Written reply to PQ on A*STAR scholarship recipients’ research fields and bond service affected by transitional changes in successive RIE masterplans

Question:

Mr Kenneth Tiong Boon Kiat: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry (a) how many A*STAR scholarship recipients have had their research fields deprioritised while serving their bonds, due to transitions across successive Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) masterplans; (b) what percentage of these scholars are currently in roles utilising their doctoral expertise; and (c) for scholars with no adjacent redeployment available, whether A*STAR will consider bond release or industry transfer. 

Written Answer by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong

1.                  About 80% of A*STAR scholarship graduates are employed in roles which leverage their doctoral expertise. These include roles in both academia and industry. 

2.                  The remaining 20% have pivoted to a variety of other roles for reasons not necessarily due to deprioritisation of their research fields. These roles include corporate leadership and management positions across various sectors. It reflects how A*STAR scholars have gained knowledge and competencies that are transferable beyond the research ecosystem. 

3.                  Where redeployment is required, A*STAR facilitates transfers within A*STAR as well as secondments or transfers to the institutes of higher learning and the private sector.