[Singapore, 14 January 2014 (Tuesday)] – Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) personnel who are retiring from military service and preparing to embark on their second career will now be able to apply for one of 20 scholarships which the Singapore Management University (SMU) will award each year.  The newly-established SMU Warriors Scholarship is the first-of-its-kind and has been established to recognise the contributions made by Singapore’s military personnel to the country, and also as an effort in talent development for the nation.

Under the agreement between SMU and SAF, the University will sponsor up to 20 postgraduate scholarships annually, for a period of three years.  The scholarships, which are multi-disciplinary and cover up to 18 postgraduate programmes at the University, are bond-free.  It is estimated that the total scholarship value will be approximately S$1 million per annum.  (The actual value depends on the fees of the programmes that scholarship recipients apply for and are accepted into).

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signing ceremony was held today between SMU and SAF to officiate the sponsorship agreement.  The signatories were SMU President, Professor Arnoud De Meyer and SAF Chief of Defence Force, Lieutenant-General (LG) Ng Chee Meng.

The five inaugural SMU Warriors Scholarship recipients were also present today to receive their awards.  Four of them embarked on the SMU Master of Tri-sector Collaboration (MTSC) from 13 January 2014, and one started on the SMU MBA programme on 10 January 2014.  Another 15 scholarships will be offered for the rest of this year.

SMU President, Professor Arnoud De Meyer said, “The SAF servicemen and women have played an important role in shaping Singapore, not only in terms of ensuring peace and stability (which is often taken for granted) but also in providing an environment that is conducive and stable for businesses, families and society to thrive in.  SMU had initiated this unique Scholarship to recognise men and women who have given the best years of their youth to serving the nation.  We hope to play a part in facilitating their next big move into the public or private sectors.  Through this Scholarship, we want to help them succeed in building on their illustrious military careers with new knowledge and skills that will prepare them for the dynamic global environment.”

“Learning at SMU takes place not only through knowledge imparted by professors and books but more importantly through intellectual discourse and sharing among students.    We are excited to have these distinguished men and women on board to share their insights and experiences, and contribute to the diversity of ideas and perspectives in their various fields and programmes of choice,” he added. 

In his address prior to the signing ceremony, LG Ng said, “The SAF is very appreciative of this generous scholarship from SMU for our servicemen and women. Over the last decade, SMU has challenged many norms and taken a leadership role in shaping tertiary education in Singapore. Today, they are again breaking new ground in demonstrating their recognition for the contributions of SAF servicemen and women to our nation.  SAF personnel will have much to offer to SMU’s programmes as they have a wealth of practical experience and leadership skills honed in training, operations, planning and policy roles.  I am confident that upon graduation, those who take up the SMU Warriors Scholarship will do both the SAF and SMU proud, and make significant contributions to their future organisations.”                                      

The SMU Warriors Scholarship is open to SAF servicemen and women who are Singapore citizens with at least 10 years of full time military service.  The personnel could be due for retirement in no more than two years (before the start of the SMU postgraduate programme) or have retired from the SAF not more than one year prior to the start of the relevant programme.

Besides having access to SMU facilities which are available to full fee-paying SMU students, the SMU Warriors Scholarship recipients will also have access to SMU’s postgraduate career services and also participate in student life activities alongside SMU’s undergraduates and postgraduate students.

Enclosures:

• Annex 1: List of five inaugural SMU Warriors Scholarship recipients
• Annex 2: List of the 18 SMU postgraduate programmes covered under the SMU Warriors Scholarship

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Media Contact

HUANG Peiling
Senior Assistant Director, Corporate Communications
Tel: 68280964 / 98453361
Email: plhuang [at] smu.edu.sg