I'm currently in the middle of finals at NUS, so I figured it probably would be fitting to talk about how academics at NUS work. Through discussion with local students, I found out that NUS is an extremely competitive school. Students that wishes to attend NUS has to take competitive exams known as A-levels that basically determine if one can get admission to the university and what faculty (medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, law, arts and sciences, business etc.) they may enter. Apparently, top scorers on A-levels who are also well-rounded in terms of extra-curricular activities may potentially gain acceptance to medicine/law/dentistry (which are considered to be top faculties by some of the locals I talked to).
I think the main reason for why the school is competitive is because grades are based on a relative scale of how everyone else does. I don't think it's necessarily considered a true bell-curve, but your peers' grades definitely do have some effect on how your end grade turns out. However, from my experience, students by no means are rude or disrespectful to their peers in order to obtain a better grade. Instead, this "competition" pushes students to work harder. Students read and re-read the required assignments so that they can participate actively in class discussions, but in classes where there are not any participation points awarded, I found that there was far less class participation.
I think NUS is challenging in its own way. I think it is not like GW in the sense that my professors at GW would constantly assign random assignments, tests and quizzes to ensure that people are up to date with reading and classroom preparation. However, in the courses I took here, there were far less assignments. I had a couple of classes that awarded participation points, but nothing too major. Out of all four classes, I had only one midterm. But the catch is my final exams are worth 50% or more of my final grade. None of these exams are non-cumulative. I'm expected to remember everything that was taught since the beginning of the semester. Additionally, the exams are typically short answer/essay format. We get two hours per exam. Even the exam procedures can invoke stress; each student has an assigned seat and have to present their student ID card by placing it on the corner of his/her desk. Students also have to leave their belongings off to the side. NUS rules also state that if you are caught cheating, you may be expelled from the university. Also, there are apparently no make-up final exams. At the beginning of the semester when you register for courses, it is your responsibility to make sure your final exams do not conflict. If the exam schedule conflicts, then you have to drop a course.
I would tell other students that while the nature of NUS may be perceived to be competitive, it is not as bad as described. The professors and students are for the most part willing to help clarify anything. The exams I have had are very fair and have not consisted of obscure things that the professor barely commented on. I would also tell these students to enjoy their classes because I have learned a lot more about other cultures by taking classes here. My final piece of advice is to make sure you keep up with your reading, otherwise finals preparation is not an easy task!