SINGAPORE : Getting into the junior college of your choice is a
little tougher this year, as students who got their postings on
Tuesday found out.
With a bigger cohort, junior colleges are also making it more
competitive as some schools have tightened their admission cut-off
points.
It was a nerve-wracking morning as students islandwide scrutinised
the notice boards, checking to see if their names have been
included into their school of choice.
"It's quite competitive. The previous cut off point for AJC was
around 9, but this year for science it is 8," said one
student.
"I've been posted to Meridian JC, which is my fourth choice and AJ
is my first choice and I got 8 points, which is just nice. It's the
school's cut off; I know it's risky but I wish I could get in,"
another student said.
"I was surprised by the posting results. I got 8 points after
bonus; I guess the competition is stiff," said a third
student.
The reason is that this cohort were all born in 1988, the Chinese
year of the dragon.
When contacted by Channel NewsAsia, at least four junior colleges
-- Anderson, Victoria, Hwa Chong and Raffles -- have tightened
their admission criteria.
Still, it did not deter students from choosing to enter the junior
colleges.
"I feel after that we can still proceed to a poly if we choose or
continue tertiary education into the university. It does offer more
choices. In JCs, it's still like a classroom environment, it's an
easier transit for us from secondary school," a student said.
"In JC, I feel I'll be able to have a higher chance to get into
university, so I can get a better job compared to poly, although
the choices there are wider," said another.
According to the Education Ministry, there was a spike in the
number of students in the Joint Admission Exercise, from around
45,000 last year to more than 52,000 in 2005.
That is a jump of more than 16 percent.
Compared to last year, fewer chose JCs as their first choice; more
are also applying to Polytechnics this year than in 2004. - CNA