Dunman High, River Valley High to take in O-level students from other schools

CLARIFICATION: A previous version of this article said that nine IP schools will be participating in the JAE, following the addition of Dunman High School and River Valley High School. The Ministry of Education has clarified that the number of IP schools currently participating in the JAE is six, bringing the total number to eight.

Dunman High School and River Valley High School will take part in the Joint Admissions Exercise (JAE) from 2019, allowing them to admit GCE O-level students from other secondary schools, said the Ministry of Education (MOE).

In a statement on Friday (21 September), the ministry noted that O-Level students interested in the Junior College (JC) route would have two more schools to choose from.

“This will also provide more opportunities for the current students in both schools to interact and experience school life with more students at the Junior College level,” the ministry added.

Currently, both Dunman High and River Valley High – which offer the six-year Integrated Programme (IP) that culminates in the GCE A-Level examinations – do not admit GCE O-Level students from other secondary schools into their JC levels. The two schools began offering the IP curriculum in 2005 and 2006, respectively.

The latest move will bring the total count of IP schools participating in the JAE to eight. The other schools include Eunoia JC, Hwa Chong Institution, National Junior College, Raffles Institution, Temasek Junior College and Victoria Junior College.

Dunman High and River Valley High “are the final two IP schools that will participate in the JAE, joining all other IP schools to admit GCE O-Level students into their JC levels”, said the MOE.

It also noted that the participation of the two schools in the JAE was “part of ongoing efforts to encourage greater diversity in our schools”.

The JAE is conducted annually to allow GCE-O Level certificate holders to apply for courses offered by the Institute of Technical Education, junior colleges, Millennia Institute and polytechnics.

Other Singapore stories:

‘Not right’ to compare Singapore’s political situation with Malaysia’s: Anwar Ibrahim

Singapore government should pass laws against fake news: Select Committee

Thum Ping Tjin lied to Select Committee, concludes fake news panel