After you finish secondary school, Singapore has many places where you can continue learning. These places, called Post-Secondary Education Institutions (PSEIs), are set up to help you get ready for different futures – whether you want to go to university, start working, or focus on the arts.

The main paths are:

Junior Colleges (JCs) / Millennia Institute (MI): These schools offer a rigorius pre-university course. They mostly prepare you for local or overseas universities by getting you ready for the GCE A-Level exams.2
Polytechnics: Polytechnics offer many diploma courses, usually lasting three years. These courses teach you practical skills for jobs, and they also have good ways to help you go on to university.2
Institute of Technical Education (ITE): ITE is for students who learn best by doing. It offers Nitec, Higher Nitec, Technical Diploma, and Work-Study Diploma courses. These give you hands-on skills for different jobs. ITE also has clear ways for you to move on to polytechnics and universities.2
Arts Institutions (LASALLE College of the Arts & Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts - NAFA): If you love creative subjects, these schools offer special diploma and degree courses. They focus a lot on visual arts (like drawing and painting) and performing arts (like music and dance).2

Having these different paths means there's no single "best" way to succeed. Each path is for different types of learners and different career dreams. This variety makes sure you can find a place where your talents can grow and where you can learn in a way that truly fits you. It helps you choose a path that matches what you're good at, instead of feeling stuck with only one choice.

RESOURCES FOR POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION

E-booklet

Click to access e-booklet (produced 2021) for a brief introduction to Singapore Pathway options

MOE Post-Secondary School Site

NEW POST-SECONDARY ADMISSION UPDATES

What will national examinations look like in 2027?

From 2027, the new Singapore-Cambridge Secondary Education Certificate (SEC) examination will replace both N- and O-Level examinations.

Graduating students will sit for the SEC examinations at their respective subject levels (i.e. G1, G2, G3).
No change to the examination format.
The SEC examinations will continue to be jointly examined and awarded by the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB), MOE, and the Cambridge International Education.
5th year of secondary education will continue to be available for eligible students.

To help students better pace their learning throughout the year, the SEC examination timetable will be consolidated as follows:

Sept: English Language and Mother Tongue Languages (MTL) written papers

Oct-Nov: Written papers for other subjects

There will also only be one written examination sitting for all MTL subject levels (i.e. G1, G2, G3 MTL and G3 Higher MTL).
The changes will spread out the examination load for students, while allowing teachers to better pace out the MTL curriculum and spend more time on learning.
All students will receive their SEC examinations results in January the following year.25

OVERVIEW of new Post-Secondary admission system

With Full Subject-Based Banding, how will students’ post-secondary journeys look like? Find out how these changes give students more options and greater access to different pathways!

Click on image to access information on JC Admission

Click on image to access information on Polytechnic Foundation Programme Admission

Click on image to access information on Polytechnic Year 1 Admission

Click on image to access information on ITE Admission