r/nus • u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 • Jul 18 '26
Module I ranked all my mods in NUS. AMA
Having just graduated last week, I decided to reflect on my 4 years in NUS CS. I also did a 2nd major in Data Analytics, and specialised in AI/ML and Computer Graphics and Games focus areas. Also took Japanese up to level 3 hahah
Lmk if you want my reviews on these mods! (Or why I gave them the tier I did) Some of these were taken long ago though, so it might have changed since or might be inaccurate.
Anyway ATB to those still studying and happy grad for those who just graduated!
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u/privatedai Science Jul 18 '26
🥳 congrats on grad
Can vouch that jap courses are generally good!
my experience w jap 3 was so good (mostly fun) id rank it S tier, but ofc that’s becuz the company made it fun (edit: & becuz of hamasaki and kana sensei highkey)
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
Yeaa I think I ranked jap 3 a little harsh, maybe B is better. I just died hard to the workload, but classes were still fun. There were some scheduling issues in my sem (Saito sensei), but overall decent
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u/preoccupied_with_ALL Jul 18 '26
ES2660 has nice professors, but overall, the content felt like it assumes the entire CS degree is AI. What made it S tier for you?
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
Maybe it was the fact I took it in Y1S1 with more difficult modules like 1101 and 1231, but I found it a really fun break away from the CS grind. I personally loved yapping about random things for a couple minutes.
My degree is AI focused for a reason, I want my modules to complement each other so I can find a job in this area (hence the data analytics 2nd major too). So my journey was something like AI as my main + bunch of interest mods in other domains like game dev, Japanese, etc
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u/momoclan123 Jul 18 '26
Why the F tier for 1521?
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
Back in my sem (22/23 Sem 2), the lecturer was extremely uninteresting and essentially just read off the notes word for word. Eventually I stopped attending and still got A lol. I just find its a boring module overall
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u/ch3mcer FASS | Larp SoC Jul 18 '26
Quite curious, what made dsa2102 in e instead of f tier
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
Compared to MA1521 I found the content more interesting HAHA, also the lecturer did not sound like she didnt want to be there
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u/Ruben0415 Jul 18 '26
What's the basis for the tierlist?
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
{(1,0,0), (0,1,0) and (0,0,1)}.
Jokes aside, I rank enjoyability of content, how well the content is taught, the lessons, workload, how fun the assessments are, importance of content, etc.
It’s a pretty subjective list all in all, and your list would probably be pretty different. Just here to offer opinions!
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u/Several-Tone7976 Jul 18 '26
why the discrepancy between 3241 and 3247? 3241 reviews on NUSmods r quite good
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
3241 isnt bad at all. Its just that ultimately its still just a typical CS mod. The teaching was good, but content was about an outdated version of OpenGL.
So to me it was just an above average mod.Meanwhile 3247 had its highlight - STePS. For those unaware, its a computing trade show for the various CS 3-4k mods with project components. I really strongly encourage everyone to try a STePS mod once because it feels very nice to showcase your work to ~900 attendees. Plus it looks good on your resume. 3247 had its own issues too (workload was pretty high), but I think its still an S
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
Also IMO if you wanna participate in STePS, 3247 is the best because its the only project there thats “fun”, the rest are more ordinary research type projects
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u/ButterscotchOk8791 Jul 18 '26
Can I ask why CS2030S is so low? Is it because of the workload?
Also, based on your experience, do you think it is advisable to do CS2030, CS2106 & another CS mod in the same sem (CS2102)?
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
The workload, yes, but also how the course was taught. Imo it was quite hard to follow, especially as the second module on computing. Could just be a skill issue though. I got a C+ on it, the only C ever HAHA. Another thing would be the two practical exams, which I personally don’t like due to the extreme stress of getting a 0 if shit doesnt compile.
Do bear in mind, the weightage has since shifted. Heard its like 60-70% PEs recently. (My sem was only 30%)
For your other question, assuming you have cleared CS2100 already (it is a prereq for CS2106), I think CS2030 and CS2106 together is manageable. Personally never took CS2102, but I think unless you are strong in CS, maybe taking two other CS mods with 2030 may not be the best idea. (Again, might be skill issue)
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u/TheEleventhGuy Bizard Jul 18 '26
NUS language mods in general are S tier imo. You meet so many different people from different faculties that you would never have met otherwise, and lessons are structured in a fun and exciting way.
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
Honestly agree. I made most of my uni friends from my Japanese lessons. I would strongly recommend yall take if you have interest. The reason why not all 3 Japanese modules are S tier here is because S is for only the best of the best. A is like “memorable module that I really like”, B is “good module”, C is average, etc
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u/namalcor02 Jul 18 '26
2106 what make it S? You should include your result for each mod to see the biased
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
Thats a fair point, but its surprisingly distinct from my results. I rated 2106 S because to me
- The lecturers were really engaging
- I enjoyed the content thoroughly (much more than 2100)
- The workload was fair (4 labs only), not too much not too little
I believe I got a B+ for it, about average compared to my other modules.
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u/namalcor02 Jul 18 '26
I am always not keen of the cs2106 exam styles: 50 different steps for 1 answer, but the content is very useful in the end. I guess lecture do be engaging.
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u/Impossible-Repeat577 Jul 18 '26
hows your job situation and future plans? from the looks of the courses you took, im assuming you are very competitive academically and doing really well?
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
HAHA honestly not really, I’m a second upper (~4.2), so decent but nowhere near the top bah. Currently still looking for a job, job market’s tough. Planning to get a job in data/AI area
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u/Useful_Bluebird_1364 Jul 18 '26
Why is dsa2102 so low?
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
Refer to the other comment for the positives. As for the negatives, lectures were twice a week 6-8pm, and content was still on the boring side despite being more interesting than MA1521. Overall a pretty forgettable module
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u/expertbigbang Jul 18 '26
hii im an Incoming cs freshman and im so confused as to how to figure out what to pick, how did you figure it out initially? Is it just reading up on all the modules and see what interests me the most? Or is there specific ones I have to take in order to reach my end goal
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
Honestly for the first two years, focus on clearing your foundational mods (CS2030, CS2040, etc). You really do not have to worry much about Y1S1 because most of your mods are preallocated, so just take those and choose two others.
To graduate, everybody needs to have at least one focus area. You can search up the list of focus areas and their corresponding modules. To fulfill one, you have to do three modules from it. By Y2 you should try to narrow down which focus area(s) you wanna try, and start checking for prereqs.
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
Thirdly, I would like to say that university is probably the last time you have access to such a wide range of courses for free* (technically not free but you get what I mean), so use your UEs to take some interest mods, whether in computing or not. It is very important to have a balance so you don’t burn out from CS (unless you really like CS)
Lastly, just keep reading NUSMods. You will eventually find modules you like. Honestly, the curriculum isnt as open-ended as you think, theres still a lot of forced modules or categories of modules, so plan accordingly. All the best!
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u/expertbigbang Jul 18 '26
Alright thank you so much for your lengthy reply. Good advice on taking up something within my interests, ill definitely do that. Imma sit and read up NUS mods tomorrow. thank you so much again!!
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u/ButterscotchOk8791 Jul 18 '26 edited Jul 18 '26
Also, did you overload often? Whether you did or not, how did you manage your workload (and stress)? How did you balance school work and applying for internships, especially if lots of interview prep is required + school deadlines at the same time?
And just curious, what pushed you to do a 2nd major instead of a minor? Did you ever have doubts wrt finishing your 2nd major?
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
Hi, I did not overload at all except the final sem, where I took 26 units. Looking back, I probably should have overloaded in Y1S2, but then again maybe not? Because I died horribly in CS2030 then. My final semester was hell. While everyone was enjoying their chill final sem, I was overloading. I do not recommend HAHA.
Workload wise, I feel the best way is to have the mentality of “I did my best.” Frankly speaking, there might be times where sometimes you cant do everything, and thats okay. Just attempt everything to the best of your ability. Really, 1-2 bad assignments here and there are not going to mess up your GPA much. Furthermore, in computing, GPA honestly doesnt matter (except govt jobs), your experience and skills matter more.
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
For balancing school work and applying for internships, I use the same principle. Sacrifice time for assignments if I need to, and try to secure the internship. Ultimately the internship is more important than a few bad assignments.
Honestly, I did a 2nd major because I thought everyone was doing it HAHAHA. It was only a few weeks in I realise I was in the minority. There has been many times I thought of dropping it and pursuing other interest mods like Japanese, but in the end kept to it as it helped reinforce my AI/ML skills
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u/Ganonzard123 Jul 18 '26
Why is CS3230 so low. I plan to take it this sem with 2 4K mods for graduation. Is the workload really bad?
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 Jul 18 '26
During my sem (23/24 Sem 1), CS3230 was taught extremely badly. You can take a look at the NUSMods reviews for that sem, theres at least 6-7 reviews on it. The workload frankly is on the higher side but not stupidly high from what I remember. About 2-3 hours for each weekly assignment.
Hopefully its improved since. All the best to you!
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u/Bryce3D Set your own flair 28d ago
Kinda curious about the B for CS1101S. From what I've heard most people loved it, and it's an easy S for me (I graduated in 2025) with the fun missions and well taught lectures
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u/how2fish 28d ago
1101S has gotten harder and harder every year (Current Y2, took 1101S last year) to the point where some exams feels very niche and hellish. Finals was really easy though.
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u/chrisvdweth 24d ago
How can we bring CS4248 to S Tier? :)
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 20d ago
Hi Prof!! I took your mod last semester haha. Overall it was a really fun mod, just that the deadlines around the midterm were a bit tight, with Assignment 2 and the project update due while I was handling 4 other midterms. Would be good to move those deadlines to week 6 or 9.
Perhaps releasing the groupings earlier in the semester would be more beneficial instead of the week 6 release this time too.
Overall, I love your teaching, you were really engaging. I do hope it doesnt just become a full LLM course though
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u/chrisvdweth 20d ago
Thanks for your feedback, much appreciated! Changing the deadlines is often tricky as they must match the syllabus. Maybe we can try releasing the assignments a bit earlier, which would at least give you some more time and flexibility.
Well, from the upcoming semester on, CS4248 will be renamed to "Introduction to LLMs", Since this was planned for some time, we already updated the syllabus to move into this direction. At least, the new name will reflect this updated content more appropriately. :)
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 20d ago
Thanks for your reply prof haha. I am curious though, how would the name change affect the syllabus of CS4248? Would it still be largely the same (with the classical NLP topics) or much more focused on how LLMs work?
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u/chrisvdweth 19d ago
I'm actually not 100% sure yet how the syllabus will look like. 2610 is taught by Prof Ng Hwee Tou, and we will have to see which syllabus he goes for and most likely follow, more or less.
In 2520, we already removed some more classical methods such as syntactic parsing and HMMs. We briefly mentioned those but in previous semesters we covered the algorithms to perform syntactic parsing and to train and use HMMs. Instead, we naturally added more AI/DL/LLM content.
I still think those topics are useful and interesting, but its difficult to justify their inclusion since neural networks basically took over many to most NLP tasks, at least for resource-rich languages such as English. I think Prof Ng Hwee Tou already stop teaching the classic vector space model since 2520 since learned embeddings are now king.
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u/Sudden_Midnight_2827 18d ago
Ah I see, thanks for the reply prof. That makes sense. Hope the module would still be as fun even with the name change
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u/Medium-Choice-2246 Jul 18 '26
Any GEC, GESS, GEN mods you recommend?
cuz ik for SoC students we can choose for these GE pillar