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News & Events
Almost every week, members of Tembusu College are invited to meet and chat with guests - both local and international - through a variety of hosted events. There is a huge diversity of backgrounds amongst our visitors, who range from politicians to diplomats, artists, writers, poets, and academics. Select an event category on the left to find out more.
Our events and members of our community are also frequently featured by the Press and Media. Visit the Newsroom to read the reports.
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Ethos
Tembusu College’s motto The Home of Possibilities, means we value the development of each individual according to her or his own path through life. At the same time we are a learning community, which seeks to give students an intense experience in a nurturing environment. The college administers (and awards certificates for) the prestigious University Town College Programme (UTCP), which augments students’ regular degree programmes by emphasising breadth, critical thinking, and exposure to inter-disciplinary thinking. Our curriculum includes both seminars and out-of-classroom learning experiences.
The college is not themed. Diversity is an important part of our ethos, and we offer learning opportunities across a broad spectrum of interests. We do, however, have particular areas of strength, which are reflected in the backgrounds of our faculty.
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Education
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College Life
A home away from home, the Tembusu College community is 21 storeys of collegiate spirit known for its friendly and welcoming culture.
Wake up or wind down through casual conversations with your Fellows and peers over meals at the Dining Hall. Sweat it out over sports at the Multi Purpose Hall. Huddle with like-minded individuals at one of the many Student-run Interest Groups & Student-Initiated Projects or start your own. Let loose or let your creativity flow in the well furnished Student Spaces. Be our Student Partners and contribute to the College community.
Need career advice? Stressed? Need help on personal issues? Or simply want catch up with friendly members of our Residential Team? We're here for you.
Tembusu College is much more than a home; it's a Home of Possibilities.
Is heritage important? Why?
April 26, 2016
Undergraduates from Tembusu College (National University of Singapore), the American University of Central Asia in Bishkek and Indiana University participated in a small project conducted by Prof Anne Pyburn while she was in teaching in Kyrgystan. They were asked whether they think heritage is important, and if so, why? The answers were charming, sincere, poetic and surprisingly varied. Despite general agreement on the value of heritage, preservation, and the importance of recognition of a shared past, the students' answers showed that ideas about heritage are extremely personal.
Although this is an extremely preliminary and small scale study, it has implications for the value of the concept of "world heritage" which tends to distance people from their own history and make the past seem homogeneous, irrelevant, and boring. It also inclines people to think that there is only one correct story about the past, which many scholars have begun to see as Colonial and damaging to Indigenous peoples and groups who are politically disadvantaged. Promoting world heritage may not be the best mechanism for preservation or even education. We should probably begin to talk about the world's "many heritages".
