A-Level Results 2010: Interview with Ellie Choi – ACJC’s top student
By Daphne Lee and Elizabeth Kamaldi
Photo by the Photographic Soc
I was there at the back of LT1 when I heard ‘The top ACJC student and top Science student is Choi Ci-En Ellie of 2SC6’, followed by a roar of applause. Ellie has scored distinctions in H3 Biology, H2 Biology, Chemistry and Mathematics, H1 Geography, GP and Project Work. Immediately I remembered seeing her around AC, and remembered that she was from the same secondary school as me. Somehow I felt a sense of pride swell for this fellow MGSian
ManiAC managed to catch Ellie for an interview in the Hub, enclosed from the all the buzz and flurry of the action outside. Ellie came to us good-spirited; when she started to speak, her words came in a torrent, and her speech was often coupled with her rather animated facial expressions. Talking to us, Ellie gave the impression of being someone full of zeal, passion and energy, one who is determined while humble and really friendly at the same time. Having the opportunity to interview her, we decided to get to know the person behind the fantastic grades, and of course, attempt to unearth how she managed to get those grades.
Maniac (M): Hi there, how are you feeling?
Ellie (E): Okay, haven’t really settled in yet. You know what happened? Cause I was like outside, so I was late, then my teacher called, “ELLIE WHERE ARE YOU”. Then I started getting these smses CONGRATS CONGRATS. So I found out I was the top scorer. Didn’t hear what they said about me though, ‘cos I was late.
M: Did you expect it?
E: No not really. I mean I was hoping for distinctions, But not literally ALL As.
M: Were you very stressed during the A level period?
E: A bit. I guess I can’t really remember how it was.
M: So what have you been doing?
E: Nothing really. Reading a lot, volunteering at IMH with the research team, getting a desk job, giving tuition. [Chuckles] Everything. I tutor one Sec 4 student and two JC students. The math is really stressful. [Talks about one HCI question she couldn’t solve.]
M: So what’s the first subject you looked at when you got your results?
E: All the same lah, all As^^
M: How were your prelim results?
E: A A A C. C For GP.
M: Have you been getting As since like J1?
E: Pretty much. For the main few subjects but not for GP.
M: So you’ve been studying really hard all the while?
E: Pretty hard yeah, consistently.
M: Has it been pretty stressful during the J2 year?
E: Not really. I’ve been listening in class, doing my tutorials, homework, everything. Yes, DO them. It really helps a lot.
M: Have you decided on the courses you want to take in Uni?
E: Hmm, I got into Oxford Experimental Psychology. I want to be a neuro-psychologist. But it’s rather expensive though…
M: Do you have a favourite aspect of the A Levels?
E: Not really. But when you get nearer to it, you don’t really feel stressed any more.
M: Would you consider it to be similar to the O’s?
E: Well yeah, but it’s really different too ‘cos you feel as if you’ve a lot less to study, since you only have four subjects now and during the O’s you had 8.
M: Would you say that the A Levels are the hardest exams of your life, as many people do?
E: Not really… I think that if you do consistent work it’s not a lot really. For the A levels there’s a lot more content, but I guess if you study consistently it’s not that bad. BUT GP IS REALLY STRESSFUL.
M: Who was your GP teacher?
E: Ms Ho Guat Eng. She’s really nice! She’s really radical in the way she thinks. She gave us LOADS of consultation after the Prelims so I went for all of it.
M: So.. when did you start studying for A’s?
E: Like … like all the while! But maybe more after the mid terms. Things got a bit more stressful.
M: Did you have any particular study habits?
E: Well I study a lot in school, like I stay until seven, in the library or in the hub.
M: Do you study during weekends?
E: Saturdays, well yeah. Try to. But not in J1 ‘cos I had CCA.
M: What CCAs were you in?
E: Swimming, Lifeguards, Harp ensemble. You really had to use your free time to study a lot.
M: Wouldn’t you have had CCA every day?
E: Practically every day, yeah… So I would get about 5 hours of studying a day. But it was good ‘cos when you’re busy, there’s greater stress to study. When you’re free you’d like wanna slack the whole day away.
M: Did you have tuition for any subject?
E: Well yeah for Chem…. My tutor taught everything, where I could clarify things with her, but it stopped after J1.
M: Do you have any favourite subjects?
E: Well I like bio so I did it in H3. Erm, math was fun. After you get the basics. I like the sciences I guess.
M: Did you do triple science at O Level?
E: Yeah, I did. Wanted to do physics here actually but I wasn’t allowed to. Though I wrote in to the school and all that stuff. I wanted to do H1 physics. But at first I tried doing it with GSC as H1, but GSC was so difficult that I just dropped both.
M: So what time did you sleep last night?
E: Well usually I sleep really early, at about 11. Worked really long hours yesterday, like for 6 hours then gave tuition…
M: Did you have any dreams about the A level results?
E: Yeah, I had nightmares last week that my A’s weren’t over and I still had papers
M: What did you do this morning?
E: Went to the driving centre, then to the library to borrow a book, then met my friends for lunch at Subway, where we just slacked for too long cause we didn’t wanna come to school.
M: So, what do you miss most about AC?
E: Friends.. The teachers? The teachers, mainly ‘cos they really taught us a lot and well.
M: Do you have a favourite teacher?
E: My form teacher is really nice, and my chemistry teacher. Math teachers were all … they were all willing to listen to your questions and give consultation, it was really good. No biasness lah, I like them all.
M: Do you have like any advice for your juniors now?
E: Start studying early, Start listening in class, really, it’s really important. Then revise.. REVISE.. 
When I didn’t pay attention during some class, I found the topic really hard to understand.
M: How were you like in J1? Were you very stressed about the A’s?
E: Not really.
M: How did you do for your O’s?
E: 8A1s? 9A1s?
M: Can you believe it, you’re going to uni soon!
E: NOO.. I don’t wanna go…
M: It’s like growing up so fast right..
E: Yeah… 
M: So what are your greatest memories of AC?
E: CCA, competitions; the competitions were really stressful, the training was really horrible. But I guess that’s why it is memorable, because it was really stressful and tiring.
Completely losing track of time, we concluded the interview soon after as we were reminded that the busy girl had many other interviews lined up after that. We wished Ellie well for her university life, and she smiled and walked away.