Singapore, Asia and the NUS PhD-MBA

The NUS PhD-MBA aims to attract and train talented science and engineering students who have the potential to create and lead technology companies. The programme is jointly hosted by the NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering (NGS) and the NUS Business School. The programme has 3 pillars. Students develop their research skills by doing a PhD in a science or technology discipline. Concurrently students develop business acumen by working on an MBA degree. Internships in technology comnpanies provide practical technology business training, and form the third pillar.

Terms:
- Concurrent PhD and MBA, taking much less time than completing both separately
- Choice of any subject for the PhD, from the life and physical sciences to engineering and IT
- Monthly (12 months per year) tax-free stipend of S$2,600 to S$3,200 (depending on whether or not scholar chooses to work in Singapore upon graduation)
- PhD tuition waiver, full MBA tuition fee waiver

Internship Opportunities in many Technology Start-Ups, VC firms and larger Technology Companies

The number of startups in Singapore is growing rapidly. Some have already been acquired, among them Singular ID, sold to Billcare in India, and tenCube, sold to McAfee in the USA. Other companies are at an earlier stage and are growing, examples are:

- is a web based application that manages information on people's personal clouds, WizFolio
- offers the first truly effective mobile application search and rating system, Mobilewalla
- uses adaptive algorithms to make learning Chinese less difficult, Gurulu
- are innovative, virtually invisible dental braces, BioMers

Many others have attracted venture funding, both from Singapore and abroad. Students may also choose to do their internship in a venture capital firm or in a larger technology company. To further develop the startup ecosystem, developing top technology business talent is very important to Singapore. The PhD-MBA is part of these efforts. NUS has recently been ranked 28th and the NUS MBA 23rd in the world. A flyer for the programme can be found here.

The Start-Up and Business Environment in Singapore

Singapore, in the heart of Asia, has long been an open economy, with an excellent reputation as a business hub, offering access to some of the largest and fastest growing markets in the world. Many large and medium sized corporations have chosen Singapore as the location for their regional or even global headquarters. Since about 10 years, significant investments are made in developing a basic and applied research infrastructure as well as attracting scientific and technological talent. To capture the value created by research and development, entrepreneurship and the formation of new companies is receiving significant attention. The National Research Foundation (NRF) is spearheading initiatives to attract investment to Singapore by providing matching grants to Venture Capitalists and Incubators. Six Venture Capitalists and seven incubators have recently set up shop in Singapore and many have made first investments in startups. NRF is also directly funding University based research that is in the proof of principle and prototyping stage. The SMART (Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology) Innovation Centre is directly funding University based research and, in addition, provides mentorship for faculty and students who want to start up innovative business.

Participating individuals will be well equipped to develop viable ideas that create sustainable value for customers, to build teams and realize these ideas, to attract funding, and to take advantage of Singapore's excellent business environment in order to grow their companies and create value for themselves, for Singapore and for the world. PhD-MBA students can select from a wide variety of scientific and engineering courses across the NUS campus, and, are encouraged and supported in independent and interdisciplinary research. Research that has the potential to be spun out into a startup is especially encouraged.

The National University of Singapore

NUS is a research-intensive university with an entrepreneurial dimension. NUS is ranked consistently as one of the world's top universities. A leading global university centred in Asia, the National University of Singapore (NUS) offers a global approach to education and research, with a focus on Asian perspectives and expertise. Its transformative education includes a broad-based curriculum underscored by multi-disciplinary courses and cross-faculty enrichment, as well as special programmes which allow students to realise their potential. Over 30,000 students from 100 countries further enrich the community with their diverse social and cultural perspectives, making campus life vibrant and exciting.

The NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering

The NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering (NGS) was established in 2003 to enhance Ph.D. graduate research and education at NUS. NGS has fast become a world-leading graduate school. The intellectual hallmark of NGS is the promotion of integrative research projects and coursework programmes that transcend traditional disciplinary boundaries. NGS has strong links with relevant Faculties, Schools and Research Centres of Excellence at NUS, and the various research institutes of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), a major agency for research and development in Singapore. NGS has also built synergistic, complementary partnerships with a select number of world-leading overseas research institutes and knowledge organisations in the USA, the UK, Continental Europe, Japan, Australia, and China. Thus, NGS is able to offer gifted students the opportunity to engage in globally progressive research in superb research facilities both within Singapore and further afield. NGS invites talented students from any branch of the life, physical or computational sciences, and also from medicine, mathematics and engineering to learn more about graduate research opportunities at NGS: our programmes, our people, and our Scholarships.

The NUS Business School

More than ever before, the world demands managers and business leaders who can lead Asian businesses to the forefront of the world economy, and those who can steer global businesses to succeed in Asia. With a top research faculty known for its focus in providing global management thought leadership and deep Asian insights, NUS Business School prepares students for that role, giving them that critical edge for success. It is said that success rides on time. NUS Business School has achieved a more-than-forty-year tradition in delivering a learning experience that is rigorous, relevant and rewarding. Our role is to challenge and inspire students, and ultimately enable them to achieve their potential for both personal and professional growth. Today, the school continues to attract a great diversity of students who have drive, confidence, a strong record of achievement and a burning desire to advance the progress of business and society. The School has a broad portfolio of successful programmes that are in great demand. This includes its flagship MBA programme. Admission to the programmes is extremely competitive. In addition to its degree programs, the school also offers a wide range of customised and open enrollment programmes in its Executive Education courses. We have a distinguished international faculty educated in renowned universities including Harvard, Wharton, MIT, Oxford and many others. Our professors are excellent in both research and teaching, and they are committed to providing students a top-rate business education. Many of them also have significant corporate experience and serve on corporate boards. The University of Texas at Dallas ranks the schools faculty's research No. 2 in Asia. The School has consistently received top rankings in the Asia-Pacific region by independent publications and agencies such as Financial Times, Economist Intelligence Unit, and QS Top MBA in recognition of the quality of our programmes and our graduates. We are also accredited by AACSB International (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business) and EQUIS (European Quality Improvement System), endorsements that the School has met the highest standards for business education. The School's network of more than 45,000 alumni reaches into every industry sector and they and their network represent an immense resource to the School and its students. Indeed, NUS Business School is an exciting place to study and grow. The remarkable success of the School has been made possible through the dedication and talent of our faculty and staff, the high quality of our students, and the achievements of our alumni in diverse organisations and positions of leadership throughout the world.