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Singapore

Singapore · Asia-Pacific

Asia's finance hub and a deliberately built biotech and research cluster, and it all runs in English.

Who this suits, and who it doesn’t

Suits you if you want a globally recognised English-taught degree in Asia and are comfortable committing to a bond in exchange for funding. Look elsewhere if you want a large country to explore or a low cost of living.

The catch, and the way in

The catch

Expensive, and scholarships often carry a bond: several years working locally after you graduate.

The way in

NUS and NTU offer scholarships to international students; read the bond terms before signing anything.

Living there

What living here is actually like

Small, hot and humid year-round, extremely safe, and organised to a degree that makes daily logistics effortless. Everything is close, public transport is excellent, and the rest of Southeast Asia is a short flight away. The trade is that it can feel constrained. It is a city-state, and people describe running out of new places after a couple of years.

How the money works

Expensive, with housing the dominant cost, and private car ownership effectively priced out of reach by design. Salaries are high and taxes are low, so saving is realistic. The scholarship terms are the thing to read carefully: several carry a bond obliging you to work locally for a number of years afterwards, which is a genuine commitment rather than a formality.Described in shape rather than figures on purpose: rents and salaries move every year and we cannot keep numbers true, but what is expensive and what quietly eats income stays true for far longer.

The language you actually need

English is an official working language and everything runs in it: university, employment, government. This makes it the lowest-friction move on the map for someone with strong English, with no language year required.

The work that clusters here

The kinds of work Singapore is a route into, each with what it actually involves, and what the catch is.

Who is named here

Not a ranking and not in order of merit. These are the places a subject is actually studied and taught at in this city, so you have something to search for.

  • National University of Singapore

    • Engineering
    • Computer Science
    • Business & Economics
    • Law
    • Medicine & Health

    Degrees taught in English

  • Nanyang Technological University

    • Engineering
    • Computer Science
    • Business & Economics
    • Natural Sciences

    Degrees taught in English

  • Singapore Management University

    • Business & Economics
    • Law
    • Computer Science

    Degrees taught in English

Language of teaching moves within a cycle, so check it on the university’s own page for your own entry year.