Hear from Our Graduates

My academic journey—both my undergraduate and post-graduate years—at the School of Art, Design and Media (ADM), NTU, will forever be some of the most fulfilling and empowering years of my life. This is largely because of the art history department and its team of professors and academic who aided and inspired me to achieve my academic success. The art history courses offered most definitely pivoted me and provide me with strong foundations to pursue a career in art history and heritage. The art history programme also encourages students to engage with current and contemporary discussions on art and heritage, which strengthened my voice and perspectives on the subjects. This is definitely valuable to my work in the museum and heritage field. 

Being in NTU also allowed me to work and assist in various research led by differed professors and academics. These provided valuable experience that might not be gained in classrooms and lecture halls, and help me be a better researcher and a scholar.

The diverse forms of knowledge and sciences in NTU—through its wide array of courses—allowed me to constantly connect with academics of different disciplines and provide opportunities of multidisciplinary collaborations that are becoming more and more necessary. 

When deciding to pursue History at NTU, I was interested in the various modules that were offered and was excited by the level of self-directed learning there would be. There was so much to gain from this path; from having the freedom to choose modules based on our interests to formulating research questions and having an avenue to expand my thinking and understanding of various topics through a degree in humanities. It was also during my time at NTU that I discovered how intriguing History of Art as a discipline was and fell in love with it. Inspired by the lectures I had taken in a module called Faith and Art in my first year at NTU, I decided to pursue Art History on a deeper level by taking more modules in that discipline. Thanks to the possibility of doing a Second Major, I was able to study both History and Art History. Eventually, that motivated me to pursue further studies and that dream has come true! I am now pursuing an MA in History of Art and Archaeology. That would not have been possible without the inspiration, guidance and encouragement of the professors at NTU.

Beyond studying History and Art History, learning from wonderful professors and sharing such an experience with great peers, I was able to meet and befriend people from various disciplines and develop skills such as leadership and public speaking through extra-curricular activities. My experience at NTU was thus nurturing both academically and in my personal growth. Looking back at my university experience, though it may be a cliche, four years definitely went by so quickly! However, I look back at my time with NTU with great fondness, gratitude and excitement for what the future holds for me as an NTU alumni and what’s in store for my alma mater as well.

The journey of a thousand miles began with the single step I took when I embarked on my second major in Art History at NTU. In the years that I had pursued my second major in Art History, I was introduced to the diversity of faiths and artistic traditions of Singapore and of the region at large. This, along with the historical training that I had received as a student of the History programme at NTU, forever reshaped my worldview and made me realise the importance of being able to synergise ideas and theories from across disciplines in one’s research endeavour. It is here, at NTU, where my interest in inter-faith art and architecture was seeded. Inspired and motivated by my experiences at NTU, I pursued my MA in the History of Art and Archaeology at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London, with a focus on Hindu-Buddhist traditions of Asia to further enrich my understanding of the cultural heritage that we have. These cumulative experiences cemented my desire to return to the institution that ignited this passion for my Doctorate studies. With its strength and niche as a school that promotes inter-disciplinary studies and critical thinking, I felt there is no better place to launch a cross-discipline study of the streets of inter-faith dialogue in Singapore than here.