Global Exposure
At SMU, we aspire to have 100% of our students embark on at least one global experience before graduating. Many students go on to have more than one global experience, whether through an overseas exchange programme, international internship, overseas community service programme, study mission, summer school, and so on. In fact, SMU is so serious about global exposure that we have made acquiring overseas experience a graduation requirement for our students!
We are aware of students who have difficulties travelling because of exceptional circumstances. We strongly encourage students to discuss and seek advice with our university counsellors and faculty advisors should they have any concerns. SMU is committed to our students’ welfare and success, and we will work with students facing exceptional and challenging situations to explore holistic alternatives and consider exceptions where necessary
SMU has a range of University-funded and donor-supported financial assistance schemes that needy students can tap on for their overseas activities and programmes. The value of these financial assistance schemes ranges from S$500 to S$10,000. Some of these grants/subsidies are listed below. Singaporean SMU students may also tap on the SMU Overseas Student Programme Loan, which has no income criterion.
SMU is committed to provide necessary assistance and financial support in situations where a student faces difficulties completing the global exposure requirement due to financial issues.
* Some of the grants/subsidies available (non-exhaustive) include:
- SMU Overseas Student Educational Programme Subsidy
- Arnoud De Meyer Business Study Mission
- Community Service Projects Grant
- DBS Sustainability Business Study Mission
- Doris and Mick Aw Accounting Study Grant
- Eddie & Lindy Chang Overseas Study Mission Grants
- Hanh Nguyen Overseas Study Mission Grant
- Joanne Chan Memorial Fund Social Science Study Mission Grant
- Kwai Fong & Raymond Goh SMU-XO Grant
- Law Study Mission Financial Grant
- Ruth Chiang Overseas Community Service Grant
- School of Accountancy Education Enhancement Fund
- School of Accountancy International Experience Fund
- SMU ASEAN Exposure Grant
- The SMU Ambassadorial Corps Study Mission Grant
- SMU Partial Conference Funding
- Tan Tiong Hwee Memorial Fund Grant
- Wilmar Overseas Community Service Project Grant
- Wilmar Overseas Internship Grant
Students who participate in many forms of global exposure, such as overseas internships and overseas community service, may apply for grants/subsidies to cover the cost of the travel. Most students who go on overseas internships or overseas community service are awarded grants which would cover the expenses involved with the global exposure activity.
For study missions, the cost varies depending on the destination region. The estimated cost, by region, is as follows:
Region
Estimated cost
Southeast Asia
S$500 to S$1,500
Rest of Asia
Up to S$2,000
Europe / North America
S$3,000 to $4,000
A student going on an exchange programme to a partner university remains enrolled full-time at SMU while away on the exchange programme. Therefore, for each term that the student is away, the amount of tuition and student fees are as per what the student would pay for a regular SMU term.
While the student is not required to pay tuition fees to the overseas partner University, the student is responsible for the air tickets cost, living expenses, accommodation costs, additional travel arrangements and health insurance etc. Based on feedback from students who recently went on such trips, the estimated cost differs according to the region that the student travels to:
Region
Estimated cost
Southeast Asia
S$3,000 to S$5,000
Rest of Asia
S$5,000 to S$8,000
Oceania
S$8,000 to S$12,000
Europe
S$8,000 to S$12,000
South America
S$8,000 to S$12,000
North America
S$10,000 to S$16,000
There are numerous forms of financial aid available to students to offset the cost of going on exchange programmes.
About 90% of our graduates in the Class of 2019 chose to take up an activity from the myriad of overseas exposure programmes offered by the University. SMU is continuing to ramp up and enhance these opportunities following the implementation of the global exposure graduation requirement from Academic Year 2018-2019 onwards. With these added opportunities, the University expects more students to take up these formal programmes to fulfil the global exposure requirement.
Activity
Average duration
International Exchange
1 term (15 weeks)
Summer Exchange Programme
4 weeks
Community Service
3 weeks
Study Mission
10 to 14 days
Co-Curricular Activities
11 days
Internship
10 weeks
Global Innovation Immersion
10 weeks
Students may fulfil the global exposure requirement by participating in any of the following SMU-organised overseas activities:
Global Exposure Activity
Qualifying duration
International Exchange Programme
As per programme requirement
As per programme requirement
As per programme requirement
5 working days or longer
Study Mission
5 working days or longer
Co-Curricular Activities
5 working days or longer
Internship
5 working days or longer
Global Innovation Immersion Programme
5 working days or longer
SMU-X Overseas
5 working days or longer
Cultural Immersion Programme
5 working days or longer
Global traction and understanding underpins success in careers in today’s globally connected environment. To have global exposure from the vantage of a university education is invaluable for international networking and global vision; it also open doors to bigger opportunities.
When students approach their global exposure opportunities with an enthusiastic and open mind, the benefits are immense. Academically, gaining a first-hand, real-world perspective of issues learnt in the classroom serves to deepen students’ learning and knowledge application. More importantly, the journey builds independence, empathy, open-mindedness, not to mention soft-skills like communication and teamwork. These attributes not only build character and personal development, but also give students an edge when they are seeking employment and advancement in the competitive workplace.
We believe that our consistently strong Graduate Employment Survey results can be attributed to SMU’s holistic approach towards education (which includes making 80-hours of community service and 10-week of internship graduation requirements), and particularly to the international exposure that the majority of SMU graduates receive. To make sure no student misses out on this precious global experience, the University is committed to giving global exposure participation an extra push by enhancing support and by providing more (and new) opportunities for students.
