Education Savings

A rule of thumb: For university in 16 years costing $80K-$100K, aim to save $250-$400/month starting from birth, assuming 5% investment returns and 5% tuition inflation. Adjust based on your risk tolerance and investment performance.

Options include education loans from MOE (Ministry of Education), scholarships, applying for government bursaries, or considering lower-cost alternatives like polytechnics or part-time work-study programs.

Yes, through the CPF Education Loan Scheme, which allows Ordinary Account savings to fund approved full-time courses. It is a loan, not a withdrawal: it must be repaid in cash with interest after graduation, so using it reduces the retirement savings that would otherwise have kept compounding.

Education costs have historically risen faster than general inflation. If fees grow at 5% a year, a course costing $100,000 today costs roughly $163,000 in ten years, so a savings plan built on today's price will fall short even if every contribution is made.

It depends on the horizon. Money needed within a few years is usually kept in deposits or short-dated instruments where the value will not fall, while a horizon of a decade or more allows more growth-oriented investments. The mistake is holding a long-horizon goal entirely in cash, or a short-horizon one entirely in equities.