to self reflect, and more importantly, to spend quality time with those he treasures. Being very adventurous with his taste buds, he enjoys the uniqueness and culture behind every cuisine.
Eric’s favorite holiday destination is anywhere that has a rich cultural history.  He has yet to fulfill his dream of travelling around the world, especially to places less ventured. Having travelled to US, Eastern Europe and around Asia, he found that the beauty behind every holiday lies in the ability to explore and understand a tradition that is different from his. 
Eric graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering (Bio Engineering) from the National University of Singapore before joining us at Duke-NUS.