Written Reply by Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen to Parliamentary Question on Allowing NSFs to Undertake Part-Time Courses

Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim: To ask the Minister for Defence whether the Ministry will not only consider allowing full-time national servicemen (NSF) to undertake part-time courses during their national service but also actively encourage NSFs to pursue such training or education that will be relevant to their future employment or further education.

Minister for Defence, Dr Ng Eng Hen:

During full-time National Service (FTNS), the priority of full-time national servicemen (NSFs) is their military training and duties. However, MINDEF/SAF does encourage and support our NSFs' efforts to prepare for further education or work.

Under our SkillsFuture@NS initiative, every NSF is provided $350 of Electronic Pre-Release Employment Programme (E-PREP) credits that can be used to pay for more than 3,000 courses offered by local education institutes and e-learning vendors. These include part-time classroom or online courses that span a broad range of disciplines relevant to further education and jobs. Some of the courses are credit-bearing towards qualifications awarded by local education institutes.

To encourage and guide NSFs to plan their education and career post-NS, MINDEF also conducts career and education fairs for NSFs who are in their final three to six months of FTNS. Known as the Enhanced Career and Education Fairs, these events feature companies and Institutes of Higher Learning that provide NSFs with information on career and education opportunities. At the fairs, NSFs can also attend workshops to learn more about available pathways after NS and Government resources available for lifelong learning. They are also provided with a Career Starter Pack that equips them with resources for their job search.

Apart from SkillsFuture@NS, MINDEF/SAF has since 2018 launched five Work-Learn Schemes in Cybersecurity, Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and Artificial Intelligence. These schemes enable our servicemen to upskill and maximise their contributions during their service with the SAF. The servicemen can attain a MINDEF-sponsored ITE or Polytechnic diploma, or partial university credits, while undergoing military training and applying their skills in a mixture of Regular and National Service.

MINDEF/SAF remains committed to supporting NSFs in their post-NS transition to higher education or into the workforce, while fulfilling the SAF's operational needs.