<p>I wouldn’t be to hasty to degrade NUS–the academic environment and stringent-ness of NUS (and other East-Asian universities) is far more competitive and active than those of BU, mainly as a cultural thing… and I must agree with limnieng.</p>
<p>BU is ranked highly in university rankings, but considering only undergraduate education, I would consider NUS to be a more rigorous school.</p>
<p>I’m from NUS, and I’d say NUS is a solid option if you are planning to go on to grad school. Yes, the professors won’t blow you away with their lectures, and the campus life can be subdued. However the professors really do know their stuff, the curriculum is very rigorous and you’ll have to work hard if you are to get a good grade. All of this amounts to pretty good preparation for grad school. </p>
<p>The rankings debate is irrelevant to this. It’s ironic that the same people who mistrust official rankings come up with their own personal rankings in which NUS is ranked well below BU/UCLA/any reputed US uni. Let’s keep rankings out of this and limit the discussion to concrete factors- academics, research opportunities, finances, student life- that can actually help the OP decide which uni to choose.</p>