For Participants

As a DREAMS participant, you are part of our diverse participant group of >7000 students sharing about what it’s like to be a secondary school student in Singapore

On This Page

Your Role

The DREAMS research team sincerely thanks you, your family, and your teachers for sharing about what it’s like to be a secondary school student in Singapore. Without you, this study wouldn’t be possible.

What can I expect as a DREAMS participant?

  • You will be allocated time during school hours to complete 2 surveys per year throughout your secondary education.
  • Complete your surveys and receive a $10 voucher from us as a thank you!
  • You may be invited for additional follow-up interview sessions in Term 4.

What else can I do as a DREAMS participant?

  • Follow us on Instagram for regular project updates and findings.
  • Participate in other activities and events.
  • Find out more about DREAMS here

What happens to my survey responses?

Complete your surveys every year

and tell us about different areas of your life as a secondary school student 

Answers compiled into sets

Personal details are removed to protect your privacy, and everyone’s answers are combined and sorted to create data sets

 

Crunching the numbers...

Our researchers make important discoveries about the development and educational pathways of teenagers in Singapore

Spread the word!

Our findings will be shared far and wide — to policymakers, professionals, teachers, parents, students and more (both locally and internationally)

Making real change

We hope that policies and practices in educational settings and beyond will be developed based on our findings to help improve the lives of students in Singapore

Frequently Asked Questions

A longitudinal cohort study is a research project where we observe and gather information from a group of people over an extended period, like several years. Our goal is to understand how students' experiences and choices shape their lives as they progress through secondary school and beyond.
You decide whether to complete the surveys. While participation is voluntary, we encourage you to take part. Your survey responses are a direct contribution to meaningful research that can positively influence policies and practices related to your education and well-being. It's a chance to have your voice heard and make a real impact. Since this is a longitudinal study, where we follow the same group of people over many years, your continued participation is greatly valued. Your ongoing involvement allows us to track changes and developments in your lives, providing a more comprehensive understanding.
You were invited to this study either as a part of the 2023 Secondary 1 cohort of one of the 28 schools selected by MOE for this study, or as a previous participant of the SKIP/SKIP(-UP) study.
Welcome gift bag Vouchers for completing surveys Opportunity to participate in our June Holiday camp
tudying a wide range of areas such as
  • School & career aspirations
  • self-identity & decision making
  • social & relational contexts,
  • mental health, wellbeing, & lifestyle
  • early childhood and primary experiences
Learn more on our About Page

You will receive a $10 voucher for your 2023 participation either when our research team visits your school in Term 2 2024 or electronically via email. The voucher for completing 2024 surveys will be given to you next year (2025).

Opting out of any surveys will not affect your relationship with the National Institute of Education or Ministry of Education or impact any ongoing assessment/grades. You may skip any questions you do not wish to answer.
The DREAMS research team takes our responsibility as guardians of participants' information very seriously. We have several procedures in place to keep your data and privacy secure and protected. DREAMS has approval and oversight from the NTU Institutional Review Board (IRB), ensuring compliance with the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA). The NTU-IRB ensures the protection of human subjects involved in research studies by maintaining the highest levels of research ethics and integrity. Your participation in this research will be kept confidential. Identifying information (e.g., name, last 4 characters of NRIC, e-mail address) will be asked to ensure the accuracy of our records, for linking of data collected at different time points, and for contacting you. Identifying information is removed and replaced with a random numeric ID to ensure anonymity before it is transferred to our research team for analysis, where everyone’s answers are combined and reported as aggregates. The findings of this study may be reported in scientific presentations and reports, as well as social and broadcast media. Your identity will NOT be reflected or disclosed in these presentations, reports, and publications.
We will regularly share our study findings through various channels (eg. tip sheets, blog posts, social media updates, academic publications, and presentations etc.) throughout the duration of the study. The best way to stay up to date is by following us on Instagram or Facebook.
  • AI tools will transcribe interview audio and generate initial draft transcripts ​
  • These tools are managed by trusted service providers who follow data protection guidelines, though they are not directly operated by NTU​
  • Identifying information will be scrubbed from the audio files before they are uploaded, and completed transcripts + audio recordings are deleted and not retained by the service provider​
  • Exposure to data leakage is prevented as much as possible​