FACTSHEET ON WDA EARLY CHILDHOOD CARE AND EDUCATION (ECCE) STEP-SCHOLARSHIP

Transcription

1 ANNEX C FACTSHEET ON WDA EARLY CHILDHOOD CARE AND EDUCATION (ECCE) STEP-SCHOLARSHIP OVERVIEW The Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA) has been offering the ECCE Scholarships to UniSIM s Care (BECEM). As part of the Skills Training for Excellence Programme (STEP), WDA will expand the scholarship offerings to support a wider suite of ECCE degree programmes. The intent of this move is to develop a talent pool of high potential local leaders. In addition to the BECEM offered by UniSIM, WDA will now extend the scholarships to UniSIM s new in, the (Focus in offered by SEED Institute in partnership Wheelock College and the Bachelor or in offered by KLC School of in partnership the University of Warwick. SCHOLARSHIP DETAILS In alignment to the STEP-Scholarship construct, the WDA ECCE Scholarship will only be open to Singapore Citizens. The enhanced WDA ECCE Scholarship will be offered to the following degree programmes, namely: a) (BECEM) offered by UniSIM; b) (BECCLE) offered by UniSIM; c) (Focus in offered by SEED Institute (SEED) in partnership Wheelock College; and d) in offered by KLC School of (KLC) in partnership The University of Warwick 1

2 With the Ministry of Community, Youth and Sports (MCYS) and Ministry of (MOE) currently offering employer-sponsored scholarships, WDA will complement MCYS and MOE s efforts in this area by offering self-sponsored scholarships to potential scholars who may not have the privilege of being supported by their employers. The new scholarship model will also offer both mid-term and full-term scholarships. The full-term scholarships will be offered to all four degree programmes and the mid-term scholarships will only be offered only to both UniSIM s BECEM and BECCLE as the programme duration is much longer. First year students are eligible to apply for mid-term scholarships after receiving their results. In order to qualify for the mid-term scholarships, all applicants must complete a minimal of two years before course completion. In line the STEP-Scholarship funding components, the ECCE-STEP Scholarship award will fund the following components: a) 90% course fee funding (after government subsidy); and b) A one-time grant of $2,000 to be used for the purchase of study-related materials. A total of sixteen scholarships would be awarded over a 3-year period; eight scholarships in total for UniSIM s BECEM and BECCLE degree programmes and four scholarships each for SEED and KLC s degree programmes. The proposed Scholarship construct is presented in the table below for better illustration. Table 1 : Scholarship Award Name of Name of Institution / Training Provider UniSIM SEED Institute / Wheelock College in KLC School of / The University of Warwick 2

3 Name of Funding Support 90% of Course Fee in Course Fee (unsubsidised portion) Learning $2,000 resource allowance (one-time) Eligibility Criteria At least 2 years of preschool teaching experience Be a Singapore Citizen aged 21 years old and above at year of application Meet the entry requirements of the course and scholarship Must not have received any other scholarships, bursaries or funding Must be accepted into the relevant programme before undertaking the scholarship Strongly recommended by employer/centre Academic As required by the respective degree programmes Requirements Tenure 4.5 years 22 months 25 / 31 months Conditions Course Grade Maintain 3.5 CGPA every semester Duration of 4.5 years 22 months 25 months course completion (DECCE-L graduates) 31 months (DECCE-T graduates) Bond period Remain employed in the sector during course duration Bond period Remain in ECCE sector for 2 years upon course completion Minimum Yes Service Period Minimum 80% of attendance Attendance 3

4 Name of Other conditions Termination Recipients breach terms in LOU Unsatisfactory progress in course Other Obligations Number of proposed Scholarships in Successfully complete and fulfill all required academic conditions stipulated by training provider Does not fulfill required academic conditions Participate in WDA ECCE initiatives and activities Maximum 5 per degree over 2 years Maximum 5 per degree over 2 years Maximum 5 awards over 2 years SEED and KLC will be the secretariat of their respective programmes, undertaking key responsibilities to administer and ensure the smooth running of the scholarship award. WHO SHOULD APPLY Existing ECCE educators who are interested to advance their progression pathway are encouraged to apply for the WDA ECCE Scholarships. All applications must be accompanied by a strong employer recommendation to ensure that employers are supportive of their staff s decision to further their studies. All applicants should ideally posses the following criteria: At least two years of preschool teaching experience Be a Singapore Citizen aged 21 years old and above at year of application Meet the entry requirements of the course and scholarship Must not have received any other scholarships, bursaries or funding Must be accepted into the relevant programme before undertaking the scholarship TRAINING PROVIDER UniSIM will offer the (BECEM) and (BECCLE). UniSIM was appointed to offer the BECEM degree programme for past WDA Scholars. They are also the first local university to offer ECCE degree courses. 4

5 SEED Institute will offer the (Focus in. SEED has been appointed to be ECCE s CET Centre, delivering a suite of ECCE WSQ courses and offering career services for many interested job seekers. Since 2009, SEED has proven track records in fulfilling their roles and duties as a CET Centre dutifully. KLC School of will offer the in ECCE. KLC is currently ECCE s Programme Partner, offering the Professional Conversion Programme for Childcare Teachers. KLC has also gained accreditation for a series of WSQ ECCE courses, and will be conducting training in due time. HOW TO APPLY Interested applicants can apply for the WDA ECCE Scholarship through WDA s website or the respective training providers website. For more details of Scholarships, please visit or the ECCE team at ecce_wsq@wda.gov.sg. 5