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Secondary school education places students in the Special, Express, Normal (Academic) or Normal (Technical) courses according to how they perform at the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) .The best students in each cohort go to Special and Express courses in Edupoll’s Top 10 secondary schools.
The different programs are designed to match the learning abilities and interests of different students. There are 4-year programs, 5-year programs and 6-year programs. For the 5-year program, students who do well at the “N” level examination at Secondary 4 will proceed to Secondary 5 and sit for the GCE “0” level examination.
Express course students get into a four year program to prepare for the GCE ‘O’ level examination whilst Integrated Program students attend a 6-year through-train program bypassing the ‘O’ level to prepare for the GCE ‘A’ level examination or the International Baccalaureate.
Secondary school education is pivotal because students are streamed accordingly to their academic abilities. The prescribed secondary school pathway will lead them to either the polytechnics or junior colleges for pre-university education.
Of the 161 secondary schools in Singapore, there are some independent schools which offer the 6-year integrated programs (IP) leading to GCE A levels or the International Baccalaureate or a NUS High School diploma.
These IP schools are:
- Anglo-Chinese School ( Independent ) – offer the International Baccalaureate instead of GCE ‘A’ levels
- Dunman High School
- Nanyang Girls’ High School
- Raffles Girls’ Secondary School
- Raffles Institution
- Hwa Chong Institution
- River Valley High School
- NUS High School of Science and Mathematics (Note: NUS High offers its own NUS High School Diploma. NUS High is part of National University of Singapore )
- School of The Arts ( SOTA ) – offers the International Baccalaureate
- School of Science and Technology ( SST ) offers a 4-year programme
The independent secondary schools attract the Top 10 % of each PSLE cohort and are targeted at students who are clearly university-bound. NUS High School, SOTA and SST are targeted at students with specific talents.
Both Raffles Institution and Nanyang Girls' High School have the highest PSLE cut-off points for admission to their schools in their respective gender category.
There are 8 independent secondary schools and 10 SAP schools in Singapore. The independent schools are:
- Anglo-Chinese School ( Independent) ( ACSI )
- Hwa Chong Institution ( HCI )
- Methodist Girls’ School ( MGS )
- Nanyang Girls’ High School
- Raffles Girls’ Secondary School ( RGS )
- Raffles Institution ( RI )
- Singapore Chinese Girls’ School ( SCGS )
- St. Joseph Institution ( SJI )
The Special Assistance Plan (SAP) schools are:
- Anglican High School
- Catholic High School
- CHIJ St. Nicholas Girls’ Secondary School
- Chung Cheng High School ( Main)
- Dunman High School
- Hwa Chong Institution
- Maris Stella High School
- Nan Hua High School
- Nanyang Girls’ High School
- River Valley High School
The above SAP schools put more emphasis on Chinese language and Chinese cultural education and attract more students from China.
The SAP schools normally attract the Top 10% - 20% of each PSLE cohort.
Students who are in the Top 10% of their PSLE cohort will be given an option by the Ministry of Education to study a foreign language (French / German/ Japanese)
Edupoll’s Top 10 secondary / high schools in Singapore ( by prestige ) are :
- Raffles Institution ( PSLE cut-off : 261 )
- Raffles Girls’ Secondary School ( PSLE cut-off : 261 )
- Hwa Chong Institution ( PSLE cut-off : 259 )
- Nanyang Girls’ High School ( PSLE cut-off : 262 )
- Dunman High School ( PSLE cut-off : 258 )
- Singapore Chinese Girls’ School ( PSLE cut-off : 250 )
- Methodist Girls’ School ( PSLE cut-off : 250 )
- Anglo-Chinese School Independent ( PSLE cut-off : 250 )
- NUS High School of Mathematics and Science ( via DSA )
- CHI St Nicholas Girls’ School ( PSLE cut-off : 250 )
( above list is in random order and the PSLE cut-off points are indicative only )
Edupoll’s Top 5 Boy Schools in Singapore ( by prestige ) are :
- Raffles Institution
- Hwa Chong Institution
- Anglo-Chinese School Independent
- Victoria School
- St Joseph Institution
Edupoll’s Top 5 Girl Schools in Singapore ( by prestige ) are:
- Raffles Girls’ Secondary School
- Nanyang Girls’ High School
- Singapore Chinese Girls’ School
- Methodist Girls’ School
- CHIJ St Nicholas Girls’ School
In addition to the above top schools, there are 4 specialised schools which cater to students who have special interests and talents.
These schools are:
- NUS High School of Mathematics and Science
Website: www.highsch.nus.edu.sg
- Singapore Sports School
Website: www.sportsschool.edu.sg
- The School of The Arts
Website: www.sota.sg
- School of Science and Technology ( starting in year 2010 in partnership with Ngee Ann Polytechnic and Nanyang Technological University )
Website : www.sst.edu.sg
The above specialised schools set their own entry requirements and offers a different learning experience from the normal secondary schools.
NUS High School offers a 6-year program leading to its own diploma while the Singapore Sports School adopts a 4-5 year curriculum leading to the GCE ‘O’ level.
The School of Science and Technology focuses more on applied learning and has a 4-year curriculum.
The School of the Arts adopts a 6-year integrated arts and academic curriculum and offers the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma as the graduating qualification. Students audition for a specialisation in music, dance, theatre or the visual arts. However, students in the first two years are exposed to the basics of all four disciplines and continue to adopt a cross-disciplinary approach even as they develop in their chosen discipline.
Selected Notable Alumni of Singapore’s Top Schools
Raffles Institution
- Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew
- Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong
- Senior Minister S. Jayakumar
- Speaker of Parliament Abdullah Tarmugi
- Cabinet Minister Lim Hng Kiang
- Cabinet Minister Raymond Lim
- Cabinet Minister K Shanmugam
- Former Cabinet Minister Lee Yock Suan
- Former Cabinet Minister E W Barker
- Former Cabinet Minister Dr Ahmad Mattar
- Former Deputy Prime Minister S Rajaratnam
- Former Cabinet Minister Howe Yoon Chong
- Former Singapore President Dr Wee Kim Wee
- Former Singapore President Yusof Ishak
- Former Singapore President Dr Benjamin Sheares
- Singapore’s first elected Chief Minister David Marshall
- Minister of State Koo Tsai Kee
- Senior Minister of State Dr Balaji Sadasivan
- Minister of State Heng Chee How
- Ko Kheng Hwa, former Managing Director, Economic Development Board
- Heng Swee Keat, Managing Director, Monetary Authority of Singapore
- LG Lim Chuan Poh, former Chief of Defence Force, former Permanent Secretary , current Chairman of A* Star
- LG Bey Soo Khiang, former Chief of Defence Force, current SEVP, SIA
- Tee Tua Ba, former Chief Commissioner of Police Force
- Teo Ming Kian, Permanent Secretary
- Peter Ong, Permanent Secretary
- Tan Yong Soon, Permanent Secretary
- Ravi Menon, Permanent Secretary
- Dr Tan Chin Nam, former Permanent Secretary
- Peter Chan, Permanent Secretary
- Koh Cher Siang, Permanent Secretary
- Dr Tan Kim Siew, Permanent Secretary
- Professor Lim Pin, former Vice-Chancellor of National University of Singapore
- Dr Su Guaning , President of Nanyang Technological University
- Seah Kian Peng, Member of Parliament
- Zagy Mohamad , Member of Parliament
- Dr Toh See Kiat , former Member of Parliament
- Othman Haron Eusoffe, former Member of Parliament
- Dr Tan Cheng Bock, former Member of Parliament
- Dr Wan Soon Bee, former Member of Parliament
- Loh Meng See , former Member of Parliament
- Wee Siew Kim, Member of Parliament
- Ahmad Khalis, Member of Parliament
- R. Sinnakaruppan, Member of Parliament
- Tony Pua, Member of Parliament in Malaysia
- Professor Tommy Koh, Ambassador-at-Large
- Former top stockbroker Peter Lim
- Robert Kuok , founder and chairman of Shangri-La Hotel & Resorts
Anglo Chinese School
- Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Cabinet Minister
- Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Cabinet Minister
- Dr Ng Eng Hen, Cabinet Minister
- RADM Lui Tuck Yew, Cabinet Minister
- Dr Goh Keng Swee , former Deputy Prime Minister
- Dr Richard Hu, former Finance Minister
- Lim Kim San , former Cabinet Minister
- Yeo Cheow Tong, former Cabinet Minister
- David Lim, former Minister of State
- LG Desmond Kuek, Chief of Defence Force
- Khoo Boon Hui, Chief Commissioner of Police Force
- Winston Choo, Former Chief of Defence Force, current Chairman of Red Cross
- Sim Kee Boon, former top civil servant
- Ho Peng Kee, Senior Minister of State
- Ong Kian Min, Member of Parliament
- Lam Pin Min, Member of Parliament
- Sin Boon Ann, Member of Parliament
- Arthur Fong, Member of Parliament
- Warren Lee, former Member of Parliament
- Ong Beng Seng, founder of Hotel Properties and Singapore F1 Grand Prix
- Chiam See Tong, veteran Member of Parliament
- Alvin Yeo, Member of Parliament
- Tan Sri Dato Teh Hong Piow , Founder and Chairman of Public Bank Malaysia
- Tan Sri Dr Tan Chin Tuan, former Chairman of OCBC Bank
St Joseph Institution
- RADM Teo Chee Hean, Cabinet Minister
- Mah Bow Tan, Cabinet Minister
- BG George Yeo, Cabinet Minister ( also attended St Patrick School )
- Dr Tony Tan, former Deputy Prime Minister and current Chairman of National Research Foundation
- Philip Yeo, Chairman of SPRING Singapore
- Leo Yip, Permanent Secretary
- Tan Tee How, Permanent Secretary
- Christopher de Souza, Member of Parliament
- Charles Chong, Member of Parliament
- Chay Wai Yuen, former Member of Parliament
- Charles Chong, Member of Parliament
- Davinder Singh, Member of Parliament
- Matthias Yao, former Minister of State
- Bernard Chen, former Minister of State
- Khoo Teck Puat, formerly Singapore’s top billionaire
- Lim Chee Onn, Keppel Corporation
Hwa Chong Institution
- Former President Ong Teng Cheong
- Dr Lim Wee Kiak, Member of Parliament
- Kenny Yap, CEO of Qian Hu Corporation
- James Tan, former Commissioner of Singapore Civil Defence Force
- Tan Swie Hian, famous artist
- Luo Hau Cai, Chief Justice, Supreme People Court, China
Raffles Girls School
- Justice Judith Prakash , judge
- Dr Amy Khor , Mayor
- Denise Phua, Member of Parliament
- Lim Soo Hoon, Singapore’s first woman Permanent Secretary
- Jennifer Yeo, lawyer and wife of Cabinet minister George Yeo
- Claire Chang, wife of Ho Kwon Ping- founder of Banyan Tree Holdings
- Chua Sock Koong, Group CEO of SingTel
- Kit Chan , singer
- Stefanie Sun , singer
- Corinne May, singer
Singapore Chinese Girls School
- Ms Jennie Chua , President of The Ascott Group
- Dr Susan Lim, renowned surgeon
- Euleen Goh, former Chairman of IE Singapore
- Professor Thio Li-ann, Nominated Member of Parliament
Methodist Girls’ School
- Mrs Lee Kuan Yew ( Mdm Kwa Geok Choo )
Nanyang Girls’ High School
- Grace Fu, Senior Minister of State
- Yu-Foo Yee Shoon, Minister of State
Victoria School
- President S R Nathan
- Former President Devan Nair
- S Dhanabalan , former Cabinet Minister and current Chairman of Temasek Holdings
- Teo Ser Luck, Senior Parliamentary Secretary
- Lim Biow Chuan, Member of Parliament
- Ho Meng Kit, former Permanent Secretary ( Pre-University in Raffles Institution)
- Chang Chie Foo, Permanent Secretary
- Lam Chuan Leong, former Permanent Secretary
- Ong Chit Chung , former Member of Parliament
- MG Ng Chee Kern, Chief of Air Force
- MG Neo Kian Hong, Chief of Army
- LG Ng Yat Chung, former Chief of Defence Force
Our Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong studied at Nanyang Primary School, Catholic High School and National Junior College before going to Cambridge University and Harvard University.
Where Presidents and Cabinet Ministers studied
Which secondary schools in Singapore produced the most number of Presidents and current Cabinet Ministers for Singapore? If you want your son ( daughter ) to grow up with the right clique of people that goes places in high society, maybe you should send him to the right secondary school and let him make the right connections now. Old boys ( or girls ) networks matter in any society.
To guide your choice, here's an overview of our cabinet ministers and all our presidents:
- MM Lee Kuan Yew - Raffles Institution
- SM Goh Chok Tong - Raffles Institution
- SM S. Jayakumar - Raffles Institution
- PM Lee Hsien Loong - Catholic High
- DPM Teo Chee Hean - St Joseph's Institution
- DPM Wong Kan Seng - Outram Secondary School
- K Shanmugam - Raffles Institution
- Lim Hng Kiang - Raffles Institution
- Raymond Lim - Raffles Institution
- Dr Vivian Balakrishnan - Anglo-Chinese School
- Dr Ng Eng Hen - Anglo-Chinese School
- Tharman Shanmugaratnam - Anglo-Chinese School
- George Yeo - St Patrick's School / St Joseph's Institution
- Mah Bow Tan - St Joseph's Institution
- Lui Tuck Yew - Anglo-Chinese School
- Lim Swee Say - Catholic High School
- Gan Kim Yong - Catholic High School
- Dr Yaacob Ibrahim - Tanjong Katong Secondary School
- Lim Boon Heng - Monfort Secondary School
- Khaw Boon Wan - Chung Ling High School Penang
- Mrs Lim Hwee Hua - Cresent Girls' School
- Former President Yusof Ishak - Raffles Institution
- Former President Benjamin Sheares - Raffles Institution
- Former President Devan Nair - Victoria School
- Former President Wee Kim Wee - Raffles Institution
- Former President Ong Teng Cheong - Hwa Chong Institution
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