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Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura
Speeches

Opening address by Acting Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs and Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Home Affairs, Associate Professor Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim at the engagement with pre-university madrasah students on 12 May 2026

12 May 2026

Assoc Prof Faishal outlined SCIS's undergraduate pathways to madrasah students, highlighting curriculum options, overseas exposure, financial support, and post-graduation recognition.

Mr Kadir Maideen, Chief Executive of MUIS 

Dr Nazirudin Mohd Nasir, Mufti of Singapore and Chair of Steering Committee for the Singapore College of Islamic Studies

Distinguished guests, teachers, and most importantly, our students 

Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh 

  1. A very good afternoon to everyone and thank you for being here today.  

  2. I am very happy to see so many of our madrasah students gathered here.  

  3. Many of you are at an important point in your education journey. After years of building your foundations in madrasah, you may be asking: What comes next? Where do I go from here? How can I continue learning, and how can I serve the community meaningfully?   

  4. These are important questions. That is why today’s engagement on the Singapore College of Islamic Studies, or SCIS, matters.   

A long-held aspiration, now a pathway for you 

  1. SCIS has been a long-held aspiration of our community. For many years, our asatizah, madrasah educators, parents and community leaders have hoped for a pathway where Islamic learning can continue at a higher level, rooted in our religious tradition and shaped by Singapore’s context. Earlier generations of Islamic scholars, among them Shaykh Maqsud Faris al-Azhari and Ustaz Pasuni Maulan, had long believed that Singapore's Muslims deserved a place of Islamic higher education that we can call our own. 

  2. This aspiration did not begin today, and it did not belong to one person or one generation. Mr George Yeo supported the idea of a local Islamic college as early as the 1990s. In 2016, former Minister-in-charge of Muslim Affairs Dr Yaacob Ibrahim brought this aspiration onto the national agenda. Minister Masagos Zulkifli then took this forward by putting in place the structures and partnerships of the SCIS. 

  3. Today, under MUIS, Mufti and the SCIS Steering Committee, we are taking the next important step: turning this long-held aspiration into a clear undergraduate pathway for students like you, with its first undergraduate intake planned for 2028. 

What you can study 

  1. SCIS is designed to give students strong grounding in Islamic knowledge, while also building practical skills in communication, research, digital literacy, counselling, social understanding and community engagement. 

    • In the first two years, students will build a common foundation in Islamic scholarship, Arabic and the social sciences. 

    • From the third year, students can choose between two broad pathways.  

      • For those who want to deepen their Islamic Studies, there will be areas such as Shariah, Theology and Scriptures, with specialisations such as Fatwa Studies, Quranic Studies and Interfaith Studies.  

      • For those interested in the Social Sciences, there will be areas such as Psychology, Counselling and Social Work, with specialisations such as Youth and Childhood, and Organisational Psychology.  

  2. This means SCIS is not a narrow pathway. It gives you choices. Some of you may want to become asatizah. Some may want to teach. Some may be interested in counselling, youth work, community development, social services or policy.  

  3. Some of you may still be unsure. That is okay. SCIS is being designed to help you explore these possibilities while staying grounded in Islamic knowledge and values. 

Learning beyond Singapore 

  1. SCIS will also give students exposure beyond Singapore. 

  2. Students can look forward to overseas immersion opportunities with partner institutions such as Dar al-Ifta in Egypt, Al-Qarawiyyin University in Morocco, and the University of Jordan.  

  3. Your foundation will be built here in Singapore, for Singapore’s context. But you will also have opportunities to learn from established centres of Islamic scholarship overseas. 

  4. So this is not about choosing between local and overseas learning. SCIS aims to give students the best of both — a strong Singapore-based foundation, with meaningful international exposure. 

Support for students 

  1. I also know that students and parents will have practical questions. What are the fees? Will there be scholarships? What support will be available? These are fair questions. 

  2. MUIS is working through the details carefully. But the commitment is clear: SCIS must be accessible to deserving students. Financial background should not stop a student with the ability to pursue this pathway. 

  3. There will be support through scholarships, bursaries and other schemes, and more details will be shared before registration opens. 

What happens after you graduate? 

  1. Many of you may also wonder: What happens after I graduate? 

  2. SCIS graduates will receive Tier 1 recognition under the Asatizah Recognition Scheme. This means SCIS graduates will be recognised as qualified asatizah, without needing to go through PCICS, because the SCIS curriculum is already tailored to Singapore’s context. 

  3. But SCIS is not only about preparing students for mosque or madrasah roles. The skills you build — in research, communication, critical thinking, digital literacy and understanding society — can support different forms of services. This includes religious guidance, education, youth work, counselling, community development, social services, public service and other areas where our community needs capable and grounded people. 

Use today’s session well 

  1. I hope you will use today’s session well. 

  2. Ask about the courses. Ask about the pathways. Ask about the overseas immersion. Ask about support. Ask about career options. Ask what you need to start preparing now. 

  3. SCIS is being built with your generation in mind. 

  4. You are not just learning about a new institution today. You are learning about a pathway that could shape how you grow, how you serve, and how you contribute to the future of our community.  

  5. Whatever path you choose, I hope you will pursue it with sincerity, purpose and amanah. 

  6. Allow me to share a few words in Malay. 

Impian lama, laluan baharu 

  1. Masyarakat kita telah lama impikan sebuah kolej Islam seperti SCIS. Para ulama terdahulu seperti Shaykh Maqsud Faris al-Azhari dan Ustaz Pasuni Maulan telah lama memperjuangkan penubuhan sebuah institusi pengajian Islam peringkat tinggi yang boleh kita banggakan sebagai usaha kita sendiri. 

  2. Dari sokongan Encik George Yeo pada tahun 1990-an, hingga usaha mantan Menteri Dr Yaacob Ibrahim pada 2016 dan kemudiannya Menteri Masagos Zulkifli melalui struktur dan kerjasama SCIS dengan institusi tempatan dan antarabangsa — aspirasi ini kini menjadi kenyataan dengan pengambilan kohort pelajar pertama pada tahun 2028. 

Kurikulum 

  1. Dua tahun pertama pengajian - membina asas bersama dalam pengajian Islam, Bahasa Arab dan sains sosial. Mulai tahun ketiga, pelajar memilih antara dua laluan — Pengajian Islam (Syariah, Teologi, Pengajian Al-Quran, Fatwa dan Antara Agama) atau Sains Sosial (Psikologi, Kaunseling, Kerja Sosial). Pelajar turut berpeluang menjalani program penghayatan atau immersion programme luar negara di institusi seperti Dar al-Ifta (Mesir), Universiti Al-Qarawiyyin (Maghribi) dan Universiti Jordan. 

  2. Saya berharap anda semua akan memanfaatkan sesi hari ini untuk mengenali SCIS dengan lebih dekat dan mendalam. Saya yakin, di kalangan anda,  akan lahir generasi pelapis yang akan meneruskan legasi para ulama tempatan kita dan memimpin masyarakat ke hadapan dengan ilmu, hikmah dan akhlak. 

Wassalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh. 

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