With its student online information platform having an acronym similar to that of the militant group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), the National University of Singapore (NUS) will be looking into whether a name-change is needed.
Last month, Dunman High School changed the name of its Integrated Student Information System (ISIS) to Dunman High Information System (DHIS).
MyISIS is where NUS students pay their school fees, check examination seating plans and schedules, besides using it for other administrative functions. “The university will conduct a review to determine if a change in the name of the NUS student platform is necessary,” said an NUS spokesperson in an email response to TODAY’s queries.
Most NUS students TODAY spoke to said there was no need for a revision, as it is far-fetched for anyone to draw links between the university and the militant group.
“I don’t think it is necessary because I would think students know better than that,” said sociology undergraduate Nurul Syuhaidah Senin, 21. “But I feel that it would just give people peace of mind.”
Dentistry undergraduate Chloe Sim, 21, added: “If (tomorrow) a new terrorist group with NUS as its acronym pops up, are we supposed to change the name of our school, too? It’s just bad luck that it coincides, but there’s no need to be drastic.”
However, financial engineering postgraduate Kim Vu, 27, felt a name change would be appropriate as those who have suffered from the group’s terrorist acts could find the similarity offensive.
“The name doesn’t affect me, but it may offend other people. So the change can be good,” he said. “It will not hurt anyone, anyway.”
In an email sent to Dunman High students on June 18 and that has since been circulated online, the school said it was changing the name of its student information system to DHIS because the system “shares the same acronym as the terrorist group in Syria”.
When contacted by TODAY, the school declined to comment.
Source: www.todayonline.com