Part 2: Wah, Funding From Non-School Sources

Funding from non-school providers differ in terms of:

1. The providers: these can be generally segmented into government providers vs non-government providers

2. The coverage of costs: some scholarships offer a full ride while other grants offset a portion of the cost

3. The bond period: some do not have bonds while for others the length of the bond can differ according to location of study

What does a bond mean?

In general, most (but not all) scholarships entail a bond after the completion of studies. It has implications on your first job out of school and your future career path, meaning that this is a decision about your education and your future career rolled into one.

Understanding what commitments a scholarship entails, and why you are making it lays a strong foundation for your future career and/or your scholarship application.

Lynn from the WahTeam found the Singapore Scholarship Guide useful in scaffolding thinking even about non-government scholarships. It’s a free guide that offers three different perspectives on taking a government scholarship.

How should I decide whether or not to take up a bonded scholarship?

1. Talk to seniors who have taken bonds (especially those who have already started serving or finished serving their bonds), ask

   1. Why they took the bond

   2. What trade-offs they made

   3. What they like or dislike

2. Engage with the scholarship organisation, assess your compatibility with them

   1. Do research

      1. Visit the organisation’s scholarship website

      2. Attend information sessions or recruitment events

      3. Reach out to people from the organisation

   2. Get exposure: apply for internships and experience programmes. Find opportunities by searching online, emailing the organisation directly, or talking to school counsellors and/or seniors.

      1. Government departments run internship programmes usually during the post-A Level period or during school holidays. There is some rigidity in the application cycle and the application can take some time, so if you know that you want this internship, start thinking about it and researching the timeline at least 3 months in advance. For most organisations, the internship process is in some way tied to their scholarship application process and the internship can serve as a means to assess you and for you to become acquainted with them. However the timing of the internship offer in relation to the scholarship offer is often variable (ie it could come before, after or during the decision period or scholarship offer).

Compilation of non-University scholarship sources

This list is by no means exhaustive - go forth and search!

1. Government

1. Resources for research:

   1. Brightsparks portal (mostly Ministry, Statutory boards, government affiliated organisations like GIC, CAG)

   2. The specific ministry or stat board’s website

2. Things to consider:

   1. Duration is variable - full term or half term scholarships?

   2. Length of bond varies with location of study - usually, local is 4 years, overseas is 6 years

   3. Depending on the specific government organisation, scholars can be rotated through different departments during their bond. If the chance for rotation is important to you, pay attention to that when looking up the terms of the bond.

   4. If you are interested in doing a professional degree (law, architecture, medicine, veterinary science etc.) read the terms and conditions of the scholarship carefully - many scholarships have restrictions on these courses of study

2. Non-government

1. General resources (more to come):

   1. https://sites.google.com/a/vjc.sg/the-vjc-scholarships-guide/ListScholarships (slightly outdated and not many of the links work but the scholarships do exist)

   2. Search terms to throw into the wide expanse of Google:

      1. <insert country of study> scholarships for international students

      2. <insert country of study> scholarships for Singaporeans

      3. <insert country of study> scholarship for <insert field of study>

      4. Singapore non-bond scholarships

2. Some Non-Bond Scholarships

   1. https://adventgineering.wordpress.com/2017/04/11/scholarship-money-singapore/

   2. Lim Kim San Memorial Scholarship https://www.sphfoundation.org.sg/lks2020.html

   3. Howe Yoon Choong PSA Scholarship https://www.hycpsascholarship.com/

   4. Loke Cheng Kim

   5. Jardine-Matheson

      1. Oxbridge only, for specific colleges

         1. University of Cambridge – Downing, Magdalene, Peterhouse, Trinity

         2. University of Oxford – Exeter, Oriel, The Queen’s, Trinity

3. Bonded Scholarships

   1. OCBC Bank

   2. SPH

   3. Enterprise SG