The Specialist Cadet School (SCS) is the military training centre for the

Singapore Armed Forces The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) are the military services of the Republic of Singapore, responsible for protecting and defending the security interests and the sovereignty of the country. A military component of the Ministry of Defence (MIND ...

' specialists, the equivalent of non-commissioned officers (NCOs) in other countries' armed forces. Made up of twelve

companies A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...

divided into three schools (SCS I, SCS II, and SCS III), it is located in

Pasir Laba Camp Pasir Laba Camp is a military base of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) located in Western Water Catchment, Singapore. It is home to the Specialist and Warrant Officer Institute, where specialists (non-commissioned officers) and warrant officers ...

in the

Western Water Catchment The Western Water Catchment is a planning area located in the West Region of Singapore. The planning area borders Tuas and Pioneer to its south, Sungei Kadut, Choa Chu Kang and Tengah to its east, Jurong West to its southeast, Lim Chu Kang ...

. The three schools, along with the SAFWOS Leadership School (SAFWOS) and Specialist and Warrant Officer Advanced School (SWAS), form the

Specialist and Warrant Officer Institute The Specialist and Warrant Officer Institute (SWI) is the military training centre for warrant officers, specialists (non-commissioned officers) and military experts of the Singapore Armed Forces. Located at Pasir Laba Camp in the Western Wa ...

(SWI).

History

The Specialist Cadet School has its origins in 1966 when NCOs in the

were selected to serve as the first batch of instructors in the School of Section Leaders (SSL). As the Singapore Armed Forces expanded, the School of Infantry Section Leaders (SISL) was established on 1 October 1970 with a 21-week training course for NCOs. In 1979, after the military training system underwent a restructuring, high-performing SISL trainees were selected to undergo further training at the

Officer Cadet School An officer candidate school (OCS) is a military school which trains civilians and enlisted personnel in order for them to gain a commission as officers in the armed forces of a country. How OCS is run differs between countries and services. Typ ...

to become

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

s. In 1980, HQ Infantry took control of SISL and shortened the training course from 21 weeks to 12 weeks. On 22 June 1981, SISL was restructured to have five

(Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta and Echo) and the Advanced Specialists Training Wing (ASTW). On 1 May 1982, SISL was renamed SAF Infantry Non-Commissioned Officers' School (SAFINCOS) and started conducting the Basic Infantry Section Leader Courses along with other advanced courses such as the Platoon Sergeant Course, Infantry Senior NCO Course, and the Reserve Infantry Senior NCO Course. In 1989, SAFINCOS took in its first batch of female trainees. In 1992, SAFINCOS was renamed School of Infantry Specialists (SISPEC). It relocated from

Pulau Tekong Pulau may refer to: *Pulau virus (PuV), a novel strain of Nelson Bay orthoreovirus species *Pulau River, a river of West Papua and Papua New Guinea See also *List of islands of Malaysia – "Pulau" means "island" in the Malay language *Pulao (di ...

in 1999, and the SISPEC compound at Rocky Hill Camp on Pulau Tekong was officially opened on 17 August 2000 by Major-General

Ng Yat Chung Ng Yat Chung is a Singaporean former lieutenant-general who served as Chief of Defence Force between 2003 and 2007. Education Ng received his secondary and pre-university education in Victoria School and Hwa Chong Junior College respectiv ...

, the Chief of Army. In 2003, SISPEC achieved ISO 9002 for the management of its Advanced and Basic Section Leader Courses. In 2006, SISPEC moved back to its new compound in Pasir Laba Camp. On 22 December 2008, the Singapore Armed Forces introduced a new rank, Specialist Cadet (SCT), specifically for specialist trainees at SISPEC. In 2010, SISPEC was renamed Specialist Cadet School (SCS) and divided into three schools – SCS I, SCS II and SCS III – under the

(SWI), which also manages the SAFWOS Leadership School (SAFWOS) and Specialist and Warrant Officer Advanced School (SWAS).

Training

SCS trainees start their training with a Foundation Term, during which they acquire

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

skills and knowledge to lead an infantry

section Section, Sectioning or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...

. They complete a route march in Full Battle Order at the end of the Foundation Term. After completing the Foundation Term, trainees who are selected to serve in the

Infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

and Guards formations remain in SCS to continue with the Infantry/Guards Professional Term, while those selected to serve in other formations (e.g. Armour,

Artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

Combat Engineers A combat engineer (also called pioneer or sapper) is a type of soldier who performs military engineering tasks in support of land forces combat operations. Combat engineers perform a variety of military engineering, tunnel and mine warfare tas ...

Medical Corps A medical corps is generally a military branch or officer corps responsible for medical care for serving military personnel. Such officers are typically military physicians. List of medical corps The following organizations are examples of medica ...

Signals In signal processing, a signal is a function that conveys information about a phenomenon. Any quantity that can vary over space or time can be used as a signal to share messages between observers. The ''IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing'' ...

) are posted to their respective formations to continue their Professional Terms there. Upon completion of the Professional Term, all the trainees undergo an eight-day Combined Arms Term in SCS and mark the end of their training with a graduation parade, during which they receive the rank of Third Sergeant. They are then posted to their respective units.

References

{{Singapore Armed Forces Military education and training in Singapore Western Water Catchment Educational institutions established in 1970