Classification of Educational Institutes

Childcare Centres
A childcare centre is any place that cares for and supervises more than 5 children, aged below 7, at any one time.
Preschools/Kindergartens
A kindergarten is a school that provides a structured 3-year preschool education consisting of nursery, kindergarten 1, and kindergarten 2 for children aged 3 – 6.
Academic Schools
Academic private schools are the ones that offer theoretical, structured courses and formal education. Typically schools offering certificates, diplomas, degrees come under the category of academic private schools. Examples of academic schools include:
Educational establishments that intend to provide academic classes leading to GCE examinations
Foreign system/international schools
Kindergartens/Pre-schools
Business schools
IT schools or computer education centres
Language schools
Fine Arts schools
Tuition schools
Enrichment centres offering diplomas, certificate courses etc.
Adult education centres
Distance learning centres

Non-Academic Schools

Non-academic schools are the ones that primarily offer practical, hands-on learning experiences. Examples of non-academic schools include:
cooking schools
pet grooming schools
driving schools
hair styling schools
dressmaking schools
sports activity schools

Setting Up a School – Basic Steps

Think through and plan first: Before you proceed to setting up your educational business, make sure you have reviewed and understood the the various regulatory requirements as mentioned here pertaining to the type of school you are starting. Needless to say that before starting your education business, the following are other important tasks that you should have completed and concluded that your new venture will be a financially viable and profitable entity:

Market study including the target student base
Identification of tentative locations including the going rental prices
Staffing requirements and availability of such talent along with their market salaries
Key success factors and risk areas including how you plan to mitigate the risks involved
Complete financial projections with both best and worst case scenarios in mind

Incorporate business

Once you have decided to proceed forward, you must incorporate your business first. The most suitable legal entity for this purpose is a private limited Singapore company. Incorporating a private limited company in Singapore is a fairly straightforward and quick process although certain statutory requirements apply.

Prepare for operations

Once the company has been incorporated, the real work begins. There are a number of important tasks you need to complete before you can start enrolling students. These include: Find suitable premises. You can only use premises that are approved for educational activities by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). Therefore you should check with the landowner to makes sure the premises you are planning to lease can be used for this purpose. Once you signed the lease for the space, you should hire a qualified contractor to carry out the necessary renovation work as per your needs.

Hire staff

As majority of your staff will consist of teaching staff, you will need to make sure they have the necessary qualifications to teach relevant courses. You will be required to clearly state qualifications of teaching staff in your marketing collateral. If your educational institute plans to offer Government-subsidised training, you must comply with the additional terms imposed by the relevant authorities. Your staff can consist of both local and foreign employees.

Apply for necessary licenses

You will also need to apply for the mandatory licenses at this stage that are applicable to the type educational institute you are setting up. For more details on this, see below section titled Licensing Requirements.

Obtain Accreditations

Once your school is up and running, you should seriously think about getting the following accreditations in order to create trust and confidence with your potential student community: EduTrust certification. EduTrust certification must be obtained before international students can get enrolled. Private education institutes can get financial support and assistance for EduTrust certification under a new EduTrust Support Scheme (ESS). The ESS provides a grant of up to S$26,500 to eligible institutes that are interested in upgrading their capabilities. Singapore Quality Class (SQC) certification. SQC certifications not only helps in creating a positive perception about your educational institute but also with expedited handling of student visa applications submitted by SQC certifiied educational institutes.

Licensing Requirements

The specific licenses required depends on the type of education establishment you are planning to setup. The table below provides a summary view of the various registration, licences, permits you will need for various types of education establishments. The key regulatory requirement for companies involved in the education business is that all private organisations or establishments providing education to 10 or more people (except non-academic schools) must register either with the Ministry of Education (MOE) or Council for Private Education (CPE), depending on the type of education establishment. Registration with MOE and CPE gives private schools the right to operate when they have met statutory requirements.