No Forced Relocation to Crescent House: HAS

NTU students from the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine) and two scholarship programmes now have the flexibility to choose if they want to move to the newly-constructed Crescent House, or remain in their current Halls of Residence. News Editor Louisa Tang and Sharanya Pillai find out more.

By Sharanya Pillai & Louisa Tang, News Editor

FREEDOM OF CHOICE: Some students can decide against moving into the newly-constructed halls.
PHOTO: NTU

Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine) undergraduates and some NTU scholars are now allowed to remain in their current Halls of Residence instead of moving to the newly-constructed Crescent House, in an unexpected move by the Office of Housing & Auxiliary Services (HAS) last Wednesday (9 Apr).

Previously, students under the LKCMedicine Programme, CN Yang Scholars Programme and the University Scholars Programme (USP) had no choice but to shift to Crescent House after NTU’s undergraduate housing applications opened on 3 Apr. This sparked displeasure among affected students, as some wanted to stay in their respective Halls of Residence.

“We were quite upset — there was no warning of any sort before the announcement. My roommate and I had already made plans to apply for hall together next semester,” said Goh Hua Zhen, 20, a first-year USP student from the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information.

“Also, their instructions on the options available for my roommate and I were not clear at times,” she added.

A group of USP students then began a petition to raise their complaints with HAS, according to Chen Jinyang, a second-year USP student from Nanyang Business School.

“Multiple concerns were raised about the relocation. We decided to gather student opinions and express these concerns to the school management through official channels,” said the 22-year-old.

Last Wednesday, HAS announced on its Hall OnLine Application (HOLA) webpage that it would allow scholars and LKCMedicine undergraduates to continue staying in their current Halls of Residence, while maintaining their priority placement status.

They were allowed to resubmit their applications before online hall applications closed yesterday (14 Apr).

“As we recognise that students from these programmes may have built strong bonds with their current hall mates over the years, they can also choose to remain in their existing halls,” said Associate Professor Kwok Kian Woon, Associate Provost (Student Life).

“I think it’s great that we have the option of staying (in hall) now, particularly for those of us with high prior investments in their old halls, such as in hall camps and hall sports,” said Ryan Chen, 19, a first-year LKCMedicine student.

Starting the next academic year, all incoming students under the CN Yang Scholars Programme, LKCMedicine Programme and the USP, however, will move into Crescent House.

Under the new House System, students under these programmes who are assured of a Hall placement will be housed at three out of the four blocks in Crescent House.

Other students can apply for places in Crescent House’s remaining block, as well as in Pioneer House.

Kashmira Jirafe, 19, a USP student and CN Yang Scholar, felt there are pros and cons to the House System.

“In the House System, all your classmates are around you and you can interact with them much more,” said the first-year student from the School of Chemical and Biological Engineering.

“However, it alienates us from the rest of the university, and our interaction with people from different courses or backgrounds decreases. Personally, I’d prefer a good mix of student backgrounds in each student residence,” she added.