|
I APPLAUD the move by Nanyang Technological University (NTU) to award new scholarships to encourage further research. However, I question the move to offer them bond-free to foreigners. I am not against foreigners doing research studies in Singapore per se, but what will they do in return for Singapore after they graduate?
A search of NTU's website shows that currently, of 33 PhD students in its business faculty, 91 per cent are foreigners from China. I suspect this is probably the case in other faculties. Does this mean there are no Singaporeans interested in research studies?
Judging by the number of working adults coughing up $50,000 to $60,000 to do DBA programmes with foreign universities, I think the interest is there but not the opportunity. And, given the disproportionately high number of Chinese PhD students in NTU, it is more likely that all available places are taken up by foreigners and Singaporeans do not have a chance in their own country.
Over the past many years, the National University of Singapore (NUS) and NTU have churned out many non-Singaporean PhDs. How many of them have remained here to contribute and how many have moved on to greener pastures? Surely, both NUS and NTU must have the statistics to justify continuing providing scholarships to foreigners. It is high time both were transparent about it.
Unless the foreigner can be made to contribute economically to Singapore, it is a zero-sum game. Every dollar spent on a foreigner is a dollar less for a Singaporean - and a dollar wasted.
Patrick Tan Siong Kuan
|
