Private Education

The State is the principal provider of education at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels. In the case of non-formal education, the private sector plays the complementary role of running continuing/supplementary education classes in commercial/business studies, computers, languages, fine arts, tuition, etc. Current regulations require private schools conducting educational courses such as those stated above to be registered with the Ministry of Education.

Private schools issue certificates for attendance and/or completion of courses. In some instances, schools also issue certificates to students who have been successful at internal examinations/performance assessments conducted by the individual school concerned. The results obtained at internal examinations such as those taken upon completion of a course are normally viewed as students' preliminary performance prior to sit external examinations.

Singapore does not have a central authority that accords recognition to qualifications and courses of study. The Ministry of Education is not an accreditation authority on qualifications. Recognition and/or acceptance of certification is entirely at the discretion of the individual prospective employer. When considering suitability for appointment to a post/job vacancy, employers take into consideration a whole host of factors, including the character and conduct of the applicant; his/her academic track records; reputation and academic standing of the educational institutions where the applicant studied, relevance of the applicant's qualifications, experience, etc.

Individual private schools have their own regulations on age limit for enrolment into courses of study. The Ministry of Education registers privately-run schools offering academic courses leading to GCE examinations, and courses in commercial/business studies, computer education, languages, fine arts, etc. It also registers tuition schools, enrichment centres and foreign system/international schools. Registration of the above schools and related matters are handled by the Private Schools Section.