Manpower Planning and University Enrollments: The Debate in Singapore

• Main Authors: PANG, Eng Fong, LIM, Linda Y. C.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2005
• Subjects: Manpower planning; university education; university enrollments; Singapore; Education Policy; Higher Education
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/lkcsb_research/225; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/lkcsb_research/article/1224/viewcontent/7504_13372_1_PB.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

Faced with growing resource constraints, many countries are grappling with the issue of how best to allocate resources to publicly funded universities. Quite a few governments have used manpower planning models to guide policies regarding university enrollments and resource allocation. These models typically derive educational enrollments from projected manpower requirements based on forecasts of economic growth. Recent public debate on university admissions policy in Singapore raises anew the question of the effectiveness of the manpower planning model that Singapore (and many other countries) relies on to guide university intakes. The Singapore government is committed to giving its universities greater autonomy over financing and student admissions to enable them to develop into world-class institutions. It has pledged that it will not require full financial independence of publicly funded universities. Nevertheless, the government continues to direct university admissions to ensure the output of graduates matches projected skilled manpower needs.