Wow time really flies. It just struck me that this time 3 years ago, I had just finished O'levels and was alternating between watching back-to-back episodes of F.R.I.E.N.D.S (all ten seasons, cleared within a month hehe ^^) and praying fervently for my results.
It was also this time three years ago that I first stepped foot in NP for.......*drumrollz*
RED CAMP 7!!!!!!!!! (Was a former Apache. HOLLER IN Facebook IF YOU ARE/WERE AN APACHE TOO!)
I remember climbing up the Ngee Ann Hill and going "whoaaaaaaa this place is huge". Little did I knew then that the very same hill I was so in awe of would be the bane of my existence for the next 3 years, especially when I am rushing to class in the morning or -horrors of horrors- almost late for an assignment submission.
But I digress! Ok I have pretty much set my eyes on NP's Mass Communication diploma course ever since I was in sec 2...so needless to say, I did not take very long to fill up my application form. However, for those who are still undecided, our school holds an annual camp for secondary school students to let them know more about the 49 diplomas that the school has to offer.
But for the sake of those who did not manage to attend RED camp 7 for various reasons (Boo! Missed out on so much fun!), your roving reporter here will take you through parts of the journey!
At the School of Health Sciences, learning more about the Optometry course.
The school recently opened an Optometry Centre with students from the Optometry course running the show. Eye checks there cost only $3 for NP students and $5 for members of the public!
Mending a broken heart. HAHAHAHHAH.
Now as most of you might already know, the difference between a Junior College and a Polytechnic is that the former focuses more on theoretics while the latter adopts a more hands-on practical approach. So just how practical does poly gets?
Welcome to poly~!
This is one of the many stimulation exercises that our Nursing students have to go through during the course of their study. I remembered that for my RED camp, we had this drill where the patient had a heart attack and the nurses have to do CPR, chest pumps and use the electrical shocker thing to get his heart beating again. This time, they have a situation where a woman is giving birth. It was very realistic!
Terrified girl is terrified.
All the girls witnessing the scene were cringing and wincing in one way or another. LOL. And here's the finale of the demonstration:
A fresh placenta received from the hospital just the day before.
For those who do not know, the placenta is an organ that allows the fetus to absorb nutrients and expel waste while in the mother's uterus, and is discharged from the body after giving birth.
Lots of probing and prodding. And somebody said, "Feels like chicken!"
One of the demonstrators there handed me a pair of gloves and asked me to try touching the placenta. I remembered mumbling something along the lines of "no I have to take photos" and started waving my camera madly. Yes I know, I am a wuss. ): Newfound respect for the Nursing students in my school!
Just next to the Health Sciences block is the Life Sciences and Chemical Technology block. So I trooped over, and saw the cutest thing I've ever seen in my life.
It's an albino guinea pig!
Look at the way it is lying on the lecturer's shoulder. Soooooooo cute and warm and fluffy to snuggle in this cold monsoon weather. A guinea pig cost only around $80 in a pet shop and they are relatively easy to take care of, compared to dogs. Just then, some girls standing to my right let out a high pitched squeal at the sight of...
A snowball! Lol no a white mouse.
Nope, we are not running a mini petting zoo in school. These animals are the study subjects for students in the newly launched Veterinary Bioscience course.
Ok quick show of hands now, how many of you are fans of CSI?
Dusting for fingerprints.
For these students in Molecular Biotechnology and Biomedical Science, they will get to pick forensic science as one of their electives. So fans of crime/mystery books and dramas, you know which course should be included in your application list! *hinthint*
Do you know that we have a childcare centre situated in NP as well, at the School of Humanities?
A puppet show put up by the School of Humanities.
That's because we have a course in Early Childhood Education and students can get more hands-on experience in an industry-related setting. I seriously think that you can throw any NP student out to work in an industry related to our courses and we would be utterly unfazed by anything, given the nature of our learning. Plus a number of my friends who got attached to external companies during the internship period told me that the working world is a breeze compared to the school's curriculum.
And now I bring you to the last school, the School of Film & Media Studies.
Inside of a studio's control room.
The dude in black is my homie, uncle Vicson Huang, who is the director of the live broadcast. The control panel looks pretty cool right? This is how a behind-the-scenes shot of shows such as Singapore Idol or OMG would look like.
Huge and extremely expensive cameras.
Try and guess the amount of lights in this studio.
3? WRONG.
18? WRONG.
30? WRONG.
THERE ARE 200 WHOOPING LIGHTS IN THAT ONE STUDIO.
Like what you see? Then join the people handling all these cool-looking equipment and producing the content that goes onto your screens in the Film, Sound & Video diploma course!
Aaaaaaaaaaand that's the end of my tour! For the secondary school students who managed to attend the RED camp, did you enjoy yourselves and more importantly, do you have a better idea of which course to enroll into? Don't be shy and share your thoughts in the comments section below!
The aftermath of RED camp:
Zayar, the general manager of Radioheatwave.com.
HAHAHAH SORRY BRO.