+4 DAAD Scholarships (Electrical Engineering & IT): Yulong Guan
Yulong is currently pursuing his Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and Information Technology at the Singapore campus of Technical University of Munich (TUM). Having received the DAAD scholarship, which covered his Overseas Immersion Programme (OIP) abroad in Germany, we speak to him to find out more about his experience with the DAAD scholarships, which are open to all TUM Asia students.
Q: Tell us about yourself and what inspired you to study Electrical Engineering with TUM Asia.
Yulong: Hello! My name is Yulong. I decided to pursue my undergraduate studies in Electrical Engineering and Information Technology with TUM Asia as I have always been interested in Germany technology. I was most intrigued by the fact that I would be able to complete my Bachelor thesis in Germany. It is a unique learning experience that not many other schools can offer.
Q: How was your experience with applying for the DAAD Scholarships?
Yulong: I got to know about the DAAD scholarships from my classmate. This was prior to heading to Germany for my Overseas Immersion Programme (OIP) during the final year of my Bachelor studies. The application process was very smooth. With the help the administration office, all we had to do was to submit the supporting documents required from us. The documents required for the submission were the application form, our transcripts, and a motivation letter. For myself, it took me one to two weeks to prepare all these documents for submission.
Q: How does receiving the scholarship impact you?
Yulong: The DAAD scholarship allowed me to have an ease of mind in terms of my finances. It allows me to focus more on the completion of my Bachelor Thesis without feeling worried about my expenses in Germany.
Q: What advice do you have for students aiming for the scholarship?
Yulong: My advice to other students who are applying for the scholarship would be to spend more time focusing on your studies and also spend some time researching and pondering on the topic that you want to choose for your thesis. Think about how you can prepare yourself for your overseas experience in Germany, or things that you want to learn during your study experience. These are things that you can write about in your motivation letter for the scholarship.
“Spend more time focusing on your studies and also spend some time researching and pondering on the topic that you want to choose for your thesis. Think about how you can prepare yourself for your overseas experience in Germany, or things that you want to learn during your study experience.”
Q: Do you have any suggestions to improve the DAAD Scholarships for future students?
Yulong: In my opinion, I feel that the scholarship could have other different aspects to it. It can be something that not only benefits the receiver financially, but perhaps one other way the scholarship could help the receivers would be to give some incentives to enhance the German study experience, such as providing some German language classes in Germany. With additional knowledge of Germany, I feel that this will allow students to easily transition to the life in Germany.
Q: What is one key takeaway that you had while studying at TUM Asia?
Yulong: Studying at TUM Asia has taught me greatly about perseverance and diligence. I believe that without these values driving me, I would find it hard to graduate or achieve my goals.
About the TUM Asia-DAAD Scholarships
TUM Asia is dedicated to grooming and recognising students for the hard work they put into their studies, while maintaining a strong extra-curricular activity record. Students who demonstrate academic excellence, intellectual capability and curiosity, sound character, and a passion for creativity and innovation deserve to be rewarded for their achievements and efforts.
While TUM Asia scholarships are awarded to candidates during the admission process, TUM Asia-DAAD scholarships are awarded to students during their candidature of study. The DAAD scholarships are funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) as part of the ‘German Study Programmes Abroad’ initiative. All students currently enrolled in Bachelor and Master programmes at TUM Asia are welcome to apply as long as they show evidence of excellent academic results and maintain a strong extra-curricular activity record.
The university awards over S$500,000 (EUR 359,000) worth of DAAD scholarships per year. DAAD scholarships help to give students an opportunity to focus on their studies, by lessening the financial burdens of awardees. Each DAAD scholarship offers an attractive stipend. The allowance comes in handy to meet the ever-rising costs of students, motivating them to do their best to clinch the scholarships offered.
The DAAD scholarship given to Bachelor students provides support for travel and mobility as well as a monthly allowance. Some students personally shared that the funds came in handy to cover their Overseas Immersion Programme expenses and expressed their thanks upon receiving the award.
The DAAD scholarship provided to MSc students includes tuition fee support and a monthly allowance, and it is valued at up to S$8625 (EUR 5750) per award received. A distinctive feature of the DAAD stipends is that these awards are given out on a per-semester basis. This incentivises students to strive for better results, since it is possible for students to obtain multiple awards across their period of study.
30% of TUM Asia’s overall student cohort were awarded DAAD Scholarships in 2019. TUM Asia is pleased that the overall performance of students has improved with the disbursement of our DAAD scholarships. Students welcome the scholarship awards, which help to take away their financial concerns, allowing them to concentrate more on their studies.
TUM Asia is committed to supporting students throughout their academic journey and providing an all-rounded education to all students.
Find out more about the TUM Asia – DAAD Scholarships here.
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Yulong Guan studied in the Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering programme.
TUM Asia administrates the TUM Bachelor degrees together with the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT). GCE ‘A’ Levels, Polytechnic Diploma and international qualification holders may apply for the TUM Bachelor degrees. Find out more about the programmes offered >>
In 2020, the partnership with SIT was further strengthened when the existing Bachelor degrees were evolved into joint SIT-TUM programmes. Interested students may apply for the SIT-TUM Bachelor programmes from January to March every year.
More information about the new SIT-TUM Electronics and Data Engineering programme here >>