26 December 2015

The Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) will launch six new degree courses in health-related areas like nursing and occupational therapy, and raise its intake by another 300 places next year, bringing its total intake to 2,400.

Internationally, the minimum practice qualification for allied health professionals is set at the bachelor’s degree level.

SIT president Tan Thiam Soon said the courses will be open to both A-level and polytechnic students with relevant diplomas in areas such as biomedical sciences. He also said that the new degrees are in areas where there is a huge demand for specialists, given the rapidly ageing population of Singapore.

Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said that physiotherapists and occupational therapists will be needed increasingly to provide rehabilitation and preventive care outside of hospitals, both in the community and in patients’ homes.

Diagnostic radiographers and radiation therapists are also needed to boost early diagnosis of ailments such as cancer so patients can get early treatment and suffer less.