Discover everything you need to know about student loans in Singapore, including types, repayment structures, eligibility, and tips to build a good credit score.
With the increasing cost of tertiary fees in Singapore, a student loan can lessen the load of having to pay 1-4 years’ worth of fees.
Local universities can cost between $33,000 to $140,000 while private universities $20,000 - $85,000 for a full programme.
Private universities such as James Cook, Kaplan, Curtin, PSB charges $23,000 - $72,000 per year. These amounts will increase each year at the institutions’ discretion.
Apart from using a student loan to pay for a tertiary programme, it can also be used to pay for professional courses. This applies for individuals who are looking to upskill themselves to get a higher salary or to change industry. For full-time professional courses, fees can go up to a whopping $20k-$50k as well.
Explore the type of student loans and schemes that are available in Singapore according to your needs and eligibility as below.
What is it
An unsecured personal loan without a collateral that can be used to pay for school or any form of course fees
Eligibility
Loan Amount
Up to 10x of individual’s monthly income
Loan Tenor
Starting from 1 month to up to 5 years (depending on the type of lender and repayment structure)
Loan Interest Rate
Starting from 3.48% flat per annum
Turnaround Time
As fast as 15 mins or within the working day
Documents Needed
How To Apply
Lendingpot can assist you to source for the best student loans for your needs at app-personal.lendingpot.sg
What is it
Provided by DBS, UOB and OCBC, student can borrow 75% - 90% of their fees with no interest over their course of study.
Eligibility
Loan Amount
75% - 90% of subsidized tuition fees payable by Singapore students
Loan Tenor
Up to 20 years
Loan Interest Rate
Charged at an average prime rate of DBS, OCBC, and UOB after graduation
Turnaround Time
14 working days
Documents Needed
How To Apply
Contact the relevant banks for more information:
DBS: 1800 111 1111
UOB: 1800 222 2121
OCBC: 1800 363 3333
What is it
You may use your/your parents’/your spouse’s CPF to pay for up to 100% of your course fees, if there is enough CPF OA savings that can be withdrawn.
Eligibility
Loan Amount
Up to 100% of your course fees, subject to your available withdrawal limit
Loan Tenor
Up to 12 years
Loan Interest Rate
Computed on the prevailing Ordinary Account interest rate
Turnaround Time
14 working days
Documents Needed
How To Apply
Student must file an application on the CPF website under ‘My Requests’. An email notification will be sent to the CPF member who needs to login to the website within 14 days to approve the use of their savings.
Usually payments are made monthly from your bank account unless otherwise stated.
Upon your graduation, you should receive a letter from the bank requesting your confirmation of your preferred repayment option. The repayment of the Tuition Fee Loan (TFL) can be made either by a full lump-sum payment or monthly instalments from your bank account.
CPF will issue a letter to you with repayment instructions 3 months before repayment is supposed to start. Repayments must be made either in one lump sum or by monthly instalments GIRO or other modes of repayment.
For students who are not qualified for a bank loan, MOE Tuition Fee or CPF Loan, you may want to consider a moneylender loan.
You can borrow starting from 2 months to 2 years, depending on your income, credit rating, etc. Moneylender loans give you quick access to cash for your education needs. However, they do require you to apply with a proof of income.
If you are a student without income proof to substantiate, you may want to find a guarantor who has good income proof and credit rating.
Otherwise, you may opt for part-time studies while working. Borrowing from moneylenders can only be done once you’ve worked for 3 months. You may apply with proof of your payslips, CPF and any other supporting documents they require.
In the case where school fees are due quarterly during the year, you may want to request for trial loans from the moneylenders which have smaller quantum and shorter tenor. In this way, you will also build up your repayment credibility with the lender which may open doors to better offer terms in the future. See below for sample monthly loan repayment table.
*Note that the numbers on the table is for demonstration purposes only. It is not representative of your actual loan terms.
What is considered a good credit score? Usually, lenders are willing to explore loans for credit score of at least FF and above. On top of that, they are more inclined to lend to borrowers who have a credit history and sufficient credit activity. Below are some suggestions on how you can build a good credit score:
Banks and moneylenders would usually refer to credit bureau report and moneylenders credit bureau report respectively before extending a loan to you.
The reports would give them information on when how many unsecured loans you have and how is your repayment history.
When borrowing from banks or moneylenders, it is recommended to repay your loans on time, lest there will be late charges and records on your credit reports. It is recommended for you to set reminders for payments.
When applying for a loan, the bank would retrieve your credit report and this will be recorded. Frequent enquiries within a specified time would show that you are in great need of loans and this may affect your loan application.
It is better to apply to a few banks and know the outcome before proceeding to apply for another.
If you have a GX or CX score in your Credit Bureau Report, it may not be a good indication to your lenders and may affect your chances of getting a loan.
Applying a credit card and maintaining sufficient credit activity would be helpful for your lenders to see how accountable you are to your expenses and repayments.
Yes you can, however, be mindful that you may be subjected to an early repayment fee. Please speak to your loan provider for more information.
For bank loans, usually an email will be sent to you whether your loan application has been approved.
For moneylender loans, you may login to our portal at app-personal.lendingpot.sg/login or check your email to view your offers. Note that the loan quantum, interest, etc are indicative. These will be finalized when you head down to the lenders’ premises.
For bank loans, the loan amount and interest are usually final once an approval email is sent to you and the amount will be credited directly to the indicated bank account.
For moneylender loans, the loan amount and interest can be discussed on a case-by-case basis once you have accepted their indicative offer.
Yes, you can, please contact the banks on how to make these change requests:
i. DBS: 1800 111 1111
ii. UOB: 1800 222 2121
iii. OCBC: 1800 363 3333
Yes, you can apply for the Tuition Fee Loan (TFL) again in the following semester by the stipulated deadline. The approval of the TFL will be subject to eligibility and loan criteria. If you require financial assistance for the semester, you can refer to the University’s website for other financial assistance schemes available.
If you are transferring to another undergraduate programme within the University, you may continue with your existing Tuition Fee Loan. The loan quantum will then be based on the course fees of the new programme.
No you can’t, you can only cancel and submit a new application. You may submit your application online to cancel your "Application to use CPF savings for Education" through my cpf Online Services - My Request using your Singpass.
CPF will inform you in writing and you will need to make alternative arrangements in cash.
You can only use your CPF savings to finance one course of study at any point in time. You need to cancel your existing application before you submit a new one.
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