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title: SUTD-STEP Programme Collaborative FAQ
---

**SUTD-STEP Programme**

Hi everyone! This is a compiled document of the conversations over the past few months/years with regards to the STEP Programme. Feel free to contribute to this document!

**1. STEP Executive Committee**

Here are the other members of the STEP Executive Committee (2018/2019):
* Jerry Neo ([e-mail]) is the Exco President.
* Mong Changhsi ([e-mail]) is the Exco Vice-President.
* Kelvin ([e-mail]) is the Treasurer.
* Jireh ([e-mail]) is the Secretary

**2. SUTD STEP Student Requirements**

* All STEP students are required to complete the 30.111 Entrepreneurship module. Taught by Professor Jianxi, students in past batches of this module have run their own Kickstarter campaigns, prepared Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) and more. Essentially, this module is a chance for you to launch a business idea that you may have always had! STEP Students will take this in either Term 4 or in Term 6, though most STEP students will probably take it in Term 6.
* All STEP students are no longer required to complete an Entrepreneurship Capstone. Attached is a response from Mr Allan Chan, the STEP Programme Director, regarding this matter:

_All STEP students have to do a Capstone project as it is one of your Undergraduate graduation requirements. As a STEP student, you have a choice between industry-sponsored Capstone or Entrepreneurship Capstone. The selection criteria for both industry-sponsored and Entrepreneurship apply to you just as your peers who are not in the STEP. You can link your Master thesis to your Capstone project or you may wish to keep them separate. The Entrepreneurship Capstone requires students to attend entrepreneurship bootcamps. By the time you embark on your Entrepreneurship Capstone, you would have acquired all the necessary entrepreneurship skills you learnt from UCB Extension and in China. Hence, if you choose to do an Entrepreneurship Capstone, there is no need for you to go through the entrepreneurship bootcamps."_

**3. On Matters Regarding UC Berkeley Extension**

* Do note that the US exchange (after Term 6) will be conducted at UC Berkeley Extension. Each student will be taking up entrepreneurship-related modules, and each student is required to take about 7 to 8 modules to fulfil IDP requirements (that is, the programme that we will be embarking on in UC Berkeley).
* Attached is a response from Mr Allan Chan regarding our exchange in the US:

_"The 7 to 8 courses you take to fulfill the IDP is part of your Master Programme. The credits cannot be used to fulfill your undergraduate requirements in SUTD. However, the additional courses you take from UCB Extension/UCB can be transferred back to SUTD provided: 1) The courses are approval by the pillars/clusters 2) approval have to be sought before you depart for UCB and 3) the courses fulfill the credit requirements. You have to bear any additional costs if you choose to take additional courses."_

**On Academic Matters**
* At least C for all subjects + At least 2.5 overall GPA => Means if straights Cs fail. If straight A+s + 1D also fail

From Nicholas:
* C is considered as a failure here. Dont get a C! But it is hard to get a C actually.
* A- is above 90% here but mostly they will give you full mark for everything. This is not SUTD haha

From Yun Ning:

* also recommend asking this at beginning of term 6, after checking the uc berkeley full course list for spring semester at that time (i shared on wa, the url). I'd recommend not asking for approval for courses under schools of engineering as cs as they are snapped like hotcakes in uc berkeley and we do not get priority on them. A way to study such fields is to look at other depts that have courses most similar to cs or engineering if u wanna study these fields. Sutd will not allow mapping back once you are studying in berkeley. The admin must be *completed* in terms of mapping approval, even before you leave sg. It may require you to bounce emails to berkeley before you even go there, to obtain the syllabus too. Becos you only get to select the actual extra classes a few weeks into berkeley (still wait even longer for approval), this is about taking our best bet and *starting early*.
* http://guide.berkeley.edu/courses/
* can even start asking sutd this summer. because we can gauge from its previous spring subjects already (which is this term). the time difference can make bouncing emails back and forth slow af (+ admin inefficiencies)
* even if you take classes in the main campus, it will still appear in the same transcript as all your other extension classes. each extra 1.0-unit in main campus costs USD 750. most classes in main campus are 2.0 units, but there are still several with 1.0 if you wanna save on expenditure and time
* you have to pass all extra class(es), else you'll fail the whole extension thing. that being said, extension classes are piece of cake
* the extra class, you can choose for it to be reflected as pass/fail, or have actual alphabetical grades
* Safer to choose classes past 4pm as you don't know your timetable yet. So email the specific course instructor (if stated on the berkeley course website) to ask about syllabus + likely class timings
* You will fail the whole class if you pon any of the compulsory classes in extension
* Just do well enough to get internship is good enough too haha. One can always occupy time by doing many other things avail there. But there's this fear of not passing the compulsory mods and failing STEP, so aim for at least the lowest rung of A to be safe
* So aim for the lowest A. And if you fall short, get B. Still pass
* Yeahh. Just don't pon class, submit all assignments and projects. Can already
* Ahaha (almost) no need to study! Just attend all classes and submit everything
* We only need to have a bit level up from comfort zone in business negotiation, and study a bit for the finance classes

From Nicholas:
* Study wise, should be easy. If you think its too easy, take extra mods at Berkeley. But remember that the extension stuff are also important. It is logical to prioritise extension stuff before others

**On Internship Matters**

From Yun Ning:
* hello all, this is the list of companies my batch could choose from for summer internship, as offered by uc berkeley. their career centre will help you to find one as long as you get c & above for all subjects + > 2.5 GPA while at berkeley (c=2.0). but don't worry, as singaporeans, it is super easy to score there
* focus more on making use of the network and resources in SV & the bay area, go beyond what you get in the studies. your asset will be the fact that you are there, gotta be pro-active in grabbing the opportunities there. like going for multiple networking sessions, workshops, sharing sessions, and pitches (doesn't matter if you get shot down, the key is to get feedback. most likely you can't get funded by US companies, unless your company is a registered in US. many start-ups there pitch till there's no tomorrow, till they finally get it right)
* for big renowned companies in the SV, for summer internship, you have to apply by around oct/nov of the previous year. if the kind of companies in the above brochure is not to your taste, you can always find one yourself (what I did), and get approval from uc berkeley. it is more than likely they will approve, don't worry about that. you can choose other locations like new york city / chicago / seattle / texas / anywhere in US, as long as uc berkeley approves

**On Money Matters**
From Yun Ning:
* It will be safe to bring an amount that can last you for three weeks first :) but try opening a bank account the first thing or something. And once your bank account is set up, you can deposit immediately. Each time money is transferred from non-US to US bank account, USD 15 is charged I think

**On Transportation Matters**
From Yun Ning:
* The UC Berkeley bus pass offers 20% discount on all public transit (buses and BART train) in the east bay area (berkeley, oakland, san francisco). In the bay area, uber express pool exists, and sometimes, it is even cheaper than public transit and you may even have the whole uber to yourself

From Sing Ru:
* And for car, I won't recommend to get cos parking here is quite expensive (3.75 USD per hour street parking) unless you get a garage space around 200-250 per month

**On SF Properties**
* Try to avoid Everest properties (my friend say avoid them at all cost)
* Varsity apartments not bad
* China Chinese may have great housing lobangs (ref: Yun Ning)
* Try looking for sub-leases in fb groups i recommended. Sub-leases are way cheaper. (ref: Yun Ning)
* As in specify the period to the landlord but yea keep your options open. Craiglist is okay too but dont make payment till you see the place and sign a contract (ref: Nicholas)
* Actually dont go for that super cheap cause might not be close to ucb extension. Do note that you guys are studying in University Ave and not main campus. Being late is not really acceptable for some classes and dont expect the bus to be like Singapore bus cause the pub trans here damn cui (ref: Nicholas)
* Housing here is on a 1 year lease basis. For rooms around UCB Extension, $1600 is the rate per month but the lease is about 1 year. So you need to either do a sublease or try to negotiate your way. Do note that this is not master room and usually you need to furnish yourself.
* So, I recommend you to actually come here and stay in a motel first for 1 week before really settling in for a really good place.
* Apartments that are really close to UCB Extension:
New Californian Apartments
Stonefire (Expensive)
Hillside Village
KStreet Flats

From Sing Ru:
* Housing can try Airbnb, Trulia or Craigslist to find. But I would recommend same as waijack, when come here, stay somewhere for short while (1 week first) then find one for the next 4 months
* Then give yourself some time to personally view and negotiate the prices

**On Travelling in the US**

* Hmm, orlando is hot and humid, at many times, more so than singapore. Florida (state that orlando belongs to) is good for its beaches too i guess, they too have HP wizarding world. Guess florida is only better if you crave the heat. But my favourite cities so far are still LA and NYC. I visited huntington beach and griffith's observatory @ LA too! Would be nice to catch some free/cheap live plays there too :) can try your luck at ellen's show too!
* If y'all wanna try good lobsters, head over to new england side (upper-east side of US), and can on-the-way visit Boston where MIT & Harvard (they're just one mile apart) are at. Boston is just a 3-5 hours bus ride from NYC. But don't forget those less known states which are known for their beautiful natural features as well =)
* Niagara falls at the northern-most tip of new york. You can even cross over to canada (ontario), just walk 200m across the bridge at niagara falls =)

**On Telco Matters**
From Yun Ning:
* Should get a US number. My batch did family package using T-mobile. It helps a lot better on image and communication esp when you apply for jobs, events, or go networking

From Nicholas:
* It will be about $32 per person

**On Visa Matters**
From Yun Ning:
* I also suggest asking the school to supply y'all a different US visa (I got the F1 visa), because the F1 visa does not allow us to receive any form of gratuity from the companies we work for. The F1 visa is supplied by UC Berkeley Extension, and they can only supply F1 visa. Which means the school may have to be innovative on how to get y'all a different kind of visa. Do discuss with your higher-ups in charge

**For UC Berkeley Main Campus Matters**
From Yun Ning:
* Hi all, just a heads up, you can map back the mods from your Berkeley / China studies, but it has to be requested / applied with our school before that term starts. Apply through your pillar coordinator indicating that you are a STEP student, then he/she should be liaising with Allan Chan. In addition, it is considered as overloading by our school, so it has to fulfill these requirements (it is probably min. GPA of 4.25 for class of 2020 batch):

**On Miscellaneous Matters**

* UC Berkeley Extension Briefing (1 April 2019): https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fl8ZSkuL3VyN-Be2lXzY2mrUfsU8SoqTRxipPgZ33-4/edit

From Yun Ning:
* Another tip is that opportunities are not gonna fall from the sky. All these stuff i can share - why? Because i went to acquire them pro-actively. The first batch has it worst, y'all should know
* So tip as potential entrepreneurs: you can't afford to wait for info to rain on you, opportunities to drop onto you. You have to put in the extra effort to seek them.

From Nicholas:
* Anyway this year we have free membership to the main campus facilities such as Recreational Sports Facilities (GYM), library, discounts, bus pass and hopefully next year you guys will have the same benefit.
* For girls, try to walk with peers(male preferably) or find a male stranger that looks friendly to walk to your accomodation. This is because the homeless situation is bad and they can disturb you.

**Useful Facebook Groups**
* https://www.facebook.com/groups/BEIHF/
* Oakland Buy Sell or Trade
* Bay Area Rooms and Apartments
* Bay Area Auctions, Sell/Trade
* Free Stuff and Above in Bayarea
* Free & For Sale

**4. On Matters Regarding the Exchange Programme in China**

* Currently, students will have a chance to embark on an exchange in Zhejiang University, Tsinghua University, or Xi'an Jiaotong University. For the 2020/2021 batch, we have a total of 15 places available at ZJU and Xi'an Jiaotong, and 3 places at Tsinghua University. This means that if demand for any one particular school exceeds the number of places, a selection criteria will have to be applied.
* Modules that we will be taking there must also be related to technology or entrepreneurship. The number of modules depends on the number of credits each module has.

**5. The STEP Scholarship**

* Do note that all STEP students on the STEP scholarship are required to maintain a minimum GPA of 3.5.
* All STEP students will be given a stipend of SGD$28,000 forthe 1 year overseas programme. This is to cover visa fees, plane tickets (one way to the US, one way to China and one way back to Singapore), travel insurance and accommodation. Depending on how one manages it, one may be able to use a portion of money to cover living expenses as well.
* While tuition fees are covered, one is required to pay miscellaneous fees of about $159.50 per term.

**6. On Matters Regarding STEP Student Funding**

~~Every STEP student is allocated up to SGD$2000 of project fundings!~~
~~Each individual or group project will receive a maximum of S$400 per project. Individuals can claim up to S$2000 for separate projects. Request for additional budget will NOT be granted.~~

**STEP project prototyping fund update:**
1. STEP students can apply for funding capped at $500 per project per year (ONLY 1 PROJECT PER YEAR)
2. This is a change from the $500 per project up to $2k per year. (because not many utilised the $$ so PLEASE USE IT!!!)
3. Claiming procedure no change.
Application is very simple. Just email prof [e-mail] and cc [e-mail] with the following details:

Project Title: e.g mosquito patty machine
Background/Problem Statement: (<100 words)
Solution: (<100 words)
Timeline: e.g May 2019 - Sept 2019
Budget/Cost Breakdown: e.g
1. $50 Microcontroller
2. $100 actuators
3. $100 electronics components
Total: $250
* (Note: Expenses exceeding the approved funding will be subjected to course instructor approval, else it will not be claimable)
* An entrepreneurial trip or attendance of an entrepreneurial event will **NOT** be funded.

a. Approval of Project Proposal
* Students are required to submit a project proposal to their course instructor (Prof Jianxi or Prof Zhao Rong) for approval before the project commences as part of the claims documentation.
* Students can submit project proposal into the pigeonhole prepared in the STEP Room. STEP Committee will help to collect the signatures for the proposal. Alternatively, students can opt to submit and get their proposal approved by themselves.
* The proposals will be collected to be submitted to Profs once a month during the STEP Monthly Pitch session.

b. Claims Procedure
* Please:
1) download, print, complete and sign the Student Claim Form (attached in email)
2) consolidate the following documents:
a. Approved project proposal
b. Original invoices or official receipts
c. Bank statement
3) put all the above-mentioned documents and the hard copy of the Student Claim Form (signed by student) into the pigeonhole prepared in the STEP Room. I will collect the claims in every STEP Monthly Pitch session once a month.

**6. On the Masters Thesis**

From Yun Ning:
* No problem! 😃 feel free to clarify anything. I just feel that these are the most important for now, to ask things ahead of time. With regards to the Masters thesis, Prof. Zhao Rong is in charge, she suggests it is best to start earlier (rather than in final year; she says can work on it based on UROP / any entrepreneurial-tech kind of project/start-up) and it is crucial to the thesis success to find a suitable and available mentor. Approach her to ask her more about it
* Yah the mentor is important cos he or she will keep you on your toes
* I meet mine once a week since beginning of term 7
* But that's legit too late alr
* Cos I am overwhelmed w work now
* It can be a technical kind of paper, can be fluff kind (non-technical), but it must have a strong case for entrepreneurship
* Meaning in your intro and lit review, that case must be strong
* The next chapters would be methodology, results, and conclusion
* 5 chapters in total
* The lit review also must prove that the solution you are researching on and creating has not been done before and compare with similar (albeit different) methods and competing businesses out there
* This is from my what i know and i am in no way a representation of the school's stance, so best to clarify w the profs
* Also, the advisor is an official one, submitted in all the documents to the school. He / she must be a prof/asst prof in official title (e.g. oka is snr lecturer so cannot). By mid july you should have finished writing and send it to an independent reviewer (another sutd faculty) immediately, and the whole thesis after edits (if any) as requested by the independent reviewer has to be submitted to graduate office by end of aug
* The sutd faculty chosen to be the independent reviewer should have expertise in the field you are writing on
* The good thing about starting early is that you will be more calm and smooth about this whole master thesis thing, the downside is that you'll probably be inspired by better ideas and projects during your one year overseas haha. I got inspired at the end of my one year overseas and it helps to have passion in what i am thesis-ing about 🙂
* I think this thesis can be a life hack in these two aspects:
1. Penetrating a new job market that you have always wanted to enter but previously have little or no expertise in (put your thesis title in your cv even if you have only just started writing it)
2. Roll out a real business from it because academia is really that rigorous and by the time you publish your paper, you will have way more confidence starting your business from it plus you would already have like 50% of the content ready to seek funding
* I appreciate this whole process even tho i am stripped off of my time right now haha
* I would highly encourage y'all to start writing it at least one year before submission date. You'll have way more time in China, so really take the time there to write as much as your thesis there as possible (and apply early for full-time jobs). And at least you would've been inspired by SV by then :) but if you're very sure of the topic like before or way before that, please just start finding an sutd advisor and start writing it asap
* The profs can be open to brainstorming with you depending on their personalities and preferences (you can go to more than one prof for advice too tho I only go to one; officially on paper should be one)
* Your thesis can also be a built on your previous research projects / projects, or even your capstone (regardless industry or entre capstone). If working with a company for content of your thesis, have to ensure that whatever you publish, they are ok w it being shared w the public :)
* If you really run out of ideas, i think almost every prof has an idea for you. The main thing is do they have sufficient time and passion to guide you as frequent as once every week or fortnight. Can just walk up to any prof. Beforehand, just explain what STEP programme is about (i found https://sutd.edu.sg/Admissions/Undergraduate/Special-Programmes/SUTD-Technology-Entrepreneurship-Programme-(1) to be really helpful), share your cv, and your rough inclinations in themes & skillwise you want to expand on. Not that tough; these profs you approach would already be more suitable ones in the first place since you chose them 🙂
* Start early!!!

From Judith:

* Try to find the topic you want to do/prof as early as possible. Preferably before going to berkeley.
* You can do anything. Even if u r in epd u can take on esd topics.
* Any prof, as long as they are willing to take you
* Yes, so you need to do some research to make sure your thesis is novel/does not exist on the market.
* Basically whatever u learn overseas, you have to bring it into the paper. Tell the reader why on the business persepective its feasible.
* Either u propose (a topic) then find a prof, or find a prof who alr has a topic on hand

**7. FOR MALES WHO HAVE NS OBLIGATIONS**
* Rmb to apply exit permit from NS portal before going to the US
* For China, probably will have to apply again after this permit expires
* **AFTER** getting flight details (Eg. Sing Ru's flight: 2 Jan till 22 Aug)

**8. MISC**
* STEP Chill Night photos: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1RvOQgsV-Odu3GlJxFSJq9ElCQZKsu6yr?usp=sharing

**9. Useful Resources**
* https://medium.com/@carolinewinnett/the-future-of-education-needs-new-funding-models-uc-berkeley-has-one-2bb03dfb6504 (we are allowed to apply for berkeley skydeck funding)
* https://entrepreneurship.berkeley.edu/mentoring-hours/ (happens weekly; I went for it, it's avail to us free)
* https://www.forbes.com/sites/avivalegatt/2019/01/07/launch-your-startup-at-these-five-college-incubators/#787f2afd4a77
Probably also the top 'entrepreneurship universities' in the US. Both UC Berkeley & Stanford are in the SF Bay Area, and that part of the US is the best place to build a start-up. This is due to the sheer amount of VCs, accelerators, incubators, and pitching events there that will help entrepreneurs to hone their crafts & gain investments in a more accelerated manner. Also, many budding entrepreneurs are there too, and they attend lots of learning/sharing/networking events which is inspirational and makes it easier for one to push on even after failing many times. These are the main advantages of being in the SF Bay Area as a budding entrepreneur
* https://www.geektime.com/2015/06/01/welcome-to-finland-where-most-startups-get-government-funding-and-the-payoff-is-high/
Finland has super high & forgiving start-up funding from the govt. As foreigners, all we need is a residence permit

**10. Quitting STEP**

From Jerry (email correspondence with Allan):
_It is possible for a STEP student to drop out from the SUTD programme and continue his/her bachelor degree in SUTD as a non-STEP student. We offer different types of scholarships to STEP students and hence, each scholarship’s terms and conditions may be different. Please advise the students to read the T&Cs carefully before making a decision. Generally, scholarships come with a liquidity damages (LD). The LD will be imposed on the scholarship recipient should he/she terminates his/her scholarship or if he/she fails to meet the scholarship requirements. If he/she decides to terminate his/her scholarship, he/she will have to bear the cost of tuition fee for the remaining period of his/her single degree course at SUTD after dropping out of STEP. It will not be possible for STEP students to take up the SUTD Undergraduate Merit Scholarship upon termination of the STEP scholarship. Students may apply for mid-term scholarship if available. These are subjected to competition among other students.

You may suggest to the students who are thinking of dropping out of the programme to talk to Prof Zhao Rong and/or Prof Jianxi as they are your mentors. The students may also want to talk to Charlene Yong from Office of Student Administration (OSA) on scholarship matters. They can also contact me if they need any assistance_