SINGAPORE - Up to 20 students looking to work in cleaning and waste management companies could have their tertiary education paid for and jobs guaranteed upon graduation this year, with the National Environment Agency (NEA) launching a new scholarship on Wednesday (Feb 12).

The new scholarship programme is targeted at students who intend to study or are studying environmental services-related courses at polytechnics or the Institute of Technical Education (ITE). These include subjects like engineering, built environment and the sciences, such as applied chemistry and molecular biotechnology.

The scholarship programme will "facilitate the entry of younger, qualified manpower into the environmental services industry", the NEA said.

The programme is part of a broader plan to transform the industry by raising productivity and encouraging innovation, the NEA noted. It has said previously that there are more than 1,700 companies in the sector which hires more than 78,000 cleaning and waste management workers.

Co-funded by the NEA and companies in the industry, scholars will serve a one-year bond for every year of study sponsored. This means that full-term diploma scholars at polytechnics will have to work for the company for at least three years upon graduation; ITE scholars will serve a two-year bond.

For those who stay on for more than a year in their respective companies after their bonds, the NEA said it will also give them a one-time retention bonus of $5,000.

NEA's director of industry development and promotion Dalson Chung said the authority wants to attract scholars who "can inject creativity and design thinking into the industry".

"We hope to provide graduates with an exciting and rewarding career in the environmental services industry," he added.

Students who are interested can apply now on the NEA website.

An NEA spokesman said whether more scholarships will be given out next year is yet to be determined.