183 Home Team officers awarded scholarships

SINGAPORE - Staff Sergeant Yeo Ren Jie joined the Singapore Civil Defence Force as a volunteer while he was a student at Temasek Polytechnic, and continued as a full-time paramedic upon his graduation in 2008, forgoing his shot at university.

Today, Staff Sergeant Yeo was among 183 Home Team officers who were awarded scholarships to pursue their post-graduate and Masters studies.

Minister for Prime Minister's Office and Second Minister for Home Affairs and Trade and Industry Mr S Iswaran, who was the guest-of-honour at the MHA Sponsorship Presentation Ceremony, cited Staff Sergeant Yeo's story as one of the examples of Home Team officers who excelled at work and are driven to upgrade themselves professionally.

"Investing in our people is one of our key strategies to strengthen our capabilities, so that we can continue to be successful in fulfilling MHA's mission of keeping our country safe and secure," Mr Iswaran said.

"We are therefore committed to developing our officers to their full potential by providing opportunities for professional development and growth. "

Staff Sergeant Mohamed Elhazeeq Ul Haq, who used to work part-time as a cashier and factory worker to pay for his school expenses while studying at Singapore Polytechnic, started his career in the Singapore Police Force in 2009 after he graduated.

He was one of recipients of the Home Team sponsorship to pursue the degree programme in Criminology and Security at the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT), which is a degree programme collaboration between SIT, MHA and UK's University of Liverpool.

Of the 183 scholarship recipients, 18 officers will pursue postgraduate studies while the remaining 165 officers will pursue their undergraduate degrees.

Since 2010, MHA has awarded undergraduate and postgraduate sponsorships to more than 500 Home Team officers.

grongloh@sph.com.sg