FOREIGN STUDENTS IN LOCAL UNIVERSITIES

FOREIGN STUDENTS IN LOCAL UNIVERSITIES:

(Admission criteria): 3.

Mrs Josephine Teo asked the Minister for Education (a) what criteria are used to assess the suitability of foreign students seeking admission to local universities; and (b) how the profile of foreign students in Singapore has changed.

The Minister for Education (Dr Ng Eng Hen): Mr Speaker, admission to our universities, for both local and international students, is based on academic merit. International students (IS) must meet the entry criteria set by our universities and this will include academic results and for certain courses, interviews and entrance tests are also conducted to ascertain students' aptitude, knowledge domain and suitability. All international students must also achieve a minimum level of English proficiency. There is also a 20% cap on the number of international students in our universities that they can admit. So, in practice, because of this cap – there are more than 20% of international students who apply – international students are subject to more stringent entry criteria compared to Singaporeans.

Mrs Teo asked about the profile of our international students. The international students' profile at our universities has not changed significantly over the past few years. Currently, as I have said, 20% of the students are enrolled in our three autonomous universities. They comprised

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mainly students from ASEAN, China and India, and the majority of them are enrolled in engineering and science courses.

Mrs Josephine Teo (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Sir, three supplementary questions. Could I ask the Minister to share with us the incidence of foreign students dropping out of our local universities and how they compare to dropout rates for Singapore students?

The second question is, in light of the two recent incidents involving the apparent suicides of an undergraduate and a recent graduate, both of whom were foreigners, whether the criteria for admitting foreign students ought to include their adaptability in a foreign environment. And is the Ministry satisfied with the current levels of support and care made available to foreign students?

Dr Ng Eng Hen: Sir, for the specific information on the dropout rates, I do not have that because that was not the question filed. But if the Member wishes, we can follow up with an answer to her written or subsequent Oral Question.

Whether we should change our admission criteria for suitability and assess the suitability of undergraduates and, because of the recent events, to see whether they can adapt to our local situation, obviously, Sir, we are saddened when these incidents occur. In general, and I do not have the specific data, I do not get a sense that compared to local students, there is a higher incidence of dropouts, suicides or misadventures. That is not my general sense, but I do not have the data with me. I would say that our current criteria, in terms of setting the environment, in terms of making sure that there are activities for them and that there is recourse or access for counselling or help, whether it is for local or foreign students, are available. But if you asked whether we can improve it, I think,

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obviously we can, and I think these incidents serve as an impetus for our management to relook their systems to see how they can improve the contact points for student affairs, for student well-being, and to see how we can improve the access to help when someone feels for it. Sometimes it is a question of resources and positioning. For example, if you have a 24-hour hotline, where do you man it? Do you man it at a level that you expect certain calls? And because the cries for help are not constant, sometimes you get episodic surges for whatever reasons. So, there are practical issues but I know that the management in the universities, because of these incidents, have relooked their systems to see how they can beef them up.