There are many reasons for choosing to study in a private school in Singapore as opposed to a Public or government funded school. Secondary or High school overseas students studying in a private school often benefit from a seamless progression to tertiary education with the Private Schools’ partner university (ies). Such universities usually hail from United Kingdom, Australia or the States and most of the degrees are recognized world wide. The duration to attain a Degree (some offer a Honors Degree) is also shorter, as compared to traditional pathway. Some students, with only limited time to experience ‘study abroad’ may only wish to study a few units, be immersed in the Singapore and other Asian culture and than head back home - studying in a Private school offer more of such opportunities..

While there are advantages studying in a Private School, one should also choose the school with care. Look at the credentials of the school, their university partners, the learning environment, their lecturers, niche or courses they specialized in and the stability of the school.

Credentials – is the school certified to the key regulatory standards established by the authorities? The better Schools should be certified to CaseTrust (coming EduTrust) standards and SQC-PEO. Some schools like TMC, in addition to the 2 standards, have also attained additional standards such as ISO 9001 and they report their financial performance on a half yearly basis as part of the SGX requirement. Attainment of standards and transparency are hallmarks of a quality school.

Good University Partners. – there is a saying ‘like attracts like’. Good Universities will usually seek to work with the better schools and if the school you are interested in is in partnership with reputable universities, congratulations, you are on the right track !

Conducive Learning Environment & High quality lecturers - Apart from looking at the facilities of the school, look at the qualification and experience of their lecturers. Are they academically qualified? Do they have good industrial experience? Apart from their teaching job, have they demonstrated their academic prowess through inventions, publishing of research papers or presentation of papers in major seminars?

Experienced lecturers are able to translate theory into practice, simplify concepts and establish its relevance, and this makes learning a lot more meaningful and interesting. As Einstein once mentioned ‘It is important to simplify things to its simplest form, but not simpler.”

The availability of a core group of strong academics or successful industrialist-turned-lecturers in a school will set the stage for establishing niche, specialized courses offered by the school.

Cultural and international diversity – is there too much of it or too little? A good school should have the right mix, having perhaps about 50% local and 50% international student population.

And finally, as with all privately run school, stability - in particular stability arising from having a strong and stable management team and financial resources are extremely important to ensure that the school will continue to operate. Here, it will be prudent to choose Schools that are more established and better still, transparent in their financial records.

Happy School Hunting!

Dr Lemmy Teo,
Director – Student Services,
TMC Educational Group