Singapore defines itself as a nation that gives immense importance to education. The official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs mentions, "As a nation whose only resource is its people, education in Singapore is taken very seriously. It is assuring to know that the quality of schooling here is among the best in the world".
Singapore's public schools maintain high standards of teaching and learning. According to IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2015, Singapore was ranked among top 3 in the world for its educational system. The country was also ranked first in both Math and Science across 140 countries in World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report 2015-2016.
English is the medium of education in Singapore but one of the unique competitive advantages of the nation's education system is its bilingual policy. In addition to learning English, students study their mother tongue at school, namely Malay, Mandarin or Tamil.
Scholarships for Indians
SIA Youth Scholarship
SIA Youth Scholarship is a programme designed for the students of India and from all the nations of the Association of Southeast Nations (ASEAN). This scholarship is awarded to bright students for completing their Pre-University level studies in Singapore. The scholarship is granted for two years and is renewed annually only if the student maintains a satisfactory academic record. This scholarship is awarded to students based on their merit and performance in previous courses. The selected students will be given grants in tuition fees, examination fees, living expenses, medical benefits and accident insurance cover.
A-STAR Youth Scholarship
The scholarship programme is designed for young students from India, China and ASEAN countries who wish to study in Singapore. The scholarship is tenable for 4 years and leads to the award of the Singapore Cambridge GCE 'A' Certificate. The scholarship is for students to study in selected Singapore schools from class 3 to Pre University 2.
Universities in Singapore
Singapore currently has five autonomous universities. They are the National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore Management University(SMU), Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and Singapore Institute of Technology. A graduate medical school, Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Singapore, was also created through a partnership between Duke University School of Medicine and NUS to increase Singapore's capacity to develop a vibrant biomedical hub. The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy has emerged as the school of choice to study public policy in Asia.
Specialised institutions have also sprung up, both local and international. For instance, well-known business schools INSEAD, LASALLE College of the Arts and Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) provide specialised education in the arts, and the Digipen Institute of Technology focuses on world-class technology education. In addition, polytechnics were also set up to train middle-level professionals, and the Institute of Technical Education was established as a post-secondary technical institution of excellence.
