89 schools to hold ballot in Phase 2C of Primary 1 registration
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A pupil from Alexandra Primary School with her mother after the first day of school in the current semester. The schools that will be holding a ballot in the fifth phase of this year's Primary 1 registration exercise include popular ones like Nanyang Primary School, as well as those that do not usually see such fierce competition for places, such as Admiralty Primary School.
ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG
About half of all primary schools here will be holding a ballot in the fifth phase of this year's Primary 1 registration exercise.
Of the 181 primary schools, 89 will do so in Phase 2C, according to updates on the Ministry of Education (MOE) website yesterday evening.
These include popular schools like Nanyang Primary School, as well as ones that do not usually see such fierce competition for places, such as Admiralty Primary School.
Five of these schools have five times more applicants than vacancies, led by Northland Primary School in Yishun, which has 191 applicants for 28 vacancies. The others are Nan Hua Primary School, South View Primary School, St Hilda's Primary School and Princess Elizabeth Primary School.
Phase 2C is for children with no ties to the school, and is commonly considered the most competitive phase. This phase closed on Aug 5 with four in 10 primary schools already oversubscribed. The final figures were released yesterday.
Two schools - Oasis Primary School and Valour Primary School, both in Punggol - are oversubscribed but will not be balloting.
Both schools have places only for Singaporean children who live within 1km of the school. Those who have less priority, such as permanent residents, will not get entry into these schools.
Another school - Opera Estate Primary School in Bedok - will admit all Singaporean children but will hold a ballot for PRs.
This is because the school has reached its cap on the number of PRs that can enter the school in Phase 2C and 2C Supplementary, which MOE introduced last year.
The cap is between 25 per cent and 30 per cent of a school's planned Primary 1 intake.
The measure is to "prevent any concentration of PR children in our primary schools, provide a more conducive environment to encourage interaction between Singapore citizen and PR children, and facilitate the integration of PR children into Singapore", the ministry said previously.
Results of the ballot will be out next Tuesday.
Last year, 99 schools held ballots in Phase 2C, including Princess Elizabeth Primary School, Temasek Primary School and West Spring Primary School.
In 2019, 87 schools were oversubscribed in this phase, with 81 eventually holding a ballot.
Phase 2C is the fifth of seven phases in the Primary 1 registration exercise, which is being conducted entirely online this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Those who still have not registered in a primary school can register in the next phase - Phase 2C Supplementary through the Primary 1 Internet System, starting next Thursday at 9am.
International pupils can register under Phase 3 after all Singaporeans and PRs have been allocated a place under the earlier phases.
