More than 25,000 Singaporeans have used S$4,000 SkillsFuture mid-career top up

SINGAPORE: More than 25,000 Singaporeans who received the S$4,000 top-up in SkillsFuture credits last year have used them, said Minister of State for Education and Manpower Gan Siow Huang on Wednesday (Jan 8).

In May 2024, Singaporeans aged 40 and above received an additional S$4,000 (US$2,930) in SkillsFuture credits. Younger Singaporeans will receive the same amount when they turn 40. 

Responding to parliamentary questions, Ms Gan noted that between May and November 2024, the top area of training was in information and communication technologies, including skills like digital marketing and data visualisation. 

Courses in security and investigation, as well as wholesale and retail trade, were also popular, she added. More than 7,000 courses are eligible to be used with the S$4,000 mid-career credits. 

Institutes of higher learning and private training providers such as NTUC LearningHub were among the top training providers, said Ms Gan. 

Since the launch of the SkillsFuture programme, the training participation rate of individuals, including those sponsored by their employers, has increased from 35 per cent in 2015 to about 50 per cent in 2022. 

As of March 2024, about one in three Singaporeans had used their SkillsFuture credits. Close to 40 per cent of Singaporeans in their 30s had used their base S$500 credits, compared with 25 per cent of those aged 60 and above, said the Ministry of Education (MOE) at the time.

SkillsFuture Singapore has been “quite careful” in curating the 7,000 courses eligible to be used with the mid-career credits, said Ms Gan. 

These are courses that are known to provide better employment outcomes, assessed through feedback from employers, as well as individuals who have been through the course who report that it was helpful in advancing in their careers, she added.