Tuition Scene in Singapore

The tuition scene in Singapore has changed greatly since the 90s

In Singapore, having tuition is part and parcel of almost every student’s life. According to a Sunday Times poll in 2008, 97% of students in Singapore had some form of tuition, be it home tuition, tuition centres or student care centres. According to the Department of Statistics, the tuition industry is worth $820m in 2008, up from $470m in 1998.

We shall look at the contributing factors on what drives the tuition industry to such heights, the recipients of tuition and the popularity of tuition centres and home tuition, at greater detail in this article.

Who are the main recipients of tuition?

The majority of students are Primary school, followed by Secondary students and Junior College students. PSLE tuition are the highest in demand due to the foundation-building needed to sit for the PSLE (Primary School Leaving Examinations), then its secondary tuition and JC tuition are followed up close.

We have also received requests for tuition in Kindergarten levels, foreign students needing AEIS tuition, IB tuition, IGCSE tuition, Music, Computing, adult conversational languages and tertiary level.

Why is tuition so popular in Singapore?

Parents in Singapore have hectic work schedules and often both parents have to go out to work, leaving little time and energy to coach their children.

There are also subjects which parents find it difficult to teach as they themselves didn’t study the subjects or is not familiar with the current syllabus.

For foreign students, it is made even more difficult due to language differences, thus parents have to source for additional tuition after class to boost their child’s language proficiency.

Source of Tuition: Tuition Centres & Home Tuition

The number of tuition centres has grown tremendously since the 1990s. Fees may range from $80 to more than $350 a month, some going by per subject basis or per class basis. Tuition is held in small groups at fixed timings, some as small as 3 students to big classes of 12 - 15 students.

For home tuition, at any time there are thousands of tutors (10,000 – 30,000) in Singapore who offer home tuition. The charges normally range between $20 per hour to $120 per hour, depending on the qualifications and experience of the tutor.

It is apparent that year on year, the number of tuition requests that Singapore tuition agency receive in-sync with the growth in the tuition industry.

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