SIM University (UniSIM) was a private university in

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

that opened in 2005 before shutting down in 2017. The university was established and managed under the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) Group. It was the only private university in Singapore after

Nanyang University Nanyang University () was a private university in Singapore between 1956 and 1980. During its existence, it was Singapore's only private university in the Chinese language. In 1980, Nanyang University was merged with the University of Singapore ...

. The university practiced an

open-door academic policy An open-door academic policy, or open-door policy, is a policy whereby a university enrolls students without asking for evidence of previous education, experience, or references. Usually, payment of the academic fees (or financial support) is all t ...

towards working adultshttp://www.unisim.edu.sg/Happenings/newsrelease/Pages/MR2005-3.aspx 'SIM University To Enhance Opportunities For Learning And Knowledge Upgrading For Adult Learners' and offered only part-time programmes. Between 2010 and 2017, UniSIM was registered under the Committee for Private Education (CPE). In 2016, UniSIM became the sixth autonomous university in Singapore after an invitation from Singapore's

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

(MOE). The university was restructured into an autonomous university, Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS) in 2017.

History

Open University Degree Programme (1994–2005)

In 1992, SIM was selected by MOE to run the Open University Degree Programme (OUDP), in collaboration with

The Open University The Open University (OU) is a Public university, public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by List of universities in the United Kingdom by enrolment, number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate ...

, United Kingdom (OUUK). In 1994, the first batch of SIM OUDP's 900 students studied only among three degree programmes. In 1998, the first graduation ceremony with 334 was graced by former Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore

Tony Tan Tony Tan Keng Yam (; born 7 February 1940) is a Singaporean banker and politician who served as the seventh president of Singapore between 2011 and 2017. Prior to entering politics, Tan was a general manager at OCBC Bank. He made his polit ...

. In 2002, OUDP attained accreditation status and was renamed Singapore Institute of Management's Open University Centre (SIM-OUC) as one of SIM's autonomous entities.

Establishment

In 2005, SIM received the mandate from MOE to form SIM University (UniSIM) to forge upgrading opportunities for working adults from diverse academic qualifications and work experiences. Established on the foundation SIM-OUC, UniSIM took over more than 6,500 students from SIM-OUC studying in over 40 programmes. SIM-OUC students who graduated from 2006 and onwards were given a choice between a UniSIM or OUUK degree. UniSIM provides an avenue for working adults who have previously missed education opportunities to upgrade their qualifications and skills. The university also provides opportunities for working adult to pursue their passion or chart a different career course. The quality of the programmes is high, flexible and made accessible through e-learning to working adults. Many continuous education courses were made scalable to suit different organisations.

Restructuring

On 12 October 2016, Acting Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills)

Ong Ye Kung Ong Ye Kung ( ; zh, s=王乙康, p=Wáng Yǐkāng, poj=Ông It-khong; born 15 November 1969) is a Singaporean politician and former civil servant who has been serving as Minister for Health since 2021. A member of the governing People's Acti ...

announced that the Government invited UniSIM to become Singapore's sixth autonomous university. Subsequently, on 11 November 2016, the SIM governing council voted in favour of bringing the university under the ambit of MOE. In 2017, UniSIM was restructured into the Singapore University of Social Sciences and became Singapore's sixth autonomous university under the ambit of the MOE. It is no longer a member of the SIM Group.

Wings by Yeo Chee Keong

This sculpture was donated by Yeo Chee Keong and Anthony Teo to UniSIM. Mounted on a soft hue of Volga blue Ukrainian igneous granite pedestal, the work is meant to inspire UniSIM graduates to soar.

UniSIM and SIM GE

Generally, UniSIM and SIM Global Education (SIM GE) are each recognized as SIM students despite the schools being different business units of the SIM Group. UniSIM was a private university which offered government subsidized programmes whereas SIM GE partners with the

University of London International Programmes The University of London Worldwide (previously called the University of London International Academy) is the central academic body that manages external study programmes within the collegiate university, federal University of London. All courses ...

RMIT University The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (abbreviated as RMIT University) is a public research university located in the city of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia., section 4(b) Established in 1887 by Francis Ormond, it is the seventh-o ...

etc. to offer their programmes in Singapore.

Admission

The university adopted open-door admission criteria. Requirements for prospective applicants to the undergraduate programmes were to have at least two GCE 'A' level passes or a polytechnic diploma, at least two years' work experience and to be a minimum of 21 years old.

Notable alumni

* Adrian Tan - Singaporean litigator and president of the Law Society of Singapore. * Aloysius Pang - Singaporean actor.

References

{{Authority control 2005 establishments in Singapore 2017 disestablishments in Singapore Defunct universities in Singapore Educational institutions established in 2005 Educational institutions disestablished in 2017 Education in Singapore Singapore Institute of Management Singapore University of Social Sciences