12 July 1999

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EDUN S33-18-063
03199
12 July 1999

GOVERNMENT ACCEPTS RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE COMMITTEE ON UNIVERSITY ADMISSION SYSTEM

The Government has accepted in principle all the recommendations of the Committee on University Admission System. The new university admission system will be implemented for the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Nanyang Technological University (NTU) from year 2003.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Dr Tony Tan announced this at a press conference on 13 July 1999. He said that the new admission system, which moves away from the current sole reliance on the A-Level examinations, would reinforce and complement the on-going re-orientation of the education system. He stressed that the change was pivotal in our efforts to groom our students to face the challenges of the next century, and to develop our universities into world-class institutions.
The new admission frameworks for the four categories of applicants -- A-Level graduates, polytechnic graduates, mature applicants and applicants with international qualifications – are illustrated in figures I to IV. The detailed recommendations of the Committee on University Admission System are in Annex A.
The Government accepts the recommendation to use a reasoning test, project work and ECAs to supplement the A-Levels in the admission process. MOE and the universities will be working out the implementation details. The implementation of an appropriate reasoning test, e.g., SAT I, will be examined. MOE will study the form and implementation of project work before deciding on the timeframe for implementation. An ECA bonus points system will also be developed. As for the recommendation to broaden education for students offering more than 3 A-Level subjects, MOE will study the use of AS-Levels further before deciding whether to introduce them in Singapore. In the meantime, students taking 4 A-Levels are encouraged to have at least one of the A-Level subjects in a different disciplinary orientation from the other subjects.
The Committee’s report, entitled, "Preparing Graduates for a Knowledge Economy: A New University Admission System for Singapore", will be available at major bookstores.
Background
In February 1998, Deputy Prime Minister Dr Tony Tan announced that the current undergraduate admission system in the universities would be reviewed. A Committee was formed and tasked to examine the present admission system and propose changes where necessary. (See list of Committee Members in Annex B.)
In September 1998, the Committee held a press conference to invite feedback on several tentative ideas for the new university admission system. The Committee also held seminars, focus group discussions and interviews to gather feedback from various stakeholders and the general public. The feedback and views arising from the above initiatives were incorporated in the draft report of the Committee, which was released to the media on 9 January 1999. The draft report was discussed in Parliament during the Budget Debate on 17 March 1999. After more than a year of research, feedback-gathering and deliberation, the Committee submitted its final report to the Government in June 1999.

Annex A

Recommendations of the Committee on University Admission System*

Recommendations

1) The principles of meritocracy, transparency and objectivity should continue to be cornerstones of the new admission system. In particular, the A-Levels should not be displaced. The definition of merit should be broadened.

2) The policy on bilingualism and consideration of General Paper and Mother Tongue language should be sustained.

3) The revised admission system should be based on a different set of components for different applicant categories, with standards being maintained across categories.

4a) For A-Level graduates, admission requirements in 2003 should be as follows:

	GCE ‘A’ Level Examination (75%);
	Reasoning Test (SAT I) (25%);
	ECAs (bonus points of up to 5%).

From 2004, project work should be counted and the admission requirements should be as follows:

	GCE ‘A’ Level Examination (65%);
	Reasoning Test (SAT I) (25%);
	Project work (10%);

ECAs (bonus points of up to 5%).

4b) Faculties may choose to supplement the above requirements with interviews or other aptitude tests.

4c) An applicant’s best reasoning test score in the 5 years prior to university application should be used to compute the admission score.

4d) The concerns of execution and assessment of project work should be resolved before implementation for university admission. A committee or unit should be set up to moderate project grading standards across schools.

4e) Existing schemes for assessment of ECAs should be adapted for use in university admission.

4f) Direct admission should be given to exceptional students and outstanding singular talents, selected based on performance at international Olympiads or National Science Talent Search, or excellent project work at school or under university-based research programmes. In addition, other exceptional achievements in areas such as the arts and sports should be considered.

4g) MOE should study how a broader education can be provided for students offering more than 3 A-Level subjects. For these students, the fourth A-Level subject should be in a different disciplinary orientation. Alternatively, students could offer 3 A-Levels and up to 2 AS-Levels, where at least one of the AS-Level subjects is of a different disciplinary orientation.

4h) Arrangements should be made to facilitate the reporting of student performances in reasoning test, project work and ECAs. In addition, the application package should be appropriately designed to capture all necessary information. In particular, an applicant should list up to 3 referees.

4i) Universities should review their curriculum and assessment systems to ensure that the desired qualities are further groomed during undergraduate studies. Specific subject requirements for courses should also be reviewed.

4j) MOE should review in 3-5 years the feasibility of having our own reasoning test.

4k) A score scaling mechanism should be developed to ensure that results from each component can be meaningfully aggregated to compute the admission score.

5) For polytechnic graduates, the following requirements should be used:

	Polytechnic results (60%);
	GCE ‘O’ Level Examination (15%);
	Reasoning Test (SAT I) (25%);
	ECAs (bonus points of up to 5%).

6) For mature applicants, the following requirements should be used:

	Reasoning Test (SAT I) (50%);
	Previous academic qualifications or entrance tests (25%);
	Interviews, employers’ references, quality of work experience (25%).

7) For applicants with international qualifications, the current practice of a flexible but rigorous system based on equivalence and maintaining high standards should be continued. Submission of reasoning test scores and ECAs should be encouraged.

8) Special subject requirements for admission into some courses should continue to be imposed. However, to encourage broadening, universities should review which requirements can be dropped.

9) As in current practices, male Singaporean applicants liable for National Service before matriculation should not be disadvantaged vis-à-vis their counterparts in the same cohorts.

10a) Application and processing for A-Level and polytechnic graduates should be centralised for the universities.

10b) Evaluations for exceptional and borderline applicants should be separate according to the respective universities.

10c) Application for mature applicants should be centralised but processing should be separate by universities.

10d) Application and processing for applicants with international qualifications should follow prevailing practices.

10e) "Front-line" Admission Offices should be set up in our universities to spearhead the promotion and processing functions. The universities should also consider the necessary structures to coordinate in admission policies and practices across themselves.

11a) The current practice of application by A-Level graduates after release of A-Level results is efficient but can be reviewed.

11b) Application for polytechnic and mature applicants should be open earlier with early January as the deadline.

11c) Current practices in respect to application deadlines for applicants with international qualifications can be retained.

12) Fine-tuning, such as in the weights of requirements, should be conducted 3 to 5 years after implementation.

Annex B

Members of the

Committee on University Admission System

Professor Shih Choon Fong (Chairman)

Deputy Vice-Chancellor, National University of Singapore

Mrs Susan Chan Yoke Kate

Principal, Tampines Junior College

Mr Cheah Kean Huat

Managing Director, Hewlett Packard Singapore Pte Ltd

Professor Victor Choa

Dean of Students, Nanyang Technological University

Professor Chong Chi Tat

Deputy Vice-Chancellor, National University of Singapore

Mdm Leong Fan Chin

Former Principal, Hwa Chong Junior College (Retired with effect from 1 Jan 99)

Mrs Tan Ching Yee

Deputy Secretary (Policy), Ministry of Education

Dr Finian Tan

Deputy Chairman, National Science & Technology Board

Professor Tan Teck Meng

Deputy President, Singapore Management University

Mr Gabriel Teo

Partner, Heidrick & Struggles Singapore Pte Ltd

Mr Wee Heng Tin

Director-General of Education, Ministry of Education

Dr Lawrence Loh (Secretary)

Deputy Director, Higher Education (Universities), Ministry of Education

Figure I : Admission Framework for A-Level Graduates

Figure II : Admission Framework for Polytechnic Graduates

Figure III : Admission Framework for Mature Applicants

Figure IV : Admission Framework for Applicants with International Qualifications