Growing Through Exchange: My Semester at NUS

As a fourth-year Bachelor of Commerce (Co-op) student double-majoring in Accounting and Finance, Angela Le has embraced every opportunity to grow during her time at UNSW Business School. Her commitment to leadership and equity is reflected in her work as a Women in Business Ambassador and through representing her peers at major events, including UNSW’s 75th Anniversary showcase at the Australian Parliament House.

In 2025, Angela extended this drive for learning on a global scale by undertaking her final semester on exchange at the National University of Singapore (NUS). What began as a leap beyond the familiarity of Sydney quickly became one of the most formative chapters of her degree — offering new cultures, fresh perspectives and meaningful personal and professional development.

In the article below, Angela reflects on this transformative experience and shares insights and practical advice for students considering their own global journey.

Hi, I’m Angela, a 4th year Bachelor of Commerce (Co-op) student and I recently completed my final semester abroad at the National University of Singapore!

I went on exchange because I wanted to see all the beauty and opportunity the world has to offer beyond the bubble of Sydney. Exchange felt like a great first step to achieve this, by experiencing a new culture, making friends from around the world and growing my perspective.

Living away from home for the first time, I had doubts during the application process and even my first weeks in Singapore. Yet looking back, these five months became the best part of my university experience. I wanted to share my experience, along with some tips and insights that made my journey smoother.

Applying for exchange

I always felt a desire to exchange in Asia due to my cultural upbringing and professional development goals to one day work in the region.

My criteria when choosing my top 5 university preferences was based on the country, reputation of the university for my major and financial accessibility.

Singapore stood out to me because of how developed it is in finance, sustainability and urbanisation despite only 60 years of being independent.

Academics

What I loved was how real-world and case-focused the teaching at NUS was. In my Corporate Finance class, half of the semester was spent on analysis, discussion and presentations on topical cases in the Asia-Pacific region.

Similarly, every week in my Cities in Transition class, we were exposed to a new city and encouraged to comparatively analyse its development initiatives and discourse back to Singapore and our home country.

My professors were all extremely knowledgeable and dedicated to their teaching, and I could definitely see how NUS is a top university.

Travelling

With Singapore being so central to other countries, I capitalised on this and travelled to other Asian countries including China, Malaysia and Thailand during my free time.

It was incredibly eye-opening to explore these other cultures, from their traditions, food, lifestyles and languages. Travelling gave me a profound understanding of just how much untapped and emerging potential there is in Asia as a future place to live and work in.

On-campus Accommodation

Living at a residential college on-campus was personally something new but fast became the biggest highlight of my exchange due to the deep sense of community.

I met friends for life, both exchangers from around the world and also local Singaporeans. My favourite part of the exchange were the ordinary moments which were made so fun because of the people I was surrounded by, such as coming to the dining hall and having breakfast and dinner with my friends, going for a late night dessert run or playing mahjong with my floor mates.

Within college, there was always something to do with house events, interest groups and even guest speakers from industry.

Professional Development

Living in Singapore as an Australian, it was fascinating to see how deeply connected our countries are, from spotting familiar brands like Yochi and GYG to crossing paths with Aussies everywhere.

Singapore, through both the place and the people, has become a formative chapter of my life I’ll always cherish.

My experiences have not only strengthened my appreciation for Asia, it’s also deepened my gratitude for both Australia as home and who I’ve grown into through this journey.

If you’re on the fence about exchange, take the leap - it opens doors you can’t yet imagine.

Tips

1. Plan early: You’ll need to apply a year in advance, and a strong application takes real research. Take it from someone who had missed the cut-off date to apply in my second year! The Exchange Moodle tutorial is a great place to start, and creating a master document for all your research on university options, course matching, accommodation and finances helped keep everything organised.
2. Give yourself flexibility: Save your general education and free elective courses to use for exchange. This allows you many possibilities when matching a desired course at your foreign university to a course at UNSW. You also want to give yourself more course matching options than needed in the chance that a course may no longer be offered at the host university.
3. Be introspective and open-minded: Moving overseas for 5+ months is a big decision, so be honest with yourself about why you want to go and why you’ve chosen your host country. This clarity really helps with the exchange and also scholarship applications. Placements can be competitive, but the sheer experience of studying and living abroad is an invaluable experience that I’d recommend to anyone wanting to grow and see the world so keep an open mind throughout!