Facts about SJI

St. Joseph's Institution (SJI) (圣若瑟书院 shèng ruò sè shū yuàn) is a Catholic secondary school for boys founded in 1852 by the Brothers of the Christian Schools or De La Salle Brothers. It is the 3rd oldest secondary school in Singapore.

SJI offers its secondary school boys a dual track education comprising the Integrated Programme (IP) or the Secondary Education Certificate Programme (SEC). The IP track is a 6-year programme leading to the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) in Years 5 and 6. The 2-year pre-university IBDP admits boys and girls (co-education). The SEC track is a 4-year programme leading to the Secondary Education Certificate (SEC) examinations at the end of Year 4. Based on their SEC examination results, they can apply to continue the IBDP at SJI, or pursue courses at other junior colleges or polytechnics.

At SJI, we focus on nurturing our students to learn how to learn and to learn how to live, so that they can be empowered to grow into persons of integrity and persons for others. We operate based on the values of Faith as our foundation, Service as our way, and Community as our support.

Hence, our academic and student development curricula focus on providing a balanced and holistic education with a strong emphasis on character formation and leadership development. We not only want our students to acquire the necessary knowledge, skills and dispositions that will prepare them well for post-secondary education and the future but also to be able to live a meaningful life driven by passion in the service for others.

Brief History of SJI's Establishment

SJI was the first missionary establishment of the Brothers of the Christian Schools in the Far East. The school owes its establishment to Reverend Father Jean-Marie Beurel, a French priest who was working in Singapore in the 1840s. On 22 July 1852, St. John's School, as SJI was called then, started as a free school at Bras Basah Road which depended on the support of the public. As the enrolment for the school had increased significantly, the cornerstone for the new school was laid on 19 March 1855. With the laying of the cornerstone, the name of the school was changed to St. Joseph's Institution. View the SJI milestones.

Resources

Source: URA (This film was made as part of the URA-NTU collaboration to celebrate winners of the URA Architectural Heritage Awards 2016).