Dazed and Confused
There are around 480 peeps that got straight A’s in their STPM, out of a student population in excess of 17,000. Of those, only 9 scored a perfect grade in every paper. So statistically, I shouldn’t hope for the 9 if I retake, but those 480? Plausible.
But lately, I’ve been thinking - what do universities think about retake students? What do scholarship bodies and funds think? Someone who succeed on the rebound? Or someone who can’t be trusted to apply himself?
I’ve been thinking of doing a University of London External degree in Economics - a B.Sc. It’s not what I’ve would have prefered - either Government or Government and Economics, but it is better than nothing. And if I can get into the first class honours roll, I stand a rather fair shot of getting a postgrad scholarship instead. Furthermore, London School of Economics being completely examinations based and the examinations External students sit for is roughly the same test, marked roughly under the same standard.
I’m narrowing down my options to those two - retaking or London External. Maybe both. Exams for External students are in May - once a year for three years. STPM is in November. I can put all my effort into STPM, and then immediately after put all my effort into UoL. But I wonder whether I could apply for Internal admissions if I do spectacularly well in STPM. But heh, if I do spectacularly well in both STPM and my first exams, I would be considered especially well for scholarship to study second year on at LSE.
But it means I would bury the hatchet, go full in to what I like, what I’m passionate for, disregarding employment later on. There’s a graduate law diploma or graduate LL.B. programs, try my hand at that Bar exam several times and pass, if I want to get a job as a lawyer. Or enter into MICPA, get an accountancy job, perhaps try the ICAEW tests, work for three years, become a Chartered Accountant.
But the External idea has one significant hitch to it: I would still be in the Klang Valley. I guess one of the reasons why I studied 4-8 hours a day in the month preceding STPM was to get out of my home, get out of this metropolis, go somewhere else. Though London isn’t a particularly great idea - I can’t stand the cold. Why do they have a long summer break but not a long winter break? It makes no sense…
Tomorrow I have to watch upon around 6:30-7:00 (it’s 2:00am now) to get to school, have all my documents verified and stamped, and courier it to Singapore to I can beat the dateline. Typical Rex - procastinate now, don’t put it off! But if I get an offer to enter any Singaporean university, I would probably jump at it for the very reason I stated in the previous paragraph. But then again, not - even after tuition grant, the approximately S$6500 p.a. tuition seems to prohibitive for my family - and what about cost of living, textbooks, booze, contraband chewing gum etc.?
Though in Singapore I have a fair shot of doing a double degree or a double major based on my first-year results. Twin passions.