Yesterday, the 2014 Shanghai Rankings, the influential global ranking of universities by Jiao Tong University in China, were released.  Singapore continued its upward rise as its two leading universities saw spectacular gains. The National University of Singapore (NUS) fell just short of breaking into the top 100 as it rose from 134 to 111, while Nanyang Technological University (NTU) now ranks 190th in the world, up from 269.

Singapore’s continued success comes at a time when the higher education landscape in Singapore is changing.  In order to meet the goal of raising the proportion of the young population with a university degree to 40% by 2020, which is comparable to the average in the OECD and up from 27% just two years ago, the government established the 5th autonomous (national) university, Singapore Institute of Technology last year and opened full time degree programs at another. The degrees at these institutions are mostly in applied fields and particularly geared to offer Polytechnic graduates the chance to top up their 3 year diplomas to bachelor’s degrees.

Raising the skills of the population is essential for Singapore to maintain its globally competitive position. But the always pragmatic Singaporean government seems to be signaling a shift in where it sees higher education going; it is now stressing that key skills need not necessarily come from a university degree.

Tomorrow’s National Day Rally (NDR), which is the annual occasion for the Prime Minister to lay out the policy priorities for the coming year, will take place at the Institute for Technical Education, a vocational and technical training institution, rather than at NUS where it is traditionally held. PM Lee Hsien Loong reportedly will focus on the importance of attaining skills though programs that combine study and work, not through a solely academic track.

Convincing parents that their children’s success in ultra-competitive Singapore does not require a degree will be a bit of an uphill battle as politicians recognize.  In advance of the NDR speech, Irene Ng, a Member of Parliament for the ruling party who sits on the Education Committee in Parliament is quoted in the Straits Times as saying: “a university degree is not a must-have to advance in life and do well. This will require quite a cultural shift in a society which has traditionally placed top emphasis on academic qualifications.”

But the alternative – too many degree holders for jobs that do not exist and a shortage of people with in-demand technical skills – would potentially slow the economy and create potentially greater public dissatisfaction than fewer degree places in universities.

As Singapore’s top universities rise in the global rankings, the country is also trying to raise the life chances of average citizens by expanding pathways beyond universities.