What are the best options to pursue secondary education in Singapore?

Pervin Malhotra
email your queries to careers@tribunemail.com 

Q. We live in a small town in Punjab. We would like to provide some international exposure to our son who is currently studying in a local school. He’s very bright and curious. We have heard of the SIA scholarship which is applicable to Class X students. Is there any other option for younger kids, perhaps for a longer duration? My husband travels to Singapore on work from time to time so something in that country would be preferable. — Suman Malhan

A. Sure there is! Tenable for a good four years, the A*STAR Youth Scholarship leads to the award of the Singapore-Cambridge General Certificate of Education ‘Advanced’ (GCE 'A') Level (or equivalent) certificate. The Scholarship enables students to study in selected Singapore schools from Secondary Three to Pre-University Two and is renewed annually, subject to the student's satisfactory performance. The tentative application window for the A* STAR India Youth scholarship 2019 will be mid-June to mid-July 2018

Details: www.moe.gov.sg/admissions/scholarships/astar

Eligibility: Indian National, born between 2002-2004 & completed Class VIII in 2018. The candidate should have an outstanding academic track record (at least an average of 80 per cent/ min ‘A’ grade with English as first language in the Class VII & VIII school final exams) & have high level of oral and written competency in English.

(For detailed eligibility criteria, check out the A*STAR India Youth Scholarship page).

You can apply either online or through hardcopy. Each applicant can submit only one application and the online mode is strongly recommended. 

Short-listed applicants have to take a selection test. Those short-listed on the basis of their test scores are called for a selection interview, based on which they’ll be awarded the scholarship. Generally, the hostels provide breakfast and dinner for the scholars. Meal provisions are available for Indian vegetarians and uslims.

What is the scope of UG course in philosophy?

Q.I’m presently enrolled in BA (philosophy) as this was the only option I had in order to study in a good college with my percentage. What exactly is the scope of this course? — Gauri Bansal

A. An interesting and fascinating subject that deals with the fundamental questions related to ethics, metaphysics (nature of reality, knowledge, morality, existence and beliefs), politics and law, science and enquiry, religion etc, the careers that follow directly from a course in philosophy are primarily limited to academia, research and writing. But this doesn’t mean that those who study the subject are stuck in a dead-end, hopeless situation. By no means.

Studying philosophy forces to you to think, and to question and analyse. It will also improve your reasoning and logical thinking ability, critical analysis as also your reading and writing skills. These are skills that can be applied to a wide gamut of areas and are especially invaluable in fields such as management, administration and politics, law, media and writing.  No wonder, even some of the leading B-schools abroad welcome students of philosophy to bring diversity of thinking and a fresh and enriching perspective to the classroom. Of course you are free to pursue just about any course at the master’s level, including mass communication, law, development studies, teaching, languages, travel and tourism — you name it that requires a bachelor’s degree as a prerequisite. Besides attempting competitive exams like the Civil Services.

Confusion over selection of exam centres

Q. I  am applying to Universities in Canada. My friends say that it’s easier to crack the IELTS from Tier II/III centres as compared to Tier I/metro cities. Is that true? — Jatin Garg

A. Both in terms of quality and difficulty level, the International English Language Testing System, popularly known as the IELTS is the same across the country. Irrespective of the examination centre, the papers are assessed and examined by common certified examiners who follow strict quality control norms and are a part of a Professional Support Network that’s jointly managed by the British Council and IDP who are the official test providers in India. The checking procedure is the same, ensuring a valid and accurate assessment of their language skills to all candidates, regardless of the test location or provider. 

Both IELTS partners have equally strict protocols and multi-layered security mechanisms and controls in place for all aspects of test design, delivery and administration to protect the integrity of the test.