The Asian Parent magazine reported that the estimated cost of raising children in Singapore amounts to approximately SGD340,000. It translates into around SGD44 per day (till 21 years old).

Expenses such as clothes, food and medical care are included when parents budget for raising children.

But are we forgetting something? What about the costs of education? Education is seen as an important facet in our meritocratic society.

We still consider it a sign of career success. As for as most Singaporean families are concerned, excellent education = successful career.

Hidden Costs: Education

Parents will spend more on their child's education by sending them to the best independent schools and overseas universities. If their child requires additional coaching, parents will pay for the best private tutors that the industry offers.

Parents who cannot afford to pay for the best educational services in the private education market will feel pressure, as other parents are doing so for their children.

The monthly fees for primary school start from SGD6.50 per month. In addition, a few students have started attending tuition classes from lower Primary levels.

The basics costs from Primary school through Secondary school would cost about SGD2,500.

Doesn’t seem that bad?

Most parents would start to feel the financial strain when their children start to require tuition classes to keep up with their peers or to maintain their stellar grades in school and then attend university.

Tuition costs between SGD150 and SGD400 per subject per month. Tuition classes for five subjects would amount to at least SGD750 per month.

The costs of sending your child to a Junior College costs approximately SGD800 for two years and SGD2,900 for three years in a polytechnic.

When parents consider sending your child to a university is when they are faced with the exponential increase in the costs of paying for their children's education.

The average cost of a degree course at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) is about SGD28,000 to SGD32,600. At Singapore Management University (SMU), it is approximately SGD45,600 to SGD50,400 per year and at the National University of Singapore (NUS), it is approximately about SGD29,650 to SGD146,750.

Singaporean parents spend a total of about SGD97,000 per child, on education if their child studies in locally situated schools. When parents send their child overseas for a university education, the costs can mount to at least SGD100,000 and up to SGD 271,400 for all expenses and university tuition fees.

The Solution

The solution is to plan ahead and factor in the ever-increasing costs of education year-on-year while having a solid foundation on tracking expenses and personal financial planning skills.

Find alternatives to educational services such as for supplementary tuition classes. Cudy, an online marketplace and platform for live tuition classes in Singapore, is one of the alternatives for parents to save on the costs of education while providing the best quality teachers and content for their children to benefit from.

Read more about the costs of raising a child in this Today's article here.