You’re probably starting to think about getting into your dream course, if you’re not already plotting your way there. Here are three things you also need to start thinking about from now before submitting
your application in January 2011:

Minimum Entry Requirements (MER)

The MER consist of subjects you must have sat for, and the minimum grades you must have achieved, in order to qualify for a course. For example, to qualify for the Business course at TP, you must have at least the following:

English Language - C6
Mathematics (E or A) - C6
Any three other subjects - C6

Cut-off Points (COP)

Once you meet the MER, find out the COPs of the courses you’re interested in. The COP is the nett aggregate score of the last student posted to the course. For example, the COP for the Financial Business Informatics course at TP in 2010 was 14. That means that the last student who secured a place in the course in 2010 had a nett aggregate score (after deducting bonus points) of 14.

However, and this is important, you must understand that the COP could change each year as it is largely a reflection of how popular a course is in the last Joint Admissions Exercise. So the best thing to do is to take the COP as a rough guide.

It’s useful to keep in mind the COP but obviously, you’ll need to consider other factors such as interest and aptitude. Our advice is, when you have the application form in front of you, list the courses you’re most passionate about first, followed by the ones you feel you have a good chance of getting into. Do check the MERs and COPs of all of TP’s courses on our website at www.tp.edu.sg.

Aggregate Computation

How then is your aggregate computed? How do you get that magical number that will get you into the course of your dreams?

ELR2B2… not a Star Wars character but something you really must know all about. It’ll actually be computed for you when you collect your results but you still need to know what it means to help you plan from now.

ELR2B2 = English Language (EL) + 2 Relevant Subjects (R2) + 2 Best Subjects (B2)

So you’ll need to score well for English Language, and make sure you know what the relevant subjects are for the courses you’re interested in (check the MER). For poly courses, one Math subject is required. So make sure you score a good grade there as well.

In the meantime, all the best for the O level exams! We certainly hope to see you at TP, in your dream course, next year.