National Junior College

National Junior College (Simplified Chinese: 国家初级学院) is the first junior college to be established by the Ministry of Education. First established in 1969, it is considered to be amongst the top five junior colleges in Singapore. Since its founding, National Junior College has offered a two-year course for pre-university students leading up to the GCE 'A' Levels. In 2004, the college started the four-year Integrated Programme. This scheme was subsequently expanded in 2009 and the college became a six-year Integrated Programme school.

Its campus in Bukit Timah houses both the junior high and senior high sections of the school, as well as a boarding school.

History
Established in 1969, the College was created with the aim of centralising the two-year pre-university course with maximum utilization of specialist personnel and resources.

In keeping with its name and philosophy, the College claims no affiliation with any secondary school but instead draws its students from a wide spectrum. Thus, each year, about 80 Singapore secondary schools will have representatives amongst the College's student population. In addition, Singapore students learn alongside students from India, China, Hong Kong, Korea as well as ASEAN countries such as Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. NJC also plays host to German, PRC, Taiwanese, Vietnamese and Japanese students in exchange programmes.

Campus
Work started on National Junior College's campus in September 1967. Located at the junction of Linden Road and Dunearn Road, the campus was completed in less than 15 months. In total, this campus cost SGD$1.6 million to build. When the campus was completed, it was considered cutting-edge; it contained an audiovisual lab, 10 science laboratories, a library, two lecture theatres, 30 classrooms, nine tutorial rooms, an assembly hall, a canteen, an administrative block and some other activity rooms. National Junior College utilized this campus until 1997, when it shifted to its present location at Hillcrest Road.

The current campus of National Junior College is located at 37 Hillcrest Road in Bukit Timah. This current campus houses two 500-seat lecture theaters, 3 smaller lecture theaters, 3 blocks of tutorial classrooms and several IT facilities. It also contains two Sigma labs, which are equipped with sophisticated scientific instruments and equipment in order to promote science research in the college.

Boarding School
At the 2007 Ministry of Education Workplan Seminar, it was announced that 5 schools, including National Junior College, will each start their own boarding programme. Thus, National Junior College's boarding school was constructed to cater to the new programme and it was officially opened on 16 May 2009. Built at a staggering cost of SGD$20 million, this boarding school has 250 rooms housing around 500 students and teachers. In addition to housing foreign students which makes up half of the boarding school population, it also houses students who are attending the college's enhance boarding programme, which is just like the ordinary boarding programme.

Uniform
The uniform for male students consists of shirts with shoulder epaulettes, which are secured by square silver buttons embossed with the school crest. The uniform for female students is similar, except that there is no pockets on the blouse and they have a pleated A-line skirt with option of shorts underneath. The main colour of the school uniform is grey – a colour chosen for its similarity to the color white, which is one of the official colors of the school. This was in light of criticisms upon the announcement of its inception that the College would perpetuate elitism. Consequently, the colour grey, rather than white, was chosen for the uniform to remind students of the college of their duty to serve the Nation with honour, and the need to be humble and respectful of others irrespective of their educational background.

On Wednesdays, which are known as 'Dress-Down Days', NJCians can wear the college's white polo t-shirt instead of their greys. On Thursdays, It is House Tee Day, where every member of NJC don on their house tees, instead of the full uniform. For PE classes, NJCians wear white PE attire with red trims on its sleeves and red shorts. For most formal events, NJCians wear their red College blazer together with white shirts, red College ties, grey pants or skirts and black leather or court shoes. On some formal occasions though, instead of donning blazers, NJCians simply wear their red tie along with their full-grey uniform.

College anthem and song
There are two college songs – the College Anthem and the College Song. The College Anthem was composed by Mr. Leong Yoon Pin, a renowned Singaporean composer.

The College Anthem, which is in the Republic's national language of Malay, is sung on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays while the College Song is sung on Tuesdays and Thursdays. This is accompanied by the NJC Symphonic Band and Choir (since 1998), a tradition of NJC.

Admission
NJC offers three education routes that lead to the GCE ‘A’ Level examinations: Students who are admitted to the NJC Integrated Programme (at Junior High 1 and 3 level) will skip the GCE ‘O’ Level and take the GCE ‘A’ Level examinations at the end of their sixth or fourth year in NJC.
 * 6 year Integrated Programme (Grades 7 to 12)
 * 4 year Integrated Programme (Grades 9 to 12)
 * 2 year JC Programme (Grades 11 to 12)

Students who are admitted to NJC JC Programme (at Senior High 1 level) must have taken their GCE ‘O’ Levels examinations or equivalent. They will take the GCE ‘A’ Level examinations at the end of their second year in NJC.

House System
The house system at National Junior College was established in 1998, replacing the previous Department system. Through this system, students from the arts and science streams get to bond together through inter-college house competition and activities. The six houses of the college and their respective mascots are as follows:

Senior Council
Under the Student Council is the Senior Council, consisting of 43 Student Representatives who are elected by the student body from a group of council elects which must first be approved by teachers in April and will hold office for a year. The Senior Council is run by the Executive Committee elected by the council members except the President and Vice-President, who are elected by the Junior High 1 to Senior High 2 population. This committee comprises the President, Vice-President, Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer, four Heads of Committees and six House Captains.

The five standing committees are:


 * Creative and Publicity Unit (CPU)
 * Committee of Internal Affairs (CIA)
 * Feedback Unit (FBU)
 * Ideas Committee (Ideas)
 * House Activities Team (HAT)

Junior Council
Established in 2010, the Junior Council is made up of 24 Student Representatives selected by teachers that represent the Junior High 1 to 3 students. The Junior Council and Senior Council are autonomous bodies working hand-in-hand under the ambit of the Student Council. Other than the Executive Committee (whose President is elected by the Secondary 1 to 3 cohort), there are 4 Standing Committees. (SWAT(I) and SWAT(F) were previously considered under the major committee SWAT, but have, since 2011, become 2 different committees)


 * Student Welfare Action Team (Initiative) (SWAT(I))
 * Student Welfare Action Team (Feedback) (SWAT(F))
 * Publicity And INspiration Team (PAINT)
 * Council Affairs, Resources and Engagement (CARE) team

Special Programmes

 * NJC Integrated Programme
 * Art Elective Programme
 * Humanities Programme
 * Music Programme
 * Science Training and Research (STaR) Programme
 * Sapphire Scholars Programme
 * Taiwan Immersion Programme
 * CAAL Programme
 * Community Involvement Programme
 * National Education Programme
 * Innovation and Enterprise Programme

Enhanced Boarding Programme
The National Junior College's boarding progamme was launched in 2009 together with the opening of the boarding school. Under this programme, students stay in the boarding school for around one school term (10 weeks). Students also participate in the various activities planned during their stay. Such programmes include aesthetics programmes, leadership development programmes and night adventures. Since 2009, all Integrated Programme students from the college have participated in this programme.