Set up in 2000, the Singapore Management University was touted as a different type of tertiary institution as compared to the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University.

Its so-called American-style of education meant that seminar classes were small enough to encourage debate and develop challenge-the-authority mindsets.

Graduates from SMU were supposedly sassier than their NUS and NTU counterparts as they possessed EQ and personalities -- something in short supply in the job market.

There is perhaps some truth to this: SMU graduates for the longest time did command a higher starting salary.

However, in less than two decades, it appears that the unique selling point that made SMU an attractive choice for students -- who do not want a run-of-the-mill education -- is wearing thin.

Here are 5 ways SMU has been losing its edge over the years, a concern first raised by Richard Hartung in his Today piece, "SMU can be different again", on July 24, 2014:

1. One-on-one admission interviews are taking a backseat

SMU was famous for not restricting enrollment of its students based on grades. Students from various backgrounds and with different capabilities added to the school's diversity.

To make it into SMU, students were traditionally assessed via individual interviews.

However, these days, SMU carries out most interviews in groups rather than interviewing students individually.

This is probably to reduce the amount of time and effort required to pick the best candidates for SMU.

Or SMU probably figured that there was no tangible difference in interviewing candidates one-on-one or in a group.

Does this have an impact on the student pool? Perhaps, because SMU now has...

2. More pragmatic students

One trend these days: Students speak out in class in SMU nowadays to score points for participation rather than out of intellectual curiosity.

Which goes against the grain of what SMU is about.

Robust class discussions were the hallmark of an SMU education.

The smaller number of students in each class facilitated discussions and debates, especially with lecturers, as there are lesser barriers.

But students are now seem to be gaming that system.

3. More research-oriented

Taking a backseat as well is the role of faculty in mentoring students.

There is apparently a shift in emphasis to research when it was previously focused on teaching and mentoring.

This shift can be inferred based on comments from faculty, the content of job postings and even SMU’s mission statement.

SMU President Arnoud De Meyer did make comments during the recent commencement whereby he reiterated that "undertaking research" remains a key focus.

NUS, for example, has always been touted as a research institution, which bodes well for its global rankings.

4. SMU is not the first to introduce a multidisciplinary approach

Moreover, it appears that SMU’s recent shift to have students take courses in more disciplines is to keep up with other universities, in a bid to develop students into generalists.

SMU's curriculum is now similar to the curricula at other universities, in particular with NTU's.

NTU had revamped its curriculum in 2011 to allow students to take more courses outside their major.

Furthermore, it is NUS that became the first university to offer massive open online courses (MOOCs), on Coursera.

5. SMU also wants to have its own village

SMU’s proposal to set up a SMU Village sounds awfully similar to the already-established NUS University Town.

UTown at NUS is a short-stay residential college for students to live, study and incubate their project ideas.

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