Bursaries enhanced to help more students from higher learning institutions

SINGAPORE — To provide for himself and his family, Mr Alvin Loke had to give tuition for two hours every day and thoughts of quitting school would creep into his mind every now and then.

However, he would quickly dismiss such thoughts by remembering how proud his late father was when the latter knew his son got a place in university.

“If I give up, all his hard work and hope would go to waste,” said Mr Loke, 25, whose father — who worked as a lorry driver — died from a heart attack more than two years ago, just months after he started his undergraduate programme at the National University of Singapore (NUS) School of Design and Environment.

Having used most of his savings for the funeral expenses, Mr Loke said he was on the brink of dropping out of NUS after his father died. But bursaries awarded by the university allowed him to stay on.

Yesterday, Education Minister Heng Swee Keat announced details about greater financial support for students in institutes of higher learning such as Mr Loke.

The qualifying cap on monthly household per capita income will be raised from S$1,700 to S$1,900, which means students in two-thirds of all Singaporean households will qualify.

Bursary allowances will also be raised. For example, Institute of Technical Education students from low-income families will have their fees fully covered and also receive a monthly allowance of about S$50 to S$70.

Those in polytechnics will have 80 per cent of their fees offset, while undergraduates will have about 45 per cent of their fees subsidised.

In all, the enhancements will benefit about 120,000 students.

Mr Heng said: “By ensuring access to high-quality education opportunities, we aim to bring out the best in every child, whatever their financial starting point, learning needs and special education needs.”

Mr Loke said he has not let his family’s financial situation hold him back from doing well in life. He said: “I’ve never felt disadvantaged because of my financial situation. Rather than using this as an excuse, I chose to look on the bright side and move on.”