INSEAD Singy vs. Fonty

the beauty and possible curse of insead is its two campuses.
students have the option to study on either campus or both campuses (depending on how they choose to allocate their points). the first 2 periods (or 4 months) must be studied on one campus -- called your home campus. the differences between the two campuses are vast. the lifestyle in singapore vs france is beyond comparison.

singapore campus

the campus is smaller than the fonty campus with the library to the right, the cafeteria to the left, a quad through the middle, and a pond that runs through the side. the majority of classrooms on the groundfloor and 3rd floor. the meeting points for students are at the bar, cafeteria, library or in front of the bookstore. the BORs (breakout rooms) are always packed with students. on a full schedule day, one will bump into every student on campus.

students live in 3 main complexes that are within walking distance from insead:  heritage view, dover rise or one north

heritage view

and then there is the city of singapore... to frolic and play in


once you have received your student pass, changi airport becomes your second home... as singapore is the hub of travel throughout southeast asia and your source of duty-free.


all in all, the singy experience is more intimate, warm, and travel-focused. it feels like a permanent holiday rather than a business school.

fontainebleau campus

a larger campus with 4 wings for students, faculty and staff. the meeting spots are camembert, bar, cafeteria, and outside quad. on a sunny day, most of insead will be outside. there is even an outdoor amphi for brave professors to teach in. there are cubicles spread out through campus, particularly in the south wing and west wing along with upper and lower galleries.

housing in fonty consists of chateau, villa, house or flat style living, most of which require a car to drive through the forest.

chateau fleury

the city of fontainebleau looks like this... with a forest surrounding it. a different kind of playground for insead students.


life in fonty is very "french" but it feels like you have a campus, a home, and a sense of permanence. fonty is yours for the time you are there and the fellow students become your family.

it would be a shame to miss out on either experience so definitely consider doing both campuses if you can. the only sad thing about the two campus system is that the 500 students in one class are never on the same campus throughout the entire year at insead.

xoxo
s