July Emily (MA, 2002, Singapore)
"… I have learnt a great deal from all the lecturers who taught me. The fundamentals of understanding and comparing Southeast Asian politics, economics and culture were very important and I must say that these were not compromised at all by any of the lecturers.

… I found the exchange with matured students and professionals who were already working with Southeast Asian governments and businesses, a strong quality of the program. The intellectual exchanges and the sharing of experiences which I had with these classmates have helped to enhance my learning. I interacted with my classmates a lot and found that it was very interesting to learn from them, to discover their different yet valid points of view and to spar with them to challenge my own beliefs and priorities. I also enjoyed greatly, getting to know the Filipinos, Vietnamese, Thai, Burmese, Indonesians, and even Europeans and a Brazilian in my class.

I would like to encourage the Department to continue to seek out participants who have relevant work experience to enhance greater learning within the classroom. The young ones in the class will continue to remind us of the idealistic and philosophical implications of theory while the older, more experienced ones will bring their practical industrial experiences to the class, generating debate and discussion. "

Le Cong Viet (MA, 2002, Vietnamese)
"I will always treasure my time at NUS where I have benefited from the great discussions in a multi-disciplinary environment at the Programme. The exchanges with students from different countries in the course exposed me to varied ideas and views. Indeed, the courses opened me to a whole new world. I was able to conduct a research project at NUS which was the start of several other researches that I had since done.

It was an exciting experience visiting the SEAS's alumni webpage. This initiative indeed works as it lets us know what others are doing and forms a network for SEASP's alumni. Congratulations on having done this for us. In fact, I have been a frequent visitor to the SEASP's webpage since I left NUS almost three years ago. The site keeps me informed of the Programme's activities, including the seminars series, courses offered and staff changes. Thus, I always feel that I am not far from the AS3 Block."

Tamara Shie (MA, 2003, American)
"I can hardly believe how quickly the time has passed. Just a year ago I was stressing terribly over my independent research for NUS and the exams. Now I am stressing over an entirely different paper! It is not yet a year since I left S'pore and NUS. There are many aspects I miss. Bus 33. EZ Link cards. The Cheese Prata shop. (My friends and I called it The Cheezy P) The quiet of the campus at night as I sat in front of the computer in the grad student room. The view of the port. The many wonderful people I met."

Suhaimi (BA Hons 2004, Singaporean)
"I found the time spent in the Program one of the most enriching during my four years in NUS. The course curriculum was well structured, diversified and interesting. The academics in the Program came from diverse backgrounds, each shedding a unique perspective on an issue. I found that this balanced approach trains one to consider issues from various angles, something very helpful in life and work. A big PLUS to the Program is the fun, cozy environment of the staff and students."

Bernadette Chia (BA Hons 2000, Singaporean)
"I signed up for the Southeast Asian Studies Programme because the region has always held a special interest for me. Little did I know that being in the SEA programme, I would have the flexibility to study a wide range of subjects in different disciplines with Southeast Asia as a collective theme to give it focus and direction. This coupled with my Bahasa Indonesia language component has been very useful in my travels and in my career, especially since Singapore is a hub for SEA in education, healthcare and tourism."

Claudine Ang Tsu Lyn (BA Hons 1999, Singaporean); Currently a PhD student, History Department, Cornell University
"I spent four extremely fruitful years from 1995-1999 with the Southeast Asian Studies Programme pursuing a Bachelors degree, and not only was it thoroughly enjoyable, it was also an excellent place to develop and hone what was then a vague budding interest in the Southeast Asian region. I am now a PhD student researching the history of the Mekong Plains in the 18th and 19th centuries in the History Department at Cornell University, and I really appreciate the rigorous and multi-disciplinary foundation in Southeast Asian Studies that I received while I was an undergrad in the SEASP."

"I took some years off to try out other careers before returning to school to further study. I held civil service and private sector jobs in Singapore and interviewers were always most interested in my degree in Southeast Asian Studies. Those who hired me told me that they felt that my knowledge of Southeast Asia, and also of Vietnamese language, would be an asset to the company or the ministry."

"I highly recommend the programme for its flexible structure that allows students to discover the various disciplines and also the various regions and nations within Southeast Asia before deciding to focus a more directed pursuit of any discipline(s) or region(s). The SEASP is also home to excellent lecturers, who encouraged students to think critically and were extremely interested and helpful in guiding their students in their research interests."

Melissa Ang Hui Min (BA Hons 2002, Singaporean)
"As a SEAS Programme graduate, I am grateful for the opportunity to be involved in the ASEAN Tourism meetings especially since I had studied it during my Honours year (Dr Daquila's ASEAN Economy class) plus it's in Vietnam so I can further brush up my language skill which comes in very handy for my current portfolio in STB. All in all, I am very glad that SEAS Programme has equipped me in all these aspects and I am thus able to contribute in a small way to ASEAN and STB."

Zhao Li (MA 2002)
"I am pleased to inform you that I have received admission letter from the George Warren Brown School of Social Work, Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL) with an offer of Dr. Sun Yat Sen scholarship over the two years of my Master's studies in the U.S.A. WUSTL is a prestigious university in the world, and GWB's MSW ranks No. 2 in graduate social work programme in the United States.

I am so proud of being part of SEAS programme alumni group. I owed greatly my WUSTL admission and the scholarship to your esteemed programme, especially to my two widely respected supervisors Professor Reynaldo Ileto and Dr. Teofilo Daquila, who strongly encourged me and recommended me to apply to GWB of WUSTL. While studying at SEAS programme, I thoroughly enjoyed my coursework studies and benefited greatly from its world-class academic resources and devoted faculty, all of which gives me a deeper and focused understanding of diverse aspects of the social and economic development in Southeast Asian region. Here, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to SEAS programme, its faculty and my two supervisors."

Joyce Teo (BA Hons 2000, Singaporean)
"Majoring in Southeast Asian Studies was the best time I had in Uni. The modules opened my eyes to the sights and sounds of Southeast Asian countries. We learnt more than history. There is so much variety to sink our teeth into - political economy, social and economic issues, and even cultural resource management. Having the opportunity to learn Vietnamese so intensively gave me an edge when I look for a job with the overseas experience of being immersed in another country's culture and life as well as the ability to speak a third language.

The lecturers and classmates in Southeast are like a big family to me. Cos we are a small group, we get more attention from the lecturers and even then, they mentored us not just in studies but sometimes life issues too."