SINGA Scholarship 2027: Singapore International Graduate Award Guide
A PhD award for international graduates in science and engineering, with research at A*STAR and/or a partner autonomous university. This guide covers the 2027 intake; close dates are TBC on a live official A*STAR page, so confirm them before you plan.
ScholarshipUnion Editorial
4 min read
Updated Oct 6, 2026
A PhD award, not a generic Master's grant
The Singapore International Graduate Award (SINGA) is A*STAR's international PhD award. An official A*STAR Research feature describes it as the international dimension launched around 2007: overseas talent come to Singapore for a full PhD, historically at NUS or NTU, later expanded to SUTD and SMU.
That is a different door from the A*STAR Graduate Scholarship (AGS), which the current scholarships site still lists with its own eligibility, stipend table, and a three-year service commitment for non-SPR foreigners.
A 2023 A*STAR SINGA brochure (accurate as of 1 November 2023) states the collaboration as A*STAR plus NTU, NUS, SMU, and SUTD. International candidates earn a PhD and conduct research at A*STAR and/or those universities. Some later A*STAR material has mentioned SIT. This guide only treats a university as a current host if A*STAR still lists it, so confirm hosts on the current official scholarships site before you write to a professor.
Where SINGA stands in October 2026
A*STAR has rebuilt its website. When we first checked on 22 September 2026, and again on 6 October 2026, the old dedicated SINGA talent URLs, including a-star.edu.sg/SINGA and the supervisor directories under /talent/for-graduate-studies/, returned 404.
The live scholarships listing shows the National Science Scholarships, AGS and the A*STAR International Fellowship — not SINGA. The live International Awards page shows only ARAP and SRAP.
Yet the award has not been withdrawn on any official page we can find:
- The current applicant system at sms-applicant-app.a-star.edu.sg still names SINGA in its portal FAQ.
- A*STAR's Bioinformatics Institute still lists SINGA on its graduate research page as a collaboration between A*STAR, NTU, NUS and SUTD.
- NTU's Asian School of the Environment still lists SINGA for international applicants on its graduate page.
- NUS Graduate School has listed SINGA among awards that are not eligible for its Service Obligation scheme (unconfirmed on 6 October 2026: the page blocked our check).
- A*STAR’s live scholarships site still keeps a SINGA recipients page, congratulating the 2023 cohort at NTU, NUS, SMU and SUTD.
Treat the award as live until A*STAR says otherwise, and take dates only from a current official page or from singa_enquiries@hq.a-star.edu.sg.
The step most listing sites get backwards
Blogs recycle a December close date and a monthly Singapore-dollar figure. This guide will not. Official coverage language is tuition plus a monthly stipend (the 2023 brochure also lists a one-time airfare grant and a one-time settling-in allowance). Amounts change, so confirm them on A*STAR. Apply through the current official scholarship website and its applicant system — not an abandoned blog link to an older portal.
- 1Confirm SINGA is open for 2027
Read the live host list on A*STAR before anything else.
- 2Find a supervisor and project
At A*STAR, NUS, NTU or another host A*STAR still lists.
- 3Prepare your file
Transcripts, CV, English evidence, and two academic referees.
- 4Submit in the official system
The current A*STAR applicant system only.
Three things listing sites get wrong
A 2023 brochure used 1 June (January intake, A*STAR and NTU only) and 1 December (August intake). That is a historical pattern, not a 1 December 2026 date published on a live official page as of 6 October 2026.
Official language is tuition plus a monthly stipend. This guide will not reprint third-party Singapore-dollar figures. Open A*STAR and read the current coverage line.
AGS is on the live scholarships site, with a published stipend table and a service commitment for some internationals. International AGS applicants also need a degree from a Singapore autonomous university. SINGA is the international graduate award. Do not fill the wrong form.
What official sources actually say
| Item | What the record shows |
|---|---|
| Awarding body | A*STAR (with partner autonomous universities) |
| Level | PhD (not a standalone Master's) |
| Duration (2023 brochure) | Up to four years |
| Published coverage | Tuition + monthly stipend |
| 2027 close dates | TBC — confirm on A*STAR |
| Applicant system | Current A*STAR portal |
| Enquiries | singa_enquiries@hq.a-star.edu.sg |
| Not this award | AGS, ARAP, SRAP, NSS |
Official pages to keep open: scholarships listing, applicant portal, AGS, A*STAR Research on SINGA. Questions: singa_enquiries@hq.a-star.edu.sg.
What this guide covers
Eleven pages, including a combined planning checklist. Start with eligibility and the supervisor search, and do not treat a third-party deadline as official.
International BSc/MSc applicants, English, academic referees. SINGA is not AGS.
Current official A*STAR website and applicant system. Desktop browser. Two referees.
2027 intake, dates TBC. The historical June / December pattern is not a published calendar.
Portal uploads under 3 MB, referee emails, SINGA declarations. Confirm the live list.
Tuition plus monthly stipend. No invented Singapore-dollar figures. Confirm on A*STAR.
A*STAR BMRC/SERC lists, NUS, NTU, SUTD. Official directory URLs still 404.
Student's Pass via ICA, English-language labs, host housing. Not a cost-of-living blog.
Official brochure answers on bond, direct PhD, shortlisting, and a second university form.
Shortlist email, university enrolment, ICA Student's Pass. An award is not a pass.
One planning tracker. Not an official A*STAR decision.
If this guide and A*STAR disagree, A*STAR wins.
Start with the hard filters
Check eligibility →International applicant, research PhD, English, referees, and the right form. If you belong on AGS, this guide will not help you — read the AGS page instead.