Secondary 3 students taking 8+ subjects plummeted from 34% to 14%. Singaporean families are pragmatic price-takers responding to MOE's shift to L1R4 for JCs and revised poly admission rules. Taking 6–7 subjects covers all core global university requirements in English, Math, Sciences and Humanities. By cutting academic workload, students free up bandwidth for CCA leadership and portfolio-building for holistic university admissions. Smart strategy, not slacking.

Singapore’s PSLE exams start tomorrow. Beyond the official "every school is a good school" narrative, parents care about the daily environment their 12-year-old steps into next year. A stellar score buys classroom sanity, shielding kids from the "why you study so hard?" negative academic culture, while surrounding them with ambitious peers and unmatched resources. PSLE remains the ultimate filter for a student's academic ecosystem in their formative teenage years.

With DSA results out and PSLE just weeks away, school selection will soon be front and center for many families. Decades ago, my parents picked a SAP school for me based on prestige, only for me to end up struggling with Chinese language and missing out on my true passion, STEM. Here’s why you should look beyond the cut-off points to find the right fit for your child.