PhD Qualifications of Tenure-track Faculty in AUs

Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament

Mr Leong Mun Wai, Non-Constituency Member of Parliament

Question

To ask the Minister for Education (a) what is the proportion of tenure-track faculty hired in the last five years at local universities who received their PhDs at any local university; and (b) whether this proportion is expected to rise given the excellent performance of local universities on global rankings.

Response

1. Over the last five years, the proportion of tenure-track (or equivalent) faculty hired by the Autonomous Universities (AUs) who received their PhDs at a local AU has remained stable at 10%. Besides pursuing an academic career in Singapore, PhD graduates from local AUs also take up job opportunities overseas or join the industry.

2. Like other globally competitive universities, our AUs recruit the best academic talents trained either locally or overseas, to deliver world class education and conduct high quality research for the benefit of Singapore and Singaporeans.

3. The Ministry of Education will continue to work with the AUs to encourage more young Singaporeans to pursue an academic career, such as through talent schemes which provide sponsorships for studies at local or reputable overseas universities. The overseas exposure will be useful to broaden our students' experience and expand their network of research contacts.