SINGAPORE - The number of mature learners aged 31 and above studying part-time at the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) has gone up.

Currently, there are about 53 per cent of such students in part-time higher Nitec and Nitec courses at ITE, up from 34 per cent in 2019.

For full-time courses at ITE, the proportion of students aged 21 and above has remained at about 5 per cent since 2019, an ITE spokesperson said in response to queries from The Straits Times.

Popular full-time Higher Nitec and Nitec courses among mature learners include nursing, mechanical technology, electronics engineering, and IT systems and networks.

For part-time courses, popular areas of study include electrical engineering, mechanical engineering and business administration.

To support mature learners who may have work or family commitments, ITE offers flexible learning options such as part-time or evening classes.

Full-time students can also access learning materials on the ITE’s e-learning platform if they are unable to attend physical lessons on some days.

ITE said it also offers financial assistance to Singapore citizens pursuing full-time studies, depending on their household income. These include mature learners who are juggling work and family responsibilities.

The government-funded Higher Education Community Bursary (HECB) and Higher Education Bursary provides up to $1,600 a year, as well as a waiver of tuition fees. In addition, the Opportunity Fund Scheme provides up to $1,000 to needy students to purchase electronic devices.

Apart from government bursaries, ITE provides the ITE Monthly Financial Assistance Scheme of up to $1,800 a year to the neediest students for daily expenses, such as meals, stationery and transport.

The Special Student Assistance Scheme provides up to $600 to help students tide over short-term financial difficulties.

Ms Nurul Ashikin Seman, 33, who has an eight-year-old son, decided to enrol in ITE College East in 2023 to do a Nitec in beauty and wellness.

In 2021, her husband died after a prolonged illness, which prompted her to take steps to secure a better future for herself and her son.

Ms Nurul had previously tried a variety of jobs, including being an auxilliary police officer at Certis Cisco, team leader of the service crew at fast-food outlet Long John Silver’s, and receptionist at Swissotel The Stamford.

She had to enter the workforce at the age of 17, with only an N-level certificate in hand, to help alleviate her family’s financial struggles.

When her husband first took ill in 2018 and had to stop work, Ms Nurul, who was then a housewife, decided to apply for a motorbike licence so she could work as a food delivery rider and have the flexibility to care for her husband and young son.

As she had always been in interested in the beauty industry, she decided to return to school and get properly certified.

“I want the best for my son. He cannot be staying in rental flats for the rest of his life, and have his mother do food deliveries forever. So, I am trying to break this cycle of always being in difficult situations,” she said.

With a current perfect grade point average of 4, Ms Nurul is looking forward to graduating at the end of 2024, and hopes to take up another full-time technical diploma to add to her skill sets.

“Everybody is given 24 hours. How you manage your time to do everything, aside from school, is the most important,” said Ms Nurul, who still does food delivery a few times a week in the evenings to support herself and her son.

She also receives financial support from ITE through various schemes while she studies full-time.

These include $1,600 from the HECB, which is given to her every year while she studies, and up to $2,180 from one-off financial assistance schemes such as the Special Student Assistance Scheme and Mendaki Study Support Grant.

Ms Nurul’s class adviser, Ms Shuner Villaneuva Leong, 33, said that when mature learners choose to take up ITE courses full-time, they are more focused on learning and practising skills required to perform tasks well.

The beauty and wellness lecturer at ITE College East said mature learners like Ms Nurul come with working experience and are a source of inspiration to their classmates.

Ms Leong said: “Mature learners know what they want and why they are here. Hence, they are more open to learning, and they usually give their best.”

Correction note: An earlier version of the story said that currently there are about 53 per cent of mature students in part-time courses at ITE, up from 34 per cent in 2023. This is incorrect. The 34 per cent figure is from 2019. We are sorry for the error.