JC Rankings 2027: Best JCs in Singapore by Cut-Off

Top JCs In Singapore 2027: The Quick Answer

This JC ranking puts every junior college (JC) in Singapore, all 18 of them, in order of how hard they were to get into in the 2026 Joint Admissions Exercise (JAE), using the cut-off ranges MOE published for the 2027 JAE. If you sat the 2026 O-Levels and are choosing a JC in January 2027, these are the latest figures you'll have before you apply.

By that measure, the top 5 JCs in Singapore are:

1. Raffles Institution (RI): last student admitted at a net L1R5 of 3 for Science and 5 for Arts
2. Hwa Chong Institution (HCI): also 3 for Science and 5 for Arts
3. Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) (ACS(I)): 5 for its IB Diploma course
4. Eunoia Junior College (EJC): 5 for Science, 6 for Arts
5. Nanyang Junior College (NYJC): 5 for Science, 7 for Arts

A lower score is better, so a smaller cut-off means a more competitive JC. That makes this a ranking of demand, not of academic excellence or teaching quality: it tells you which JCs the strongest scorers chose in 2026. Choosing the right junior college matters more than its rank. The best JC in Singapore for you is the one you can get into that also suits your subjects, your journey and the way you like to learn.

JC Ranking 2027: All 18 JCs And MI

Each JC runs separate Arts and Science courses with their own codes and cut-offs, so you'll see two ranges per school. Each range runs from the best net L1R5 admitted to the last. The second number is the cut-off. Ranks marked = are shared.

On a phone, swipe the table sideways to see every column.

* Notional: the last student admitted scored better, but the course still had places, so MOE shows 20. "None listed" means MOE's JAE data lists no affiliated secondary schools for that JC. Scores are net, after bonus points. Every JC and MI is co-ed.

For every course's full details, including what the ranges mean at each score, see our JC cut-off points 2026 page.

How We Ranked The JCs

There's no official JC ranking in MOE's JAE data. What MOE does publish is each course's 2026 range of net L1R5 scores, from the best student admitted to the last. Many people call the top of each range the JC's cut-off point. We built the ranking from those ranges in three steps:

1. Take each JC's more competitive course. For every JC we used the lower (better) of its Arts and Science cut-offs. At every JC this is the Science course, or both courses closed at the same score (TJC at 7, TMJC at 12 and JPJC at 14)
2. Break ties with the other course. Where two JCs shared a best cut-off, the one with the lower cut-off on its other course ranks higher. RI and HCI matched on both (3 and 5), so they share 1st; Dunman High, National JC and Victoria JC matched on both (6 and 8), so they share 7th
3. Rank the two IB schools on their one course. ACS(I) and SJI offer only the IB Diploma through the JAE, with no Arts or Science course, so their single cut-off counts for both

Why not rank by the best score admitted? The bottom of each range is the top scorer each JC took, and 11 of the 18 JCs admitted at least one student with a net 2. That number can't separate them. The cut-off, the last place filled, shows how far down the queue a JC had to go, which is what you need to know when you apply.

Why MI is listed separately: Millennia Institute runs a 3-year A-Level course and admits on L1R4, not L1R5, so its scores aren't on the same scale. It has three courses (Arts, Commerce and Science) and a 2026 range of 9 or 10 to 20.

How To Read The JC Ranking

• Lower is better. Each grade is worth its number (A1 is 1, B3 is 3), so an L1R5 of 5 is stronger than 10. Not sure how yours is made up? Our L1R5 and L1R4 explained guide walks through it
• Cut-offs are net scores. MOE posts students by their net aggregate score, which is the gross L1R5 minus bonus points. For JC admission you need a gross L1R5 of 20 or less, plus the English, Maths and Mother Tongue grades MOE sets
• Bonus points move you up the list. Up to 4 points come off for posting: 2 for an Excellent grade in co-curricular activities (CCA), or 1 for Good, 2 for English and a Higher Mother Tongue Language both at A1 to C6, 2 for Chinese or Malay (Special Programme) or Bahasa Indonesia at A1 to C6, and 2 at your affiliated JC. A Language Elective Programme adds 2 more at the JC offering it
• The cut-off is the edge, not a safe line. At exactly the cut-off you'd have tied with the last student admitted in 2026. Ties for the last place go by citizenship, then the lower gross score, then a computerised ballot
• Each course is separate. A JC's Science course can be far harder to enter than its Arts course, or the other way round, so check the one you'll apply for

JC Tiers 2027 At A Glance

Grouping the 18 junior colleges in Singapore into bands is a quicker way to see where you fit. The bands use each JC's better 2026 cut-off.

• Top 5: cut-off 3 to 5RI, HCI, ACS(I), EJC, NYJCThe most competitive JCs in Singapore. To be in range in 2026 you needed a net L1R5 of 3 to 5 for Science, or 5 to 7 for Arts and the IB Diploma.
• Upper middle: cut-off 6 to 7SJI, DHS, NJC, VJC, TJC, ACJCSix schools within one point of each other. Small things decide places here: one bonus point, or whether you apply for Arts or Science.
• Middle: cut-off 8 to 9RVHS, SAJC, ASRJCScience closed at 8 or 9 and Arts at 9 or 10. Each of these took students with a net 2 or 3 in Science too.
• Wider entry: cut-off 11 and aboveCJC, TMJC, JPJC, YIJCCut-offs from 11 up to 18 for Science and 12 up to 20 for Arts. Their ranges are wide: JPJC's Science course took students from 4 to 14.
• Millennia Institute: separateMI, L1R4 range 9 or 10 to 20A 3-year A-Level course for students with an L1R4 of 20 or less. Commerce and Science still had places at 20.

The Best JC In Singapore For You: Beyond The Cut-Off

Two students with the same score can rightly pick different JCs. Here's what else to weigh, using what MOE publishes.

Subject Combinations: Arts, Science Or IB

At 16 of the 18 JCs, JC students take a 2-year A-Level course leading to the GCE A-Level examinations. At ACS(I) and SJI they take the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme instead. Getting into a JC's Arts or Science course doesn't guarantee a particular subject combination: each JC sets its own criteria. If you need a specific mix of subjects, ask the JC before you put it high on your list. ACS(I) and SJI offer only the IB Diploma Programme through the JAE (codes 51I and 52I), so they suit students who want the International Baccalaureate rather than A-Levels.

Distance And Campus Moves

You'll make the journey every school day for two years, so check the nearest MRT in the table. Three JCs are changing campus while the 2027 intake is there:

• Anderson Serangoon JC is at a temporary site at 1033 Upper Serangoon Road and moves back to 4500 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6 in December 2027, so you'd start JC2 at its permanent campus
• Temasek JC is at a temporary site at 2 Tampines Avenue 9 and moves back to 22 Bedok South Road in December 2027
• Jurong Pioneer JC moves to its rebuilt campus at 800 Corporation Road from the January of your JC2 year (tentative)

Programmes And Bonus Points

Language Elective Programmes earn 2 extra points at the JC that offers them, on top of the usual cap of 4. If you're eligible for one, it can change which JCs are in reach:

Affiliation

Five JCs have affiliated secondary schools listed in MOE's data: ACJC, CJC, NYJC, SAJC and VJC (see the table). If you're from one of those schools, the JC takes 2 points off your score, but only when it's your 1st choice, or its two courses are your 1st and 2nd choices. Listed lower, the points don't count.

IP Schools And Culture

RI, HCI, DHS, NJC, RVHS, TJC, ACS(I) and SJI run the Integrated Programme from Sec 1 and also take JAE students into Year 5. EJC and VJC take in IP students from partner secondary schools. School culture, co-curricular activities and the subject combinations each JC offers aren't in MOE's JAE data, so check each JC's website and visit its open house. We couldn't find 2027 open house dates on MOE's pages, so look out for them on each JC's site.

How JC Rankings Change From Year To Year

Cut-offs come from each year's applicants, their scores and the places on offer, so the ranking can shift. Between the 2025 and 2026 JAE, it barely did. Comparing the last student admitted each year:

• The same top junior colleges: RI, HCI, ACS(I), EJC and NYJC were the top 5 in both years. HCI's Science cut-off went from 4 to 3, drawing level with RI
• No JC got easier to enter. Of the 34 JC courses, 12 closed one point lower in 2026 and 21 were unchanged. YIJC Arts shows 19 to 20, but its 2026 figure of 20 is notional
• Small reshuffles in the middle: TJC's Arts cut-off dropped from 8 to 7, but DHS and NJC's Science dropped from 7 to 6, so DHS and NJC drew level with VJC in joint 7th and TJC moved from joint 8th to 10th

2025 figures are the last-admitted scores from our own records. MOE's SchoolFinder now shows only 2026, so they can't be checked against MOE, and the best score admitted in 2025 isn't available. There's no 2025 figure for MI. * Notional.

MOE publishes the 2027 ranges on SchoolFinder and CourseFinder on posting results day, Tuesday 2 February 2027, after you've applied. So the 2026 figures above are what you'll plan with. Between 2025 and 2026, no JC cut-off moved by more than one point.

Using The JC Ranking For Your 12 JAE Choices

In the 2027 JAE you list up to 12 courses in order of preference, and MOE posts you to the highest one that still has a place for your net score. A ranking helps you build that list sensibly:

1. Put the JC you want most first, even if it's a stretch. A choice above your score costs you nothing if you have realistic ones below it
2. Count each course separately. A JC's Arts and Science courses are two choices with two cut-offs
3. Spread your choices across the tiers: a couple of reach choices with cut-offs better than your net score, most close to your score, and a few with cut-offs clearly above it
4. Mind the affiliation rule. Your affiliated JC's 2 points apply only if it's your 1st choice (or 1st and 2nd)
5. Think about your 1st choice's type. If none of your choices has a place, MOE posts you to a course with vacancies at the same type of institution as your 1st choice

One exception: if you have a confirmed Direct School Admission (DSA-JC) place, you can't take part in the JAE. The last day to cancel a DSA-JC acceptance and join the JAE instead was 7 October 2026.

Still deciding between routes? Our JC vs poly guide compares them, and the JAE 2027 guide covers dates, Form A and bonus points in full.

Frequently Asked Questions About JC Rankings