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Sentinel Programme
Step into the new frontier with us through our youth talent development programme.
Last updated 7 July 2025
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What Is the Sentinel Programme?
The Sentinel Programme is a talent development programme to equip youths with cybersecurity and digital skills. The Programme is organised by the Digital and Intelligence Service (DIS), in collaboration with the Defence Technology Community and fully sponsored by MINDEF/SAF.
Sentinel Journey
Participants of the programme can expect to:
Achieve
Become more proficient and hone your skills further through competitions organised by the programme and MINDEF/SAF agencies.
Build
Meet like-minded individuals from other schools and build strong, long-lasting relationships.
Learn
Dive into cybersecurity and learn essential skills like coding and network forensics.
Experience
See what life as a cyber or tech professional is like first-hand through visits, internships and mentorships with MINDEF/SAF agencies.
Programme Structure
Secondary school students
The programme will build foundational skills in computing and cybersecurity. Lower Secondary students will attend 3-day workshops during the school holidays.
Upper Secondary students will deepen their skill sets through holiday workshops and classes on Saturdays. Students will also have opportunities to visit our defence agencies.
Upon graduation from Secondary school, interested students will be invited to continue with the post-secondary programme.
Junior College/Polytechnic/ITE students
The programme will deepen students' cybersecurity knowledge in real-world applications. They will attend 3-day workshops during school holidays, as well as classes on Saturdays.
Students will also have opportunities to visit and intern at our defence agencies and be mentored by cybersecurity professionals.
What Participants Will Learn
Course topics for Cybersecurity Education: Capstone Projects and Key Topics across different levels
Student Cohort | Examples of Topics | Capstone Projects |
|---|---|---|
Lower Secondary |
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Upper Secondary |
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Junior College/ Polytechnic/ ITE |
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Programme Highlights
Find out more about Sentinel Programme activities through the video below, and the Sentinel Bytes newsletter [PDF, 1.6 MB]!
Applications
If you have interest in IT/ Maths/ Science and have an aptitude for logical reasoning and problem solving, you have what it takes to be a Sentinel.
Applications are open annually to Singaporeans and Singapore Permanent Residents who are Secondary 1 students and Year 1 students in Junior College, Polytechnic and ITE.
The application deadlines and programme commencement dates for the 2025 intake are shown below:
Applications deadline and start date of programmes for different age group categories
Student Cohort | Applications close | Programme starts |
|---|---|---|
Secondary 1 | 16 March 2025 | June 2025 |
Junior College Year 1 | 02 March 2025 | Late March 2025 |
Polytechnic/ ITE Year 1 | 18 May 2025 | June 2025 |
Join us and safeguard the new frontier together!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is The Sentinel Programme?
The Sentinel Programme is a talent development programme to equip youths with cybersecurity and digital skills.
Secondary school (or equivalent) students would go through a progressive training curriculum throughout their secondary school years to explore cybersecurity and digital applications, starting from the middle of the Secondary 1 academic year.
Junior College, Polytechnic and ITE (or equivalent) students would go through a comprehensive training curriculum to deepen their cybersecurity and digital skills, with starting dates depending on the respective Junior College, Polytechnic and ITE academic calendars.
What is the meaning behind the name of The Sentinel Programme?
The word, “Sentinel” refers to a person who keeps watch. The programme name reflects its vision to nurture a community of youths who possess the skills, values, and traits to safeguard Singapore’s digital way of life.
Do participants have to pay for this programme?
No, participants do not need to pay for the programme. The programme is fully sponsored by MINDEF/SAF.
What is the programme schedule?
In general, for lower secondary school students, there will be workshops during the mid-year and end-of-year school holidays. When students progresses to upper secondary and post-secondary levels, they will also attend Saturday classes during term time in addition to workshops during the school holidays.Further details on the programme schedule will be shared with successful applicants.
How long is the programme?
Sentinel is a 4-year programme for students who join in Secondary 1 (or equivalent), and a 2-year programme for students who join in Year 1 Junior College, Polytechnic and ITE (or equivalent).
Secondary school students who complete the 4-year programme can continue with the programme when they are in post-secondary education institutions, subject to meeting the qualifying criteria.
I am keen to apply for the programme. What email address should I use for the application?
Students are requested to apply using their school-assigned student email address e.g. email addresses ending with @students.edu.sg.
All students from MOE schools are issued a student email account ending with @students.edu.sg, which is administered by the school. Please approach your school administrator if you need any assistance with the email account.
Students who face issues with their @students.edu.sg email account or do not have such an email account are advised to email us at sentinel@defence.gov.sg.
I am keen to apply for the programme. However, I have not received a school email account. How do I apply?
Students from MOE schools are requested to apply using their student email account ending with @students.edu.sg.
All students from MOE schools are issued a student email account ending with @students.edu.sg, which is administered by the school. Please approach your school administrator for assistance if you face any issues. Once you have received/verified your school email, you can proceed to apply for the programme through go.gov.sg/sentinel.
Students who face issues with their school email account or do not have such an email account are advised to email us at sentinel@defence.gov.sg.
My school email domain is not accepted in the sign-up form.
Please email us your school email address at sentinel@defence.gov.sg and we will whitelist it for application.
The application form asked for a code verification. How do I get the code?
The verification code will be sent to the email account you used in the application form. Please access your email account to retrieve the code.
Please approach your school administrator for assistance if you face any issues accessing your school email account.
I did not receive the email with the verification code.
Please approach your school administrator for assistance if you face any issues with your school email account.
What is the application process?
After submitting the online application, applicants will receive instructions via email to sit for an online, aptitude-based selection test. Successful applicants will be notified by email.
When will I know the results of my application?
Applicants will be informed via their registered email address on when they should expect to receive the results of their application.
Who is eligible to apply for the programme?
All Year 1 students of Secondary Schools, Junior Colleges, Polytechnics and ITEs (or equivalent) in 2025 who are Singaporeans or Singapore Permanent Residents are eligible to apply.
I am / My child is very interested to join the programme. He / She is currently in Secondary 2 / JC 2 equivalent. Can he / she apply?
The Sentinel Programme currently enrols only first year students in Secondary Schools, Junior Colleges, Polytechnics and ITEs ( or equivalent). We will update the website and schools if enrolment is opened up to other education levels in future.
Do I need to have programming skills to apply?
Knowledge of programming is not required but will be useful. No preparation is required for the selection test.
Contact Us
For feedback and enquiries, please contact us at sentinel@defence.gov.sg.