Best Education Loans in Singapore for 2023

You probably know that education is the key to your future, but the problem is it’s quite expensive and most people can’t afford tertiary education. For this reason, education loans are a great way to fund your tuition fees without having to make a once-off huge payment.

While education loans do come in handy, there are several things to consider before you opt for one, this includes details like the interest rate, your repayment schedule, the processing fee and the amount you’ll be paying per month.

To lift some weight off your shoulders, we’ve done the hard work for you and we’ve rounded up some of the best education loan Singapore.

The Best Banks’ Study Loan Interest Rates (2023)

Here are the best education loans from banks with the most favourable interest rates:

Bank	Loan Amount	Interest Rate	Tenure	Processing Fee
DBS	10 times monthly salary	4.38%	Up to 10 years	2.5%
POSB	10 times monthly salary, maximum of 165k	4.38%	Up to 10 years	2.5%
OCBC Frank	Maximum of 10X monthly salary	4.5%	Up to 8 years	2.5%
Maybank Monthly	8x monthly salary	4.45%	Up to 8 years	2%
CIMB Monthly Rest (local)	8x monthly salary	5.39%	Up to 10 years	2%
CIMB Monthly Rest (overseas)	8x monthly salary	5.39%	Up to 10 years	2%

How to Apply for a Student Loan

Applying for an education loan is straightforward. Firstly, you have to check that you meet the requirements to be able to apply. Secondly, you need to gather all supporting documents and get a guarantor.

A guarantor basically stands in place of a collateral. Your guarantor will need to sign a few documents to state that they will be held responsible for repaying the loan if you find yourself unable to do so.

A guarantor can be a permanent resident or a foreigner. Citizen guarantors will only have to provide their NRIC whereas foreigners will need to provide their passport or ID card.

Eligibility for an Education Loan

• You must be Singaporean or a permanent resident
• you must be a student
• between the ages of 21 and 65
• if you have a guarantor, he or she must be between the ages of 21 and 65

Requirements

You’ll need the following supporting documents to apply for an education loan:

• Completed application form
• Letter of offer
• Your guarantor’s NRIC or passport

Here are some common terms and jargons for your reference:

Interest rate: The interest rate is an important factor to consider when getting an education loan, because it directly influences the amount of money you’ll be paying off per month. You’ll generally be charged an interest ranging between 1 and 4%. However, it’s not uncommon for certain study loans to charge up to 5%.

Loan amount: The loan amount refers to how much your lending institute is willing to give you. It’s usually non-negotiable but if your credit score is good, you’ll be more likely to get a reasonably high amount of money. How much you’re given also depends on your monthly income, because that figure will be multiplied by a predetermined number.

Tenure: The tenure, or more commonly known as the loan term is basically how long you have to repay the amount of money borrowed. Study loan tenures range from 2 years to 5 years, but sometimes they can go up to 10 years.

Processing fee: This is a single payment that has to be made to pay for administration services as soon as your loan is approved.

Options Other Than Banks’ Education Loan

Personal loan

If you’re unable to get an education loan, another option you can consider is a personal loan.

The biggest difference between personal loans and education loans is that the repayment period of a personal loan usually begins shortly after your loan has been approved, whereas you will often be required to pay off your education loan only once you’ve completed your studies.

Trusted licensed moneylenders, such as 1 Fullerton Credit, are equipped with all the necessary expertise to meet your financial needs while you’re studying. Their personal loans offer flexible repayment schedules and relatively low interest rates.

It’s worth noting that you should opt for 1 Fullerton Creditpersonal loan only if you can afford it, so you’ll be able to make the necessary monthly payments.

The following are the loan’s features:

• Credit report: Not required
• Application approval: Within 1 hour
• Loan Amount: Up to six times your salary
• Interest rate: From 1 to 4% per month.
• Loan tenure: 6-12 months
• Processing fee: Maximum of 10% of the principal loan amount

How to Apply?

The application process is pretty straight-forward, you can simply call them or fill in an application form online. You do however need to ensure you meet the requirements and that you’re eligible to take out the loan.

Eligibility:

• At least 21 years or older
• You need to meet the minimum salary requirement
• Minimum salary of SGD 2,000 for citizens and permanent residents and SGD3,000 for foreigners

Requirements:

For citizens and permanent residents:

• • • Identity card
    • Proof of employment
    • Proof of residence
    • Recent payslips
    • SingPass to log in to CPF, IRAS, HDB websites

For foreigners:

• • • Passport
    • Work permit
    • Proof of employment
    • Proof of residence
    • Proof of income
    • Recent payslips
    • SingPass to log in to IRAS website

Study Loans from Your Schools

Alternatively, several polytechnics and public universities in Singapore offer their education loans through DBS, OCBC and UOB. Loans offered through these institutions are typically more affordable because of their low interest rates. What’s interesting about this loan is the fact that it can be used to fund up to 90% of your fees.

Generally, students currently studying at polytechnics, public universities and NIE, are automatically eligible for their institution’s loan if the following cases don’t apply to them:

• They’re funding their own courses
• They’re receiving subsidies on their full tuition fee/s from MENDAKI
• They’re receiving any type of scholarship
• Student that use CPF savings to fund 100% of their subsidised tuition fee/s

Here’s the list of student loan pages for more information:

• Singapore Polytechnic– Singapore Polytechnic offers a tuition fee loan to its students, where citizens, permanent residents and foreigners can apply for the loan. it covers up to 75% of the tuition fee for the entire course duration.
• Nanyang Polytechnic: Nanyang polytechnic offers a study loan scheme that includes a loan to cover 25 % of tuition fees and up to $1000 per semester to cover living expenses. Only permanent residents and local citizens may apply for this scheme.
• Ngee Ann Polytechnic: at Ngee Ann Polytechnic, citizens, permanent residents and international students have access to the CPF education loan scheme which covers 100% of tuition fees and is repayable within 12 years.
• Temasek Polytechnic : the loan scheme from Temasek Polytechnic allows eligible students to pay for no more than 75% of subsidised fees.
• Republic Polytechnic: foreigners, local students and permanent residents can apply for a study loan amounting to 75% of subsidised tuition fees. The maximum repayment period is 10 years.
• Singapore Institute of Technology: depending on whether you’re an international student, a permanent resident or Singaporean student, you may qualify for different criterias of the student loan offered by the Singapore Institute of Technology. Singapore citizens are eligible for the first criteria which pays for up to 90% of subsidised tuition fees.
• National University of Singapore: this university offers a loan to pay up to 20% of tuition fees and up to $3600 per annum for living expenses.
• Nanyang Technological University: the loan offered by this university takes care of 90% of tuition fees, excluding miscellaneous expenses.
• SIM University: the student loan from SIM university is only available for the first payment of course fees.
• Singapore University of Technology and Design: full time students may apply for the university’s student loan, in order to cover a maximum of 80% of their subsidised tuition fees.
• Singapore Management University: the SMU student loan is available to undergraduate students and it comprises a loan tenure of 1 year.

How to Choose an Education Loan?

Here are some questions you should ask yourself and aspects you need to keep in mind when you’re trying to pick an education loan.

1. What are my options?
   First things first, ask yourself whether you want a private or government loan. This highly depends on your needs and preferences. Government-assisted loans are ideal if you happen to have a bad credit score and you’re looking for a fixed interest rate.Private loans on the other hand may provide you with a higher borrowing limit and depending on your credit score, you may qualify for a significantly lower rate of interest.
2. What if government-assisted loans are not enough to cover my expenses?
   Government loans usually cover your expenses up to a certain percentage, so if you find yourself in a situation where you’re unable to meet all your expenses with a federal loan, you can do the following:

• • Search for scholarships: scholarships should be your first option to cover your remaining expenses because they don’t need to be paid back, so there’s no need to worry about monthly repayment and so forth.In spite of that, you should look into other terms like what it will take for you to maintain the scholarship and exactly which of your needs it covers.
  • See what your family can contribute: Studying is quite a big deal, so naturally it wouldn’t be regarded as being pushy if you asked your family to contribute to your fees. Since a portion of the fees is included in your loan, your family members will only have to contribute a digestible amount of money.
  • Shop around for loans from banks and moneylenders: banks and moneylenders will be able to supplement the rest of the money you need. You simply have to look at their requirements to determine if you’re eligible, then you can follow through with the application process.

What Should I Consider When Shopping for a Loan?

When shopping for a private loan, you need to consider details that are more favorable to you, but you also need to ensure that you meet the requirements.

1. You want to pick a loan with a flexible repayment schedule and lower payments per month.
2. Compare interest rates by visiting loan comparison sites.
3. Be aware of your own credit score. If you’re applying through a bank, your score will be a determining factor to your loan approval. However, moneylenders generally don’t require that information.

The Bottom Line

There are so many things to keep in mind when shopping for a study loan, in fact, most people don’t know where to begin or even how to compare different aspects of loans. In addition to typical terms and conditions, you also have to decide whether to apply through a bank, a government institution, or a moneylender.

1 Fullerton Credit is a reputable and well-known licensed moneylender in Singapore. The company offers a wide variety of loans to not only students that are Singapore citizens, but foreigners too. Their loan application is fairly simple and if you meet the requirements, they will be able to give you a decent loan to finance all your student needs.