It takes a really good teacher to know that they could be doing more, not only for their students but also for themselves. 

Meet Jessica Lim.

“Teaching is enriching but I wanted something more out of it,” says Jessica, a Biology and English teacher at a high school in Singapore.

“Every year, my batch of students changes, and with each passing year, the students are harder and harder to engage.

“I felt that the way science is to be communicated needs to evolve as well. I wanted to effectively communicate scientific concepts to different types of audiences, to better engage them and show them that science, when communicated properly, is relevant and important.”

And, of course, a really good teacher does their homework.

Jessica says she’s sure she found the best way to move her career forward: “Trust me, I’ve done my research!”

She completed the Master of Science in Science Communication, run jointly by the best university in Asia—the National University of Singapore (NUS)—and the best university in Australia—the Australian National University (ANU).

“There’s no other program that takes you to the same places,” she says, speaking both metaphorically and literally.

Jessica spent her first semester at NUS in the familiarity of her hometown, but took ANU online modules to give her a “taste of what was to come”.

“When I went over to ANU the following semester, I didn't have any 'culture shock' because I already had a sense of what was required,” she says.

“The flow of the modules was practically seamless and I couldn't have asked for a better learning arrangement.” 

The differences between Singapore and Canberra, however were substantially more noticeable.

“Honestly, being the city girl that I am, I was taken aback by the slow pace in Canberra,” she says.

“But I quickly began to enjoy taking a step back and watching the world go by. It taught me how important it is to slow down once in a while and just be in the moment!”

Jessica is now back teaching, adapting what she learned in her masters and exploring how to encourage her students to be more “in the moment” in the classroom.

Meanwhile, she says the memory of her time in Canberra will never leave her.

“I don't think I will ever have another opportunity to experience something like it.”

Find out more about the Master of Science in Science Communication run jointly by ANU and NUS.