Six-fold jump in take-up of SkillsFuture’s career transition programmes compared to previous year

From May 1, 2024 to April 30, 2025, the number of individuals who enrolled in SkillsFuture Career Transition Programme courses rose from 1,500 to 8,500.Follow our live coverage here.SINGAPORE - Around 8,500 people enrolled in SkillsFuture programmes to equip themselves for a move into new sectors or job roles — about six times more than in the preceding year. This came as mid-career workers tapped their $4,000 SkillsFuture Credit top-up, which was announced at Budget 2024 for citizens aged 40 and above.From May 1, 2024 to April 30, 2025, over 36,000 Singaporeans used these credits, with claims amounting to over $24 million, said Senior Minister of State for Education Janil Puthucheary on Sept 25.In the same period, the number of individuals who enrolled in SkillsFuture Career Transition Programme (SCTP) courses rose from 1,500 to 8,500, said Dr Janil, who was responding to questions from MPs about the usage rate of SkillsFuture programmes and career outcomes.Of the nearly 4,300 previously-unemployed trainees who participated in the SCTP between June 2022 (when the programme was started) and December 2024, about 55 per cent found new jobs within six months of completing their courses, he added.Dr Janil also updated the House on the take-up rate of the SkillsFuture Mid-Career Training Allowance, another scheme introduced at Budget 2024 which provides eligible workers with up to $3,000 per month while they undergo full-time training.As at end-July 2025, over 3,200 Singaporeans had successfully applied for the training allowance and more than $30 million has been disbursed. The programme had began three months earlier, on May 1.Mr Henry Kwek (Kebun Baru) asked what happened to the 45 per cent of SCTP participants who did not secure jobs within six months, noting that these were highly motivated and employable workers.Dr Janil said it took time for trainees to realise the gains from the programme.“Although you have the qualifications, you now have to apply it to the job, develop your career prospects within this new role and new task, and it can take some time for this to be realised in a metric that we can measure and present to the House,” he said.In the near term, some lessons learnt are the need to better match course curriculum with employers’ needs, and to have large employers participate in the training or inform training providers about the particular skills they value, added Dr Janil.Replying to another question by Dr Hamid Razak (West Coast-Jurong West GRC), Dr Janil said the Government uses a variety of metrics besides wage changes and job placement rates to assess the effectiveness of SkillsFuture programmes.These include programme-specific surveys and econometric studies, which refer to the use of statistical tools to quantify economic data.SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) also administers the SSG administers the Training Quality and Outcomes Measurement (Traqom) survey for learners to rate the quality and perceived outcomes of SSG-funded programmes, he added.Dr Hamid had asked if the Government could provide sectoral breakdowns on employment outcomes of adult learning programmes, so that the effectiveness of these programmes can be assessed more clearly.Dr Janil said that where the econometric studies are conclusive they have been published, such as a 2024 report by the Ministry of Trade and Industry that found that ITE and polytechnic graduates who upgraded their skills through SkillsFuture’s Work-Study Program saw a wage premium of six to 11 per cent, compared to their peers who went straight into employment.However, detailed breakdowns by sector are not always possible due to sample size limitations, while some of the training programmes equip learners with skills such as data analytics and use of artificial intelligence that can be applied to roles in multiple job sectors, he added.“Further, wage and employment outcomes do not tell us the full picture,” he said.“For example, reskilling could have helped workers who are at risk of displacement keep their jobs or take on new job roles in a growth sector, albeit with an initial pay cut. Some workers might also learn new skills, in anticipation of new or upcoming requirements.”Mr Kenneth Tiong (Aljunied GRC) asked whether more support could be extended to workers in their thirties, given survey statistics that show lower training participation in this age group. He also asked whether SkillsFuture could be used for postgraduate qualifications.Dr Janil said the lower training participation among workers aged 30 to 39 should not be viewed negatively, as they may not need to use their SkillsFuture credits immediately if they are developing their skills within their careers.He added that the scheme is designed to allow individuals to reskill when the need arises over the course of their career, rather than encouraging a “paper chase” for postgraduate qualifications that may not yield meaningful employment outcomes for the individual.“We have not extended training allowance to postgraduate programmes as most jobs in Singapore do not require such qualifications,” he said. SkillsFuture credits can already be used for master’s programmes at the autonomous universities, he added.Mr Patrick Tay (Pioneer) noted that Singapore’s training participation fell to a nine-year low of 40.7 per cent in 2024, down from about 49.9 per cent in 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic.The NTUC assistant secretary-general asked what more could be done to encourage upskilling.Dr Janil said that 43 to 45 per cent of SkillsFuture training places are employer-supported, meaning workers do not have to draw on their personal credits.But while the number of employers involved has increased over the past decade, he noted that the proportion of employer-supported training places has remained relatively static, and there is room for employers to do more.To get more employers onboard will require reducing the frictions for them to send their workers for training, and to convince them of the return on their investment in their workers, said Dr Janil, who is also Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment .He urged Singaporeans to use their $500 SkillsFuture credit that expires on Dec 31, not just for training but to understand and create a habit of lifelong learning.He noted that use of the credits has been equally spread between workers in their forties, fifties and sixties, which highlights the assurance being there for new skills to be developed at any point in one’s career.“In general over most of the SkillsFuture credits there is no rush, (but) for the $500 of SkillsFuture credits expiring by December, it’s worth having your first taste of what it feels like to do lifelong learning,” he said.Source: The Straits Times © SPH Media Limited. 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