SMU welcomed its tenth batch of over 1,800 undergraduates at Convocation 2009 on 15 August. The largest cohort ever, they are selected from over 14,000 applications. Dato’ Sri Tony Fernandes, Group CEO of AirAsia, was Guest-of-Honour at the ceremony. Mr Fernandes inspired students on harnessing the power of innovation to turn businesses around.

The Art of Student Life performance showcased the vibrancy of student talents and clubs. All freshmen attended SMU’s teambuilding camp led by senior student facilitators with the objective of introducing them to the collegial environment and inculcating the ‘CIRCLE’ values of Commitment, Integrity, Responsibility, Collegiality, Leadership and Excellence – SMU’s clarion call for newcomers.

“The Freshmen Teambuilding camp is one unique and unrivalled experience where activities and games are designed to be challenging with a strategic purpose: to build team spirit and to inculcate the right values and attitudes which would prepare students to embrace life in SMU and later, the working world to the fullest,” said Rachel Kok Weixian, President, 9th SMU Students’ Association Exco.

Over 250 students from more than 50 top universities in some 20 countries across the Asia Pacific region, Europe and America gathered in SMU for the LSE–SMU Asia Investment Banking Conference (AIBC) on 23 and 24 September 2009. Held in Asia and hosted by SMU for the first time, the event focused on the corporate finance industry in the context of Asia and examined the outlook for mergers and acquisitions and capital raising activities in China, India and Southeast Asia.

Speakers were made up of over 50 senior representatives from the financial services sector including companies such as Nomura, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, UBS, Temasek Holdings and The Blackstone Group. Helmed by students from the SMU E.y.E Investment Club and their counterparts from the London School of Economics (LSE), the conference provided undergraduates the opportunity to learn from accomplished finance professionals and exchange ideas with the brightest talents from universities around the world.

Sponsors include Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, Singapore Investment Banking Association, Ferrell Asset Management, BNP Paribas Corporate & Investment Banking and Macquarie Group.

For 14 SMU undergraduates, a two-week home building expedition to India became a life-changing experience reaching out to and touching the lives of slum-dwellers in Hegdenagar, on the outskirts of Bangalore. From fund-raising to setting foot in the urban slum area, the students brought hope to families without a proper roof over their heads by constructing four houses to be shared by many families. The dilapidated and unsafe living conditions, meager daily wages, abuse and exploitation of people there opened their eyes to a world of destitution and poverty.

The SMU team worked with Habitat for Humanity India in this project, going beyond physical labour to interacting with the rural community and sharing the importance of education and building a sustainable livelihood. Called The Aasha Build (Aasha means hope in Hindi), the project is the brainchild of Anupama Shekhar, an SMU alumna from Bangalore.

This overseas expedition took community service involvement in SMU beyond the shores of Singapore, bringing together students of different nationalities including Singapore, South Korea and different regions of India.