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​Discontinuation of the SFSA - more information

Request for disbursement of Study Award monies - more information
​​​​SkillsFuture Study Award (“SFSA”) for Financial Services helps Singaporean finance professionals develop and deepen their skills through a wide range of courses.
 
The SFSA is targeted at Singaporeans in the early to mid-stages of their careers and are committed to develop and deepen their skills. Awardees will receive a monetary award of S$5,000, which can be used to defray out-of-pocket expenses associated with the course(s) being taken. It can also be used on top of existing government course fee subsidies.​​

Eligibility Criteria 

  • Singapore citizens with minimum 3 years of work experience in the financial sector*
  • Committed to deepening skills 
  • Has contributed to the learning or training of others 
  • Not a previous recipient of any SFSA 
  • Not a civil or public servant 
  • Selected course of study should be relevant to the job roles within the financial sector​
  • Applicant is planning to enrol into course of study or may already be enrolled but yet to complete at the point of applying for the SFSA

*Refers to work experience with Singapore-based financial institutions (licensed or exempt from licensing by MAS), firms that provide professional services to financial industry (e.g. consulting firms, law firms) or FinTech firms certified by Singapore FinTech Association.

Applicants are required to submit the gross course fees and declare all awards, scholarships, grants and government funding so as to derive the amount of net course fee. For this, please contact the institution for the prevailing rates on the selected course of study.

Please see illustration on how the net course fee is derived by self-sponsored individual receiving government funding. Individuals who have received full employer sponsorship will not qualify for the award.

Course fee
 S$12,000

IBF Standards Training Scheme (IBF-STS)* :

90% Course fee support (capped at S$7,000)

 S$(7,000)
Co-payment after funding support S$5,000
Less: SkillsFuture Credit (SFC)
 S$(500)
Net course fee payable by self-sponsored individual S$4,500
SFSA (To defray net course fee payable by self-sponsored individual) S$5,000
* Subject to the prevailing terms and conditions under the IBF-STS.

Only applications with total net course fees payable above $3,000 will be considered.

Applicants may consider taking up to 2 courses to maximise the utilisation of the SFSA award based on the total net course fees payable.

Applicants must upload the Course Details Form in the online application portal accessible at “Apply Now” above.
 
Incomplete applications will not be considered.

​​​​​​​​

​ Examples of Supported Courses

Supported courses should deepen skills in areas including insurance, asset and wealth management, compliance, risk management, data analytics, IT and cyber security. 

 Supported courses include, but are not limited to, short-term executive technical courses and specialist diploma programmes such as:​

Course

Institution
Advanced Diploma in Data Analytics and Machine Learning
 SMU Academy
Artificial Intelligence Implications for Business Strategy MIT Sloan Executive Education
Cross-Border Business and Finance Law in Asia Singapore Management University – School of Law
Data Analytics Course General Assembly
Financial Risk Manager Certification Training Program National University of Singapore - Risk Management Institute
​Graduate Certificate in Intelligent Reasoning Systems
 ​National University of Singapore - Institute of System Science
Graduate Certificate in Machine Learning and Applications
 National University of Singapore - School of Computing
​ICA International Diploma in Financial Crime Prevention
 ​International Compliance Association
Intensive Bank Analysis
 Fitch Learning Singapore Pte Ltd
Machine Learning from Data to Decisions Massachusetts Institute of Technology Professional Engineering
Managing Risk in the Information Age Harvard University
NUS RMI Specialist Diploma in Credit Risk Management – Corporate Banking National University of Singapore - Risk Management Institute
Oxford Entrepreneurship Venture Finance Programme University of Oxford Said Business School
Oxford Fintech Program University of Oxford Said Business School
​Python for Finance
 ​London Financial Studies Asia Pte. Ltd.
STEP Certificate and Diploma in International Trust Management CLT International Limited
STEP Professional Post Graduate Diploma in Private Wealth Advising CLT International Limited

These are examples of supported courses, and the list is not meant to be exhaustive. Applicants may submit other courses for consideration.

Evaluation Process

All applications are subjected to competitive selection process.

 Note:​
  • Applicants who have met the eligibility criteria do not automatically qualify for the SkillsFuture Study Award.
  • IBF’s decision is final and binding. 
  • IBF reserves the right not to disclose the reasons for approving or rejecting any application, and to reject any incomplete application.
  • IBF is not liable or responsible for the accuracy, reliability or completeness of content or information published on other third-party websites on or in connection with the SkillsFuture Study Awards.
  • If awarded, applicants will not be allowed to change their original course(s) as indicated in their application forms, unless for exceptional reason(s) deemed acceptable by IBF.

Discontinuation of the SFSA

The SkillsFuture Study Awards will be discontinued on 31 March 2022, as part of SkillFuture Singapore's broader effort to review existing schemes and prioritise resources for programmes that deliver stronger manpower development outcomes.

Request for Disbursement of Study Award Monies

For existing Study Award recipients who are requesting for Study Award monies, please prepare and submit the requests as follows:

i) click here to fill in the online form; and

ii) submit the following document(s) via email to sfsa@ibf.org.sg with subject header "Request for Study Award Monies: <<Application ID>> <<Tranche 1 or 2>>

  (a) Tranche 1 S$1,500
  • Letter of confirmation or letter of admission into the Programme; and
  • Receipt and invoice for payment of the Programme fees.

  (b) Tranche 2 S$3,500
  • Document(s) indicating the successful completion of the Programme (e.g. Certificate of Completion)

All document(s) must be submitted in PDF format. Please note that your request will not be processed if we do not receive the above document(s).

Request Submission Timeline

Requests should be submitted to IBF within the prescribed timeline below:
 
a) Tranche 1 S$1,500 - within one month, (i) from the date of the letter of admission into the Programme, or (ii) from the date of the Letter of Undertaking, whichever is later.

b) Tranche 2 S$3,500 - within one month from the date of successful completion of the Programme as indicated in the supporting document.

Disbursement of Study Award Monies

The IBF has implemented PayNow as the payment mode for all disbursement of Study Award monies. PayNow enables secure e-payments without the need to collect and validate bank account details of the Study Award recipients. To receive the Study Award monies promptly upon approval, please ensure that you have linked your NRIC to your PayNow bank account to facilitate IBF's disbursement. We cannot affect disbursement to mobile number-linked PayNow bank accounts. Failure to link your NRIC to PayNow accounts will result in delay in disbursement.

​Enquiries

Email: sfsa@ibf.org.sg​