54% of S’pore residents secured a place in a publicly funded university degree course in 2025

SINGAPORE - About 54% of Singapore residents secured a place in a publicly funded university degree programme in 2025.

Of these, about 44% were fresh school leavers who entered full-time degree programmes, while another 10% were adult learners, who mostly enrolled in part-time undergraduate programmes.

Education Minister Desmond Lee gave these figures for the academic year 2025 in a written parliamentary reply on Nov 3, in response to Denise Phua (Jalan Besar GRC) who asked how the latest participation rate compared with the earlier announced 60% allowance.

She also asked how the Ministry of Education (MOE) was ensuring continued university access for both fresh school leavers and adult learners.

The lifetime cohort participation rate of 54% measures the share of a cohort who get a place in a publicly funded degree programme over their lifetime, including those who pursue a degree later in life.

Lee said the participation rate for fresh school leavers is expected to be revised upwards as more of the cohort progress to university in the coming years, including men currently serving national service.

MOE had announced in 2023 that this figure would go up from 50% to 60% by 2025. This meant up to 2,300 more publicly funded university places in 2025.

The capacity of 60% comprises 45% for fresh school leavers and 15% for adult learners.

“The 60% lifetime cohort participation rate is the planned capacity of publicly-funded degree places. It is not an intake target,” Lee said in his Nov 3 reply.

Adopting a “lifetime” rate marks a shift from the prevailing practice of “front-loading” education and using the traditional cohort participation rate that refers to the proportion of students in a yearly cohort that progresses to university.

Announcing the increased capacity in 2023, then Education Minister Chan Chun Sing had said the rise in places would be weighted towards enabling adult learners from the workforce to access a university upgrading pathway. Chan said more subsidised places would support upgrading later in life, reducing the need to ‘front-load’ education.

MOE later told The Straits Times it would provide an update on the participation rate by late 2026, as some of the academic year 2025 intake would take place only in early 2026.

Lee said the separate provision for adult learners allows Singaporeans to enter the workforce first and pursue a degree later to support their career plans and aspirations. It also recognises that earlier cohorts had fewer opportunities to attend university when they were younger.

Adult learners can face challenges when returning to education, he added. A survey of students who withdrew from their courses found that work commitments were the top reason.

MOE has been working with the autonomous universities to make their programmes more accessible to working adults, said Lee. These include part-time work-study degree programmes and micro-credentials that can be stacked up to a degree.

Employers also have a role in helping employees make time for training and supporting continual skills upgrading, Lee said.

“Ultimately, a degree is one of many ways to continue learning.”

Shermaine Ang is a journalist at The Straits Times, covering social issues in Singapore.