Why study in Singapore?

Singapore is a small country with great opportunities. It is recognised as the “Global Schoolhouse” as this island nation continues to feature in many global surveys, for its famous universities, promising innovation, high standards of teaching and scientific research. It is emerging as the popular destination for higher education among students due to following reasons:

1. Hub of Education Excellence:

Singapore ranked 7th in INSEAD Global Innovation Index 2015 and 2nd in the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report for 2015-2016. From an internationally recognized public school system to world class universities. It offers a comprehensive education environment with its 3 top universities, 16 leading foreign universities and quality private institutes.

2. Affordable cost:

Singapore’s fast-growing economy and modern lifestyle has contributed to a high cost of living. Cost of education is also among the highest in Asia. However, it is still an inexpensive option when compared to UK or Australia. Currently, annual tuition fees average around approximately US $11, 800. Additionally, the good news for Indian students is that 52% of international students in Singapore are eligible for financial aid from top Singapore banks.

3. Close to home:

Singapore is well connected via sea, air and telecommunications to all parts of the world. It is fairly close to India encouraging students to visit home during every academic break.

4. English is the official language:

Indian students will not face any problem feeling at home as English is widely spoken here. Even though the national language of Singapore is Malay, the 4 official languages are Malay, Mandarin, Tamil& English. You will not feel alienated in this country as you will see a lot of Indian and Asian faces in Singapore. Singapore’s multicultural society is composed of four major ethnic groups: the Chinese, Malays, Indians and smaller minority groups.  The variety of religions is a direct reflection of the diversity of races living here. Singapore’s principal religions are Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, and Christianity.

5. Clean and green city:

Thanks to very strict anti-litter policies (a fine of SGD 1000 if you litter for the first time and a fine of SGD 5000 if you repeat the offence!), Singapore is spick and span island state and has also earned the nickname of “fine city“! And despite being a completely urbanized state, Singapore is the greenest city in Asia, with its green cover increasing from 36% in the eighties to 47% in 2016 (Centre for Liveable cities.)
The crime rates are low, the streets are safe – even late in the night.

6. Home to many foreign universities:

Singapore’s increasing popularity as a business & education hub has attracted a lot of foreign universities of repute to set up their campuses here. S.P. Jain School of Global Management, ESSEC Business School, Queen Margaret University are a few foreign players who have set up base in this country.

7. A Leading Global Business Hub:

Singapore now plays an important role as the businessepicentre located right in the heart of Asia. Ranked by the World Bank in 2016 as the easiest country to do business with, Singapore continues to attract investors and companies. It is no wonder that most multinational corporate giants of the world have their presence in Singapore as well. In short, there won’t be any dearth of jobs in this country, which is quite a good reason for students to consider pursuing their higher education in Singapore.

8. Tuition Grant Scheme (TGS):

This scheme was introduced by the Singapore government for all international (non-Singaporean) students as a way to make the cost of tuition affordable. If you’re an international student pursuing a full-time undergraduate/ diploma course, the government would subsidize (reduce) your course fee, if you sign an agreement where you commit to work in Singapore for at least 3 years after graduation.

Singapore is an island country in Southeast Asia made up of 63 islands. Singapore is a global commerce, finance and transport hub. It is identified as : the most “technology-ready” nation (WEF), top International-meetings city (UIA), city with “best investment potential” (BERI), third-most competitive country, third-largest foreign exchange market, third-largest financial centre, third-largest oil refining and trading centre and the second-busiest container port. The country has also been identified as a tax heaven.Singapore ranks 5th on the UN Human Development Index and the 3rd highest GDP per capita. It is ranked highly in education, healthcare, life expectancy, quality of life, personal safety and housing. In 2018, Singaporean citizens had visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 180 countries and territories, ranking the Singapore passport first in the world.A vibrant mix of culture and traditions along with modernism and urbanization, Singapore is a perfect tourist attraction as well as a study destination for the international students for higher education.

Singapore has a tropical rainforest climate  with no distinctive seasons, uniform temperature and pressure, high humidity, and abundant rainfall. Temperatures usually range from 22 to 35 °C (72 to 95 °F). While temperature does not vary greatly throughout the year, there is a wetter monsoon season from November to January.From July to October, there is often haze caused by bush fires in neighbouring Indonesia, usually from the island of Sumatra.Although Singapore does not observe daylight saving time (DST), it follows the GMT+8 time zone, one hour ahead of the typical zone for its geographical location.

Singapore works on EducationExcellence Framework, consisting of two key initiatives to safeguard student interest & welfare through high quality and regulatory standards –

  • Case Trust for Education, introduced by the Consumera Association of Singapore (CASE) for Private Education Organisations (PEO).
  • Singapore Quality Class for Private Education Organisations (SQC_PEO) administered by SPRING Singapore. It serves as the industry standard organization excellence in the private education sector.

Singapore Higher Education Institutions can be categorized into public and private  institutions or organizations. The public sector offers a comprehensive range of post-secondary education and training opportunities. Different options are available to students depending upon their qualifications. These options can be divided into three types: the universities, the polytechnics, and the technical training institute.

There are more than 300 private commercial, IT, Fine arts and language schools’ in Singapore. The courses offered range from certificate to postgraduate levels, through partnership with renowned international universities from various countries such as Australia, UK and USA. There are also foreign specialised institutes in Singapore that have either campus or have tie up with local polytechnic to offer cutting edge programmes.

 

Study in Singapore’s Private Institutes

GRADUATE DEGREES: The Private Institutes offers degree in partnership with popular universities from countries such as United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. These universities confer the degree and certification. Hence, private institutes provide students with the opportunity to attain qualifications from these foreign universities whilst studying in Singapore’s affordable and comfortable environment. For Postgraduate studies in PEO admission requirements vary from programme to programme. The duration for Master in private institutes may range from 12 months to 16 months. The GMAT, GRE Scores are not compulsory for admission.

BACHELORS DEGREE: The Private Institutes offer bachelor’s degree programmes in almost every subject. The duration of the bachelor’s course is 3 years to 4 years. The admission requirements vary from programme to programme. The SAT, TOEFL and IELTS are not compulsory for admission. The students completed their 12th or 11th Std. or equivalent to Singapore A level can apply for the bachelor degree in Private institutes.

 

Post Graduate Study in Singapore’s Public Universities

GRADUATE DEGREES: There are three main types of challenging graduate programmes in the Public Universities: Doctoral (Ph.D.), Masters’ and the Graduate diploma.

Doctoral: All doctoral programmes are primarily research based. Duration may range from 3 years to 5 years. Students can take admission for PhD course after completion of their master’s degree. PhD students need to submit a research proposal. Student need to appear for GRE/GMAT & TOEFL/IELTS exams for admissions.

Masters: Master degree programmes are primarily designed to prepare students for practice of profession.The duration of graduate courses may range from one year to two years depending upon the university. The various Master degrees are MA, MS, MBA, MFA etc. Generally, an applicant must have at least a good bachelor’s degree and two years’ work experience. In addition, an applicant whose native language or medium of instruction for the bachelor’s degree is not English must have a good TOEFL score or IELTS score. Applicant applying for admission in engineering, computer science, science should also preferably have good GRE scores. Those applying for business-related courses should have obtained either GRE or GMAT scores.

Graduate Diploma: Is offered as a terminal qualification and provides limited professional training in a specific niche. The Graduate diploma is often favoured by those students who seek additional exposure to an area of interest. It is one year full time course of study for graduates.

Diploma in government Polytechnics in Singapore

A Polytechnics education is a popular route in singapore for student inclined towards practise-oriented studies at the diploma level. They offer a wide range of courses such as Engineering, Business Studies, Mass Communication, Design and Info-Communications. Specialised courses such as Optometry, Marine Engineering, Nautical Studies, Nursing, Early Childhood Education and Film are also available for those who wish to forge a specific career path. All courses are conducted in the English medium and follow a credit accumulation modular system that allows students to pursue and complete their courses at their own pace. Under the system, students will take a prescribed set of modules and accumulate credit units for those modules they have passed. Modules are assessed immediately upon completion of the required academic work in a semester.

It takes 3 years to complete a full-time diploma course. Students that have completed class 10 or 12 in India, are eligible for polytechnic courses.

1. Singapore NTU fully funded Undergraduate Scholarships for all nationalities students 2018

What subjects you can study:  All undergraduate subject / courses are open under this scholarship.

Are international students eligible to apply? Yes

Whats scholarship Offers?  :  Nanyang Scholarship covers up to the normal programme duration on condition that the scholarship holder maintains a record of good academic performance and exemplary conduct.

  • Full coverage of subsidized tuition fees (after Tuition Grant).
  • Living allowance of S$6,000 per academic year.
  • Book allowance of S$500 per academic year.
  • Accommodation allowance of up to S$2,000 per academic year.
    (Applicable to scholarship holders who reside in NTU hostels only.)
  • A travel grant of S$5,000 for an overseas programme (one-off).
  • Computer allowance of S$1,500 (one-off).
  • Settling-in allowance of S$250 (one-off).
  • Priority for Overseas Programme.
  • Participation in Scholars Orientation Programme, Scholars Award Ceremony, Outreach Programmes, and Eminent Speaker Series.
  • No bond is attached to the Nanyang Scholarship apart from the three-year bond applicable to all Singapore PRs and international students under the MOE Tuition Grant Scheme.

Eligibility Criteria:  To be eligible for this scholarship you must meet the following requirements:

  • Open to all nationalities.
  • Successful awardees should read a full-time undergraduate degree programme. The scholarship will cover the years of study^ at NTU.
  • Possess outstanding Singapore-Cambridge GCE ‘A’ level, Diploma awarded by a polytechnic in Singapore, NUS High School Diploma, IB Diploma or Year 12 equivalent qualifications.
  • Excellent co-curricular records.
  • Strong leadership qualities and potential.^ For the Biomedical Sciences & Chinese Medicine Programme, the scholarship will cover only the first three years of study in NTU.

English Skills required: For applicants whose native language is not English, a good TOEFL score is required. Test dates must be within 2 years or less from the date of your application. IELTS may be submitted in place of TOEFL.

2. Singapore NTU International Research Scholarships 2018

Degree Level: Scholarships are available for pursuing full-time Graduate Research programme at NTU.

Available Subject: Scholarships are awarded to study the subjects offered by the university. 

Scholarship benefits: The award is tenable for one year in the first instance and is renewable subject to good progress. The maximum period of the Scholarship is 2 years for Master’s candidates and 4 years for PhD candidates, as determined by the school as well as the availability of research funding in each case. A monthly stipend as follows:

 

For PhD candidates    For Master’s candidates
Singapore Citizen S$2,700 S$2,500
Singapore Permanent Resident S$2,200 S$1,500
International Student S$2,000 S$1,500

Eligible Nationalities: Singapore and International students are eligible to apply.

Eligibility Criteria: Students are eligible for this scholarship if you are a local or international student seeking admission as a full-time candidate pursuing a Graduate Research programme at NTU.

  • Students must have a First Class Honours or Second Class (Upper Division) Honours or its equivalent
  • Students should not be in paid employment or accept paid employment or concurrently hold any other scholarship, fellowship, bursary or top-up allowance during the prescribed period of the award

Language Requirements: For applicants whose native language is not English, a good TOEFL  score is required. Test dates must be within 2 years or less from the date of your application. IELTS may be submitted in place of TOEFL.

3.  Prince Michael of Kent MSc Scholarships at LSBF in Singapore, 2018

Degree Level: Scholarships are available for pursuing MSc programme.

Available Subject: Scholarships are awarded in the field of Finance.

Scholarship Benefits: Scholarships worth $SGD$7,970

Eligible Nationalities: Citizens of all nationalities are eligible to apply.

Eligibility Criteria:
Bachelors level degree in any subject from a recognised university
A test of quantitative abilities is required. You may submit one of the following:
GMAT – A minimum of 70% in the quantitative section is required
GRE – A minimum of 60% in the verbal reasoning section, 70% in the quantitative section, and 4.0 or above on the analytical writing section are required
CFA Level 1 exam with a pass grade.
This test may be waived at the discretion of GGSB Admission Board for candidates that exhibit previous academic excellence from a top ranked university or business school, especially in quantitative subjects

There are six autonomous universities (AUs) in Singapore,which receive funding from the  government and are given the flexibility to strategise, innovate, and differentiate themselves.

  1. National University of Singapore (NUS)
  2. Nanyang Technical University (NTU)
  3. Singapore Management University (SMU)
  4. Singapore University of Technology and Design
  5. Singapore Institute of Technology
  6. Singapore University of Social Sciences

Offshore institutes with local campus

following are local branches of foreign universities.

  • ÉcoleSupérieure des Sciences Economiques et Commerciales
  • INSEAD(Singapore)
  • S P Jain School of Global Management
  • University of Chicago- Booth School of Business
  • University of Nevada, Las Vegas- Singapore
  • DigiPen Institute of Technology
  • German Institute of Science and Technology- TUM Asia
  • Sorbonne-Assas International Law School
  • Curtin Education Centre
  • James Cook University Singapore