Overview
A mindfulness-based approach to stress reduction emphasizes the helpful role that awareness and openness can play in facing stressors, and ultimately, leading a richer life. Rather than trying to make stressors disappear from life, or controlling them entirely, we will try to learn how to become more aware of the stressors in our lives and how they impact us. Rather than rejecting or suppressing challenges in our life, we will try to investigate them openly. With kindness and self-compassion we will attempt to accept reality as it is in the here-and-now. In this well-researched MBSR course, on the basis of such openness and acceptance, and with the help of formal and informal mindfulness practices, we can then make wiser choices and develop thinking styles, behaviors and habits that are conducive to stress reduction and prevention, and to leading life more fully.
Is This Course For You?
The course is open to the general public and invites anyone who would like to live a life with less stress and more awareness. Beginners are welcome. No prior knowledge or, or experience with, mindfulness practices is required. In case you have any acute or chronic mental or physical illness, you are required to approach Mindfulness Initiative @ SMU to arrange a conversation with your course instructor (via email, phone, or face-to-face) to determine whether this course is suitable for you. Instructors may, at their discretion, not accept individuals into the course. In such cases, a full refund of the course fee will be given.
Course Dates & Times
| Course | Weekday | Dates / Times | Location | Instructors |
| MBSR 2025 Intake 6 Registration Open Register | Tuesdays | Thursday Aug 7 (Orientation) - Online Weekly Sessions: Sep 13 (Sat, Day of Mindfulness) | On-Site @ SMU | Carmen Teo |
*Note: As part of the course requirements, participants are required to attend the orientation session and complete the pre-course screening questionnaire.
Mindfulness Initiative @ SMU may have to cancel a course if not enough participants sign up. Cancellations will be announced as soon as a cancellation decision has been made and can be made up until the day before the course starts. In case of cancellation, a full refund of the course fee will be given.
SMU is conveniently located in the city centre and easily accessible via public transportation (e.g. MRT stations Bras Basah, Bencoolen, City Hall, and Dhoby Ghaut). In case you intend to arrive by car, feel free to contact us about car parking options at SMU (mindfulness@smu.edu.sg). Depending on the Covid-19 situation and resulting government and university policies, the Mindfulness Initiative @ SMU may move classes to online mode.
Course Format
The course consists of 10 sessions in total. Interested applicants are encouraged to register only if they can attend all sessions or expect to miss no more than 1-2 session of the course. To ascertain participants' readiness and suitability, applicants will be required to complete a pre-course questionnaire. The sessions consist of guided mindfulness practices (including gentle mindful movements), instructor-led mindful enquiry, group sharing, and a limited amount of instructor presentations:
1 orientation session
8 weekly evening sessions (2.5 hours each)
1 Day of Mindfulness (DOM)
In addition to attending the sessions, participants are expected to engage in regular formal and informal home practices of about 30-60 minutes daily. The DOM is typically on a Saturday between Sessions 6 and 7. Please refer to the course dates in the table above. Participants will be provided with course materials such as audio-guided mindfulness practices (included in the course fee).
At the end of the course, a Course Participation Certificate will be issued to participants with a minimum attendance of 6 evening sessions and Day of Mindfulness. The certification for this 8-week MBSR course is a pre-requisite to the MBSR Teacher Training Intensive (MBSR-TTI) programme.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this course, participants will have had the opportunity to learn the following:
- Understand the difference between stressors and stress, consequences of stress, and different ways of reacting towards stressors;
- Learning both informal and formal mindfulness practices
- Learn about what mindfulness is, including the relevance of attention, intention, and attitudes of mindfulness
- Experience a variety of formal and informal mindfulness practices to increase awareness and reduce and prevent stress
- Develop a personal practice of mindfulness
Course Fees
The fee for this course is $695 (inclusive of GST). An invoice would be sent to you prior to course commencement. Your enrolment into the course is only confirmed after the completion of a pre-course questionnaire and payment. To explore alternative payment options other than credit card, please contact us at mindfulness@smu.edu.sg.
Large discounts are available for our past mindfulness graduates and the SMU Community . If this applies to you, please contact us at mindfulness@smu.edu.sg for more information. This programme is also approved for claim under the WDA SkillsFuture Credit subsidy scheme subject to all eligibility criteria being met. Click here for more details. If you would like to use SkillsFuture Credit to pay for the course, please contact us at mindfulness@smu.edu.sg.
Cancellation, Refund, Transfer, and Withdrawal Policy:
All cancellations must be received in writing via email to mindfulness@smu.edu.sg before the start of the first session of the course. A refund of the course fee minus administrative charges of $100 will be given if the cancellation is received in writing at the latest four days (96 hours) before the start of the first course session (not including any orientation session). No refunds will be given for cancellations later than four days (96 hours) before the start of the first course session. Processing time of the refund of course fees minus administrative charges would take 6 to 8 weeks. Participants may withdraw from a course at any time. In the case of withdrawal, no refund and no certificate of completion will be given. Sometimes, participants request transfer to a later course or to take specific sessions in a later course. Such arrangements are complicated, partly because most of our courses are fully booked. Therefore, consideration of such requests will be at our sole discretion and participants may not transfer into or take specific sessions during the next course or any later courses unless with our explicit permission.
