PSC Scholarship (Engineering)

The PSC Scholarship (Engineering) Defence & Security Cluster is offered to pre-tertiary students and undergraduates (as mid-term scholarship) who have a strong desire to pursue an engineering career in the Public Service, contributing to the defence of Singapore through serving in our Defence Technology Community (DTC) agencies. While the overarching objective is to build and strengthen the Public Service’s leadership pipelines in the engineering and technology sectors, candidates will being their journey with your parent agency within the DTC based on their preference and organisational needs. They can either be deployed to (a) Defence Science and Technology Agency if they are keen in a broad range of engineering disciplines as well as technology acquisition and project management; (b) DSO National Laboratories where they will be involved in deep research in cutting edge technology; or (c) Centre of Strategic Infocomm Technologies in which they will be involved in cyber-technology, software engineering and analytics and systems and network infrastructure.

The PSC Scholarship (Engineering) under D&S cluster develops and grooms individuals through dedicated developmental programmes by both PSC and your engineering parent agency, opportunities to work with experts in the field, and an exciting career which will develop into a leader in the engineering and technology domain while safeguarding the sovereignty of our country. You will also receive mentorship, including guidance on your career development. You will build your foundational expertise in your parent agency after which you will have the opportunities to be exposed to the other agencies within your cluster.

In comparison, the SAF Engineering Scholarship would appeal to those with the interest and commitment to join the Singapore Armed Forces as military engineers. You will be groomed as military leaders with a deep specialisation in engineering on the Military Domain Expert Scheme (MDES). You will assume a range of challenging appointments in MINDEF/SAF. In addition, there will be opportunities to be rotated to the Defence Technology Community (DTC) to augment the build-up of engineering expertise in the Defence-technology ecosystem.

Apply via the PSC website (https://www.psc.gov.sg/apply-for-scholarships). In your PSC Gateway application, under “Career and Course Preferences”, please indicate “Engineering (D&S)” as your top career choice. Your course of study should correspondingly be an engineering or related discipline.

Applications for the 2025 scholarship cycle is currently open till 15 March 2025. Candidates who are found suitable by PSC would be have to undergo another assessment by the parent agency of their choice before they are offered the PSC Scholarship (Engineering).

• For undergraduate study in English speaking countries: 6 years

• For undergraduate study in non-English speaking countries: 5 years

• For undergraduate study in Singapore: 4 years

The PSC Scholarship (Engineering) serves to develop and groom individuals for leadership positions in the engineering and technology sectors in the Public Service. While you will enjoy flexibility in choosing your course, university and country of study, your decisions should be relevant to the career. Hence, you will be required to read an engineering or related discipline which complements your career choice, matching your skills acquired in university to your job type.

MINDEF/Defence Technology Community will be happy to discuss with you on your preferred course of study.

Recipients under the PSC Scholarship (Engineering) will be required to read courses of study that complement their career choices. Some examples (non-exhaustive) of supported courses for the D&S cluster are:

• Aerospace / Aeronautical Engineering
• Architecture
• Artificial Intelligence
• Behavioural Science
• Business / Data Analytics
• Civil Engineering
• Cognitive Science
• Computer Science / Engineering
• Computing
• Cyber Security
• Electrical and/or Electronic Engineering
• Engineering
• Engineering in Product Development
• Engineering Science
• Geospatial Technology
• Industrial and Systems Engineering
• Information Engineering / Security
• Information Systems & Communications Technology/Design
• Information Technology
• Marine Engineering
• Mathematics / Statistics
• Mechanical Engineering
• Naval Architecture
• Physics
• Robotics
• Systems Egineering

During studies, you will be jointly managed and engaged by the PSC Secretariat and MINDEF Scholarship Centre including internships and deployment within the D&S cluster. Upon graduation, your career will be managed by the Leadership Development department of Public Service Division in partnership with MINDEF Human Resource Department.

The D&S cluster looks at the design, operation and maintenance of our national security infrastructure. The Defence Technology Community agencies under the D&S cluster include Defence Science & Technology Agency, DSO National Laboratories and Centre for Strategic Infocomm Technologies.

Upon graduation, you will spend your initial years building your technical foundation with your parent agency. Thereafter, you will be deployed to rest of DTC to to deepen your engineering expertise.

Within DTC, you will have a personalised career development plan, which will allow you to plan your career goals that best match your personal aspirations, experiences and competencies. Through attending foundation and milestone courses, you may build competencies in various technology areas which would prepare you to take on higher appointments. There are also opportunities for job rotations across different agencies such as the Defence Science & Technology Agency, DSO National Laboratories and Centre for Strategic Infocomm Technologies.

Yes. Similar to other PSC Scholarship recipients, it is subject to the scholarship recipients meeting the emplacement criteria (including academic requirements) for the PSLP. As the PSC Scholarship (Engineering) offers a specialised engineering career proposition, upon graduation, PSC Scholarship (Engineering) recipients will be placed on the PSLP (General Phase – Engineering). This is a specialised track within PSLP (General Phase).