Prof, here's why parents look to Aussie universities
Prof Mahbubani, (above), should understand why parents send their children overseas, says letter writer. -- ST FILE PHOTO
I REFER to your report last Friday which profiled the head of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Professor Kishore Mahbubani, ('Don't sniff at our education system'). In the report, Prof Mahbubani said: 'Look at the number of parents who are paying to send their kids to Australian universities when, frankly, the NUS provides a far better education than most Australian universities.'.
At the same time, Professor Mahbubani admits that his own children chose to study in foreign universities, and makes light of the fact.
I'm reminded of the time when those who chose to study and stay on to work abroad were branded 'quitters' by our leaders. I was dismayed to read later that many children of leaders themselves were studying and staying overseas.
Instead of making sweeping statements, ivory tower academics like Prof Mahbubani should keep in touch with and understand why ordinary Singaporean parents send their children to foreign universities.
They pay for an overseas university education for their children because local universities like the National University of Singapore (NUS) do not give them a chance. For example, my friend's daughter recently applied to study medicine, law or business at NUS. Despite having results as good as the others who were picked, she was rejected for medicine and law and given only her third option: business administration.
So, she went to an Australian university, which offered her a place to study her first choice, medicine. Previously, my son wanted to study law at NUS. But he was offered a scholarship instead, on condition that he read history, signed a bond to be a teacher - and passed a Chinese language test.
These conditions dismayed him, which was why he ended up studying in Sydney, where he stayed on to work after graduation.
He may be one of the so-called 'quitters', but I am happy that he had an invigorating experience at the University of New South Wales.
Our local undergraduates pale in comparison to those in most Australian universities in social awareness and in having the courage to speak out on issues that matter to their community.
I remember Prof Mahbubani as one of the more vocal student leaders during our days at Singapore University (the predecessor of NUS).
It will be nice to see him encourage NUS undergraduates to be a little bit more like him in those days, and speak out for the people when there is a need for them to do so.
Ang Kian Chuan