About us

A premier university in Asia, the Singapore Management University (SMU) is internationally recognised for its world-class research and distinguished teaching. Established in 2000, SMU's mission is to generate leading-edge research with global impact and to produce broad-based, creative, and entrepreneurial leaders for the knowledge-based economy. SMU's education is known for its highly interactive, collaborative, and project-based approach to learning.

Home to over 12,000 students across undergraduate, postgraduate professional and postgraduate research programmes, SMU comprises eight schools:

• College of Integrative Studies
• College of Graduate Research Studies
• School of Accountancy
• Lee Kong Chian School of Business
• School of Economics
• School of Computing and Information Systems
• Yong Pung How School of Law
• School of Social Sciences

SMU offers a wide range of bachelors', masters', and PhD degree programmes in the disciplinary areas associated with its schools, as well as in multidisciplinary combinations of these areas.

SMU emphasises rigorous, high-impact, multi- and interdisciplinary research that addresses Asian issues of global relevance. SMU faculty members collaborate with leading international researchers and universities around the world, as well as with partners in the business community and public sector. SMU's city campus is a modern facility located in the heart of downtown Singapore, fostering strategic linkages with business, government, and the wider community.

HISTORY OF SMU

SMU's journey began in 1997, when the Singapore government first mooted the idea of a third university for the country. The government wanted SMU to be an experiment in diversity. The experiment began with the choice of the Chairman of the new institution, Mr Ho Kwon Ping, a renowned and successful business entrepreneur.

He was joined by an SMU task force of academics including Professor Tan Chin Tiong, who determined that SMU should be an American-style university offering a broad-based education in contrast to Singapore's tradition of the more specialised British model.