16 July 2019
Education Minister Ong Ye Kung has revealed that polytechnic graduates who have participated in the SkillsFuture Earn and Learn Programme (ELP) have managed to secure salaries about 10 per cent more than those who have a polytechnic diploma.
The ELP is a programme that allows polytechnic graduates to work and study at the same time. Participating employers can recruit local fresh talent, within three years of graduation. and prepare them to take up suitable job roles. It provides them with more opportunities, after graduation, to build on the skills and knowledge they acquired in school.
Mr Ong, who was speaking at a work-learn event at Nanyang Polytechnic, said of the results, which were compiled by the Ministry of Trade and Industry: “There is a meaningful premium if you do the ELP after polytechnic graduation. In fact, the employment outcomes of ELP graduates compare very favourably to those polytechnic graduates who move on to private degree programmes, not forgetting that students of private degrees pay high fees, while ELP students earn a salary and chalk up work experience while studying.”
Mr Ong also said that SkillsFuture Singapore, a statutory board under the Education Ministry, will be commissioning a Graduate Employment Survey for ELP graduates later this year to gather more data.