Why Study at MDIS
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Does MDIS have any other campuses in the region?
In September 2008, MDIS set up its first overseas campus in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan in Central Asia, to offer world-class tertiary education to students from the Central Asia region. MDIS has a university status that is granted by the Uzbekistan government.
MDIS will set up its second campus in Malaysia, Iskandar, Johor Bahru, positioned as a University College. It will offer courses in Business Management, Information Technology, Digital Media, Mass Communications and, Travel and Tourism. The first batch of students is expected to be enrolled in 2013.
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What are the quality certifications that MDIS has obtained?
MDIS is committed to deliver high quality standards of education. Its university partners continue to uphold their excellent quality assurance through their various quality systems.
MDIS received the Singapore Quality Class award in July 2003 and the CaseTrust Accreditation for Private Education Institutes (PEIs) in August 2005. Having attained the latest ISO 9001:2008 standards demonstrates MDIS• focus on customer service and satisfaction.
The MDIS School of Life Sciences also implemented the Occupational Health and Safety Management system and is now OHSAS 18001:2007 certified.
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Is the degree obtained through MDIS of equivalent standards to one obtained by students studying on-campus?
Students are assessed on the same standards as internal students. Therefore, the degree awarded is exactly the same as the on-campus degree. The only exception is the University of Wales degree, which is a validated degree because this university is a federal university.
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Are the programmes conducted by MDIS registered with the Ministry of Education (MOE)?
All programmes conducted by MDIS are registered with the MOE.
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Are the degrees recognised by the Singapore government?
The Public Service Commission (PSC) in Singapore will accept any degree awarded by the universities as a criteria for employment in the Civil Service so long as they are accepted by their home government. A criterion to determine this recognition is to verify whether the university is a member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) for both UK and Australian programmes.
The American programmes are recognised as long as the U.S. government or the North Central Association (NCA) accredits the university.
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Will I be able to gain admission into the local universities after completing my Advanced Diploma with MDIS?
No. Currently, local universities only recognise diplomas from local polytechnics and good GCE "A" level results. However, you can apply for the masters degree programmes with the local universities with a bachelors degree from MDIS.
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What is the difference between MDIS and other Private Education Institutes (PEIs)?
Unlike most other PEIs, MDIS is affiliated with 50 universities all over the world who recognise our courses.
We are also the oldest institute in Singapore at 56 years of age and operate independently. We generate our own resources and are involved in community work, giving out over S$500,000 a year.
We are managed by voluntary professionals with a vision of continual growth.
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How many Universities recognise MDIS to-date?
50 universities all over the world recognise our courses.
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Who issues all the degree certificates?
Our foreign university partners issue and validate all our Degree programmes and certificates.
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Who governs and manages MDIS?
MDIS is governed and managed by an elected Governing Council with a strong management team who operate on a voluntary basis.
Our members own MDIS.
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What is the meaning that MDIS is a “not-for-profit” organisation?
Fundamentally, this means that optimum surpluses or profits MDIS earn will be channelled and ploughed back towards community service and towards our members in terms of better quality education.
All surplues are retained in MDIS and used for improving infrastructure, community projects and upgrading and improvement purposes.
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Where can students go when they are in financial difficulties?
MDIS has a strategic alliance with Telecoms Credit Co-operative (TCC) which is a not-for-profit organisation. It gives financial support to our students and provides them with preferential loan rates.
Course Conduct
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What are the differences between a fully taught, distance learning and correspondence course?
Fully taught - students must attend weekly lectures and tutorials. Contacts with the lecturers are on a more frequent basis.
Distance learning - students are in contact with their tutors through intensive bloc sessions over a limited period of time. In a distance learning mode, students are required to read their course materials at their own time. During the session with the tutors, students will seek clarifications on issues that need further understanding.
Correspondence - there is no contact with the tutors. Students are very much on their own. They probably correspond with tutors over emails or faxes. MDIS does not offer correspondence courses.
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Is there an attendance requirement?
Yes. You need to fulfil 90% attendance as a full-time student and 80% attendance as a part-time student.
To meet Singapore Immigration and Registration (SIR) requirement, a 90% attendance is compulsory for the student pass holder.
Students who are company-sponsored and are on Skills Development Fund (SDF) sponsorship must also fulfil a minimum attendance of 75%.
However, if you have to be away for business trip, reservist training, medical reasons with a valid medical certificate, you can be excused from the requirement (except for foreign students). All documentary proof must be submitted to MDIS with the leave of absence form.
Course Fee / Discount
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Are there any hidden costs?
Besides the membership fee, there is no hidden cost, all materials (e.g. lecture notes and lab fees), and examination fee are included in the course fee.
Academic and Service Support
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What are the qualifications / credentials of the lecturers? How qualified are they?
Respective universities must approve all lecturers before they are allowed to teach in the programme. Usually, they are academia from local tertiary institutions or practitioners from the industry.
They must hold a recognised master's degree and above in order to undertake any bachelor's degree; and at least a bachelor's degree to teach in our certificate and diploma programmes.
Membership Fee
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Why should students pay the membership fee?
MDIS is a ‘not-for-profit’ organisation and a membership-based institute. As such, MDIS membership is a prerequisite for students attending MDIS academic courses.
