When is a better time to send DS or DD overseas for school?

[MrsKiasu]

Alone or have someone there or one parent going with kid?

[sharonkhoo]

2 major considerations:


Emotional etc - the teenage years are an important period for developing self-identity, sense of belonging etc. Some kids who live overseas, and without parents, may find that that they lose touch with Singapore. They become Third Culture Kids (you can google and read up about this). Especially for a boy, that could pose issues when coming back for NS. Personally, I would prefer not to send kids away from family until they are at least 16, maybe not till 18, depending on their maturity. But every family has different considerations.

Age of return - For a boy, coming back to serve NS after graduating is smoother in terms of education, which is why some parents like this option. On the other hand, it means the young man has been overseas for quite a few formative years, and is likely to be less "Singaporean". He could find it difficult to adjust back to Singapore, let alone NS life. Being more mature when going to university is a good thing, especially as boys tend to mature later anyway.

Another thing to note: if you are considering sending them to local university, take note of how their overseas academic credentials are regarded in Singapore. UK ‘A’ levels are not considered the same way as local ‘A’ levels, and the minimum SAT scores for entry to local universities is fairly high, and for popular courses, probably stratospheric.

Just some things to consider.

[mindscape]

slmkhoo\" post_id=\"2023399\" time=\"1620614158\" user_id=\"28674:

2 major considerations:

Emotional etc - the teenage years are an important period for developing self-identity, sense of belonging etc. Some kids who live overseas, and without parents, may find that that they lose touch with Singapore. They become Third Culture Kids (you can google and read up about this). Especially for a boy, that could pose issues when coming back for NS. Personally, I would prefer not to send kids away from family until they are at least 16, maybe not till 18, depending on their maturity. But every family has different considerations.

Age of return - For a boy, coming back to serve NS after graduating is smoother in terms of education, which is why some parents like this option. On the other hand, it means the young man has been overseas for quite a few formative years, and is likely to be less \"Singaporean\". He could find it difficult to adjust back to Singapore, let alone NS life. Being more mature when going to university is a good thing, especially as boys tend to mature later anyway.

Another thing to note: if you are considering sending them to local university, take note of how their overseas academic credentials are regarded in Singapore. UK 'A' levels are not considered the same way as local 'A' levels, and the minimum SAT scores for entry to local universities is fairly high, and for popular courses, probably stratospheric.

Just some things to consider.

I agree with this. I've seen movies portraying this scenarios. Also, one of the biggest problems facing third culture kids is their nagging sense of rootlessness.

[Zeal mummy]

I prefer for university studies. Slightly more mature for boys.

[Hendon]

BigMomma\" post_id=\"2023389\" time=\"1620608704\" user_id=\"37745:

Taking into account that covid is already over, when is the right time to send your kids overseas for secondary 2 or 3 onwards? Considering UK or US at the moment. Only slight hiccup is DS need to return to serve NS after A levels or is it better to go overseas for universities instead?

Depends on details like family situation eg if the child is alone overseas etc