22 November 2018
The Ministry of Education is introducing more changes to the university admission scoring system, which will come into effect in 2020. Polytechnic graduates will be assessed primarily based on their polytechnic Grade Point Average.
The profile of polytechnic upgraders has become more diverse with the expansion of multiple pathways in our education system. Today, close to a quarter of all students enter the polytechnics without O-Level qualifications. More polytechnic students have entered Singapore’s autonomous universities over the years as well. Autonomous universities now employ aptitude-based admissions practices to assess polytechnic students more holistically. These include assessing the relevance of the applicants’ polytechnic diplomas, the specific courses/modules that they have taken in polytechnic, and their suitability for the university courses they have applied for.
Under the new university admission system, polytechnic upgraders would be assessed based only on their latest qualification. This would better recognise late-bloomers, and those who discovered their interest only when they were older. Polytechnic students can continue to submit their O-Level results as additional information to support their applications if they wish to.
In addition, the AUs can continue to impose subject-specific pre-requisites, or refer to subject- or module-specific O-Level and polytechnic grades, to ascertain applicants’ suitability for the course they are applying for.