President's Scholar
A President's Scholar is a recipient of the academic scholarship annually awarded by the Singaporean government to pursue undergraduate education at a university. The scholarship is considered to be the most prestigious public undergraduate scholarship in Singapore awarded to students of Singaporean nationality.
All recipients have legal obligation to serve a bond (in the form of a public service career) for a stipulated period of time, usually about 4 to 6 years, after completing his or her studies in university.
Shortlisted candidates are interviewed by a selection committee chaired by the Chairman of the Public Service Commission (PSC) of Singapore.
A President's Scholarship by itself does not award any money or lead to any particular career in public service. As such, it is generally paired with another PSC Scholarship, which could be either of the following:
- Singapore Armed Forces Overseas Scholarship (SAFOS)
- Singapore Police Force Overseas Scholarship (SPFOS)
- Overseas Merit Scholarship (OMS)
History
The President's Scholarship has its roots in the Queen's Scholarship, which was founded in 1885. The Queen's Scholarship was initiated by Cecil Clementi Smith, Governor of the Straits Settlements. It was awarded to the best performing student of the year by a special selection board.
The Queen's Scholarship was abolished in 1959 and replaced by the Singapore State Scholarship when Singapore gained self-governance.
In August 1964, the Yang di-Pertuan Negara Scholarship was inaugurated to replace the State Scholarship.
In 1966, after Singapore achieved independence, the Yang di-Pertuan Negara Scholarship was renamed the President's Scholarship.
Recipients
Many recipients of the President's Scholarship went on to serve in top positions in the civil service.
According to statistics collected by the newspaper The Straits Times, the schools in Singapore having the highest number of President's Scholars among their alumni are as follows:
| School | Number of President's Scholars |
|---|---|
| Raffles Institution | 96 |
| Hwa Chong Institution | 56 |
| National Junior College | 45 |
| Name | Year received | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| Politics | ||
| Lim Boon Keng | 1887 | Member, British Legislative Council |
| Edmund W. Barker | 1946 | Former Cabinet Minister (1964 - 1988) |
| Tony Tan | Former Cabinet Minister; President of Singapore (2011 - 2017) | |
| Lee Yock Suan | 1966 | Former Cabinet Minister (1987 - 2004) |
| Mah Bow Tan | 1967 | Former Cabinet Minister (1991 - 2011) |
| Yeo Ning Hong | Former Cabinet Minister (80s/90s) | |
| Lee Hsien Loong | 1970 | Prime Minister of Singapore |
| Teo Chee Hean | 1973 | Deputy Prime Minister |
| George Yeo | 1973 | Former Cabinet Minister (1991 to 2011) |
| Chan Soo Sen | 1975 | Former Member of Parliament (1997 - 2011) |
| Lim Hng Kiang | 1976 | Minister for Trade and Industry |
| Vivian Balakrishnan | 1980 | Minister for Foreign Affairs |
| Chan Chun Sing | 1988 | Minister, Prime Minister's Office |
| Sim Ann | 1994 | Minister of State for Education and Communications and Information. |
| David Lim | Former Ag Minister, Communications and Information | |
| Dr Lee Tsao Yuan | Former Nominated Member of Parliament | |
| Public Sector | ||
| Ahmad Mohamed Ibrahim | 1936 | First Attorney-General of Singapore |
| Lim Siong Guan | 1965 | Group President of the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation |
| Koh Cher Siang | 1965 | Chairman, Housing and Development Board |
| Barry Desker | 1966 | Dean, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies |
| Su Guaning | 1967 | Former President, Nanyang Technological University (2003 - 2011) |
| Kishore Mahbubani | 1967 | Dean, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy |
| Lee Wei Ling | 1973 | Senior Advisor, National Neuroscience Institute |
| Ivan Png Paak Liang | 1975 | Vice-Provost, National University of Singapore (2001 - 2003) |
| Ng Chee Khern | 1984 | Former Chief of the Republic of Singapore Air Force; Permanent Secretary, Defence Development |
| Ng Chee Peng | 1989 | Former Chief of the Republic of Singapore Navy; CEO, Central Provident Fund Board |
| Francis Chong Fu Shin | 1989 | |
| Lim Tuang Liang | 1991 | Chief of Staff, Joint Staff, Singapore Armed Forces |
| Lai Chung Han | 1992 | Chief of the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) |
| Chong Tow Chong | Provost, Singapore University of Technology and Design | |
| Brandon Lee | CEO, Council for Private Education | |
| Tan Kai Hoe | Former Chief of Staff, Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) | |
| Wong Tien Yin | Vice Dean, Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School | |
| Private Sector | ||
| Kwa Geok Choo | Lawyer; wife of Lee Kuan Yew. | |
| Mohamed Ismail bin Ibrahim | 1968 | First Malay President's Scholar. Brother of Yaacob Ibrahim |
| Ho Ching | 1972 | CEO, Temasek Holdings |
| Lee Hsien Yang | 1976 | Former CEO of Singapore Telecommunications. |
| Ang Peng Tiam | 1977 | Medical Director and Senior Consultant, Parkway Cancer Centre |
| Shaun Seow | CEO, MediaCorp | |
| Alan Chan | CEO, Singapore Press Holdings | |
| Low Sin Leng | Executive Chairman, Sembcorp Development | |
| Gan Juay Kiat | CEO, SBS Transit | |