“Please finish your education and be a beacon of hope for our generation”
Raising SGD 18,500 for her Tuition Fees
Sinchita, 26, is a Singaporean student at NTU who is looking to raise SGD 18,500 to fund the remainder of her University tuition fees. Although she did manage to raise a portion of her tuition fees through working as a trainee, her SG Traineeship was not renewed.
Working while studying is not a viable option as the part-time program costs SGD 10,000 more than the full-time course which would put her in further debt.
Having exhausted almost every opportunity, and knocked on every door, she is at her wit’s end. After her countless interactions with the social assistance system in all its various forms, she has lost faith in the system and become distraught. Tired, but undeterred, she now turns to the community to assist her in the final lap of her educational journey.
“After these interactions, I have grown completely distraught at the social assistance system and have decided to take matters into my own hands.”
Being the child of a single mother from an under-privileged background, the path less trodden is not new to Sinchita.
As a self-professed “fighter”, she hopes that, with the help of the community, she will be able to overcome this seemingly unsurmountable hurdle, just as she has done before at various stages of her life.
Crowd-funding her Tuition Fees
She shared with Wake Up Singapore that the idea of crowd-funding her tuition fees did seem daunting and novel at first. However, after experiencing first-hand how certain social assistance programs in Singapore are designed to rob one of their dignity, and subjects applicants to humiliation, it dawned on her that community-funding might just be the one method that not only preserved dignity, but also allowed for mutual empowerment.
Having to personally navigate the quagmires of the social welfare system while she and her mother, who raised her single-handedly, were subjected to a barrage of dehumanising interactions, was an eye-opening student for the student of sociology. In a poignant Instagram story, Sinchita wondered if she had “to lose every iota of dignity in the process of reaching out for social assistance before it is rendered to them“.
However, after the shock subsided, what took its place was a bold and defiant resolve to ensure that what happened to her should not deter her pursuit of higher education. In an Instagram post, she explained what she termed “inherent challenges” within the education system:
Our education system is capitalist first before it is considered meritocratic. The fundamental principle of meritocracy has been that it ensures the capable and bright attain seating in educational programs. If so, my educational capacities being hindered by financial challenges highlights a broken system that withholds the privilege of education from needy and deserving students who have made the cut to prestigious programs in local, autonomous universities.
Aside from the archaic means-testing systems and the intrusive questions, she was also subject to humiliation when the results were withheld. As the rest of her classmates were comparing their results and planning their next course of action for the upcoming semester, Sinchita was frantically liaising with an Indian organisation, that she does not wish to name, that had pledged a sum of money towards her education. She learnt that the said organisation had not paid the $2,000 that they said they would pay NTU on time. Even then, Sinchita’s desperation was met with bureaucratic apathy and no apology was given for an administrative error by the Indian organisation.
Riddled with anxiety, and disillusioned by the experiences with leaders of the Indian community who paid no more than lip service to her predicament, Sinchita decided to take matters into her own hands.
The Power of Community
To date, Sinchita has raised about 37% of her target amount. A balance of approximately SGD 11,488 remains to be raised.
Many Instagram users expressed solidarity and support for Sinchita’s fundraising efforts. Others, however, raised questions about why this is a cause worthy of donations. We deal with the latter point below.
But before that, we pause to note that, in just a few days, the amount raised by the community is more than tripe the amount that was pledged by the Indian organisation that Sinchita had to beg and jump through hoops for. Such is the power of community.
Why Should I Donate?
In the days following the launch of her fundraiser, Sinchita has been received some questions about people who had reservations about donating to her cause.
Some of these questions had crossed our minds too, when we first read about her fundraiser. A few days ago, Sinchita was again questioned by the Vice-President from another Indian organisation to verify that she “was truly financially needy”.
Sinchita is aware of her “privilege” as a Masters candidate. Having discussed the matter with Sinchita, who has faced some of the questions that follow repeatedly, she is of the view that the questions ought to be answered publicly and clearly in the interests of transparency. It would also serve as a “FAQ section” of sorts for potential donor
Q: Why did you decide to pursue your studies instead of work?
A: I graduated in the peak of the COVID-19 in December 2020 where the employment market was at its worst. I applied to over 200 jobs and heard back from less than 5% of them. I managed to get a 6 month traineeship which could not be renewed. While doing the traineeship, I did apply for jobs but did not get back a response. Knowing well that one could not predict how long this recession could be for, I decided to go back to school to further improve myself so that I could enter an employment market that was more favourable.
Q: Why don’t you work to fund your studies?
A: If I worked to fund my studies, I would not have any money for my personal expenses. Furthermore, the demands of graduate school would mean that I would be burning the candle on both ends between work and school, making it a situation where I would not do well in school or work.
Q: Is studying part-time while working an option?
A: This was an option I had explored when figuring out a solution to my problem. The challenge with it was that I would pay approximately $10000 more for extending my candidature, leaving me in a much worse financial predicament.
Q: Have you tried approaching the University for help?
A: I have, and they have been very helpful and understanding. I was very fortunate to have a Professor and staff within the University advocate for me for support within the university, and I am eternally thankful for that.
Q: Have you tried approaching social welfare organisations for help?
A: For context, I received the offer of my acceptance on April 14, 2021. I remember it vividly because it was the day of Tamil New Year, or Vishu for the Malayalees. I recall a sinking feeling in my heart not being able to be happy I secured a place in a programme I had wanted, because of the funding problem. From the 17th of April 2021 till February this year, I spent the past 10 months riddled with anxiety reaching out to almost all social welfare organisations I could find on the internet. It was around July last year that I was referred to an Indian organisation for assistance. I was cleared for $2000 to be granted for my first semester of fees to be paid by the Indian organisation. They had also made it very clear that this payment was a one-time payment that would be made. When my results were released, I was denied access to view my results as there was no proof of payment by the Indian organisation to my university. Instead, I had to go back and forth between the Indian organisation and university to verify this payment and viewed my results a day after my peers, for an administrative error that I was not responsible for.
I had an interview arranged to speak with a publicly listed Fintech company on the eve of Deepavali last year. During the interview, I was asked what my career goals were, and had shared that I wanted to work in research and policy, an area where I have industry experience through multiple internships, I was told to be realistic about my expectations. While well intended, the comment was ignorant and blatantly disrespectful to be conveying to a disadvantaged student desperate for funding for school on the eve of a religious event, let alone by Indians themselves
I also approached the Member of Parliament within my constituency in his capacity as an advisory member to the Indian organisation who did not provide me with any response after I had shared my story and followed up.
I don’t believe anyone should be treated like that for coming from a disadvantaged background and trying to pursue the means to secure a better future, but sadly this is the reality in Singapore. I do not want to be muted and othered away, and would like to know that I exhausted all the options I could, which is why I started the crowdfunding page.
How to Donate
To put the outstanding amount that Sinchita seeks to raise in perspective, if 400 readers donated 30 dollars, Sinchita will be able to complete her education and embark on her journey to empower others and give back to society.
If you wish to donate to her, you pay do so via PayNow/PayLah using the QR code above. Alternatively, you can donate via GoGetFunding here. However, do note that if you donate via the latter option, a portion of the donation goes to the platform, so it may be most efficient if you PayNow or Paylah Sinchita directly.
Stacy, the founder of Indians of Singapore and a schoolmate of Sinchita’s, penned a moving tribute to Sinchita and her fundraising efforts. Stacy noted that society needs people like Sinchita to “lift our society“, and that it is up to us to “build our leaders“.
Thanking Well-Wishers
For many, her endeavours may be seen as hubris, but she hopes to “advocate for the eradication of systemic injustices against the disadvantaged because of her lived experiences”. For her Masters dissertation, Sinchita intends to investigate the impacts of parental divorce on adult children of divorce to be an advocate for people from similar backgrounds as hers.
We end with a message from Sinchita to her well wishers Sinchita reflects on her crowdfunding journey thus far.
“The past week as I began this crowdfunding process, I received a lot of flak for being “shameless” to resort to this to fund my education. But the harsh reality is that I am likely not the only person to have experienced this. At the heart of Asian culture lies the myth of “face value” : that when you seek for help (and so make known your circumstances) your self worth somehow reduces. No it does not, that’s illusory. In reality it means you are empowered enough to acknowledge you need help and take control of the situation.
So no, I am not ashamed. I am ashamed of the social assistance system that dehumanises people and robs them of their dignity, ashamed of social assistance providers that think it is alright to treat service users without any respect because they are disadvantaged. I am ashamed of trolls that think it is self indulgent to resort to crowdfunding for a cause that does not impose on them.”
I’d like to say a very heartfelt thank you to anyone that has helped or has done the very simple act of spreading the word! Even if not for my funding page, I’d like to implore each of you to make a commitment to help one person, one organisation or one situation that touches your heart. If you have a dollar, that is plenty to share. The world should be a kinder place, and the onus is on us as individuals to make that a reality.
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