What is the main objective of LEAD Academy?
LEAD Academy was established to develop your leadership capacity and competencies as a SUSS student. We hope that through your participation in LEAD Academy programmes, you will be able to realise your own personal growth and have a positive impact on others.
All student leadership programmes under the Student Success Centre (Student Life) fall under the purview of LEAD Academy, creating a unified leadership development ecosystem for you.
Yes, student leadership opportunities provided by LEAD Academy are aimed at supporting your growth in leadership capacities to better equip you to tackle leadership challenges in your own leadership platforms.
"Practice is the hardest part of learning. Training is the essence of transformation."
- Ann Voskamp, Canadian author
The Leadership Journey
From the start of your time at SUSS, you begin building leadership skills through your core and major-related studies. LEAD Academy offers targeted training and opportunities to help you grow further. These pathways are available for all SUSS students, and application to other roadmaps is based on fulfillment of roadmap criteria. Your participation in the pathways lasts for one year and is subject to respective pathway renewal criteria. After graduation, alumni who wish to continue their journey can return as mentors, guiding and inspiring the next generation of leaders.
 | Details Membership Opportunities
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 | Details It focuses on strengthening your application of leadership competencies through SUSS platforms. Membership If you're serving in a leadership platform, you are automatically enrolled. This includes students serving as:
*Membership in the Apprentice pathway is automatically renewed. Opportunities
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 | Details Membership There will be 2 intakes of Stewards recruitment annually. If you successfully join the pathway as a Steward, you can select a track to focus on:
*A maximum of 5 first-year Stewards can have their membership renewed annually. Opportunities
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Hear from our students
Each student's leadership journey is unique, encompassing opportunities to learn, grow, and make a difference at SUSS and beyond. United by a shared vision, our students aspire to become leaders who inspire others and create lasting impact in their communities.
"Throughout the duration of Singapore Young Leaders Programme (SYLP), I enhanced my leadership skills through learning from my like-minded and kind-hearted peers. Furthermore, I was given my first chance to facilitate a workshop and even emcee the SYLP 2025 closing ceremony. These opportunities allowed me to face my fears of public speaking and slowly change my narrative to become more outwardly confident.
My biggest takeaway? A leader does not just lead but also ensures that team members are not left behind and able to get the most value out of their experience. Ultimately, I believe that we learn and improve better together as a community, than alone."
"When I was still an Apprentice, I learned about how to guide others while growing myself. After joining the LEAD Camp, I learnt that leadership is not about perfection, but presence. It encouraged me to listen more, understand perspectives, and lead with sincerity. Later in the year, attending Patron's Day with President Tharman further deepened that insight. His reminder to embrace the journey and not fear failure reshaped how I approached both swimming and leadership."
- Justin Cheong, Year 2 Human Resource Management Student, SUSS Swimming Competition Group Captain (2025)
"The leadership trainings, especially the Mirror Leadership workshop, sharpened my day-to-day awareness of decisions and biases, helping me make informed choices and lead more systematically. Being a steward gave me tangible personal and professional gains, where skills training, networking sessions and interactions with trainers gave me new insights for my professional leadership."
- Kaung Hset Hsint, Year 3 Psychology Student, SUSS SEALS Chairperson (2025) and Steward (2025)
"Through this experience, I learnt to lead with empathy and inclusivity, values that I believe are essential for sustainable and community-driven leadership. The SUSS LEAD trainings on communication, design thinking and adaptive leadership have enhanced my ability to manage diverse teams and translate ideas into actionable outcomes. These experiences helped strengthened my confidence to take initiative, collaborate effectively and lead with purpose."
- Don Tan, Year 4 Supply Chain Management Student, Steward (2025)
Many Journeys, One Goal
Every student's leadership journey looks different. At LEAD Academy, you'll find multiple pathways designed to match your interests, goals, and the skills you want to develop. Explore the routes below to discover which pathway is right for you.
/lead-academy-routes-(4).png?sfvrsn=7de94d_20 "LEAD academy routes (1)")
FAQ for General Students
All SUSS students will automatically be part of the Explorer pathway. From there, you are free to join either the Apprentice or Steward pathways for the next calendar year, subject to meeting the pathway criteria.
- Apprentice: Automatic entry after successful election into Competition Group, Interest Group, or Advocacy Group Executive Committee, successful selection into Advocacy Group membership, Community Engagement Leader, Scholars and, other student leaders accepted on a case-by-case basis
- Steward: Entry is based on successful selection with staff endorsement
If you would like to request for any specific workshops, please drop us an email via [email protected]
There are no limits on the number of points a student can attain in a year.
LEAD points are updated quarterly, and students can check their points using an Excel sheet sent to all student leaders through the LEAD email blast.
Do LEAD points expire if they are not used?The last date for LEAD points accumulation will be 12th December of the year. LEAD Points will be reset by 31st January of the following year.
Individual community engagements outside of SUSS will not be awarded LEAD points unless they represent SUSS on national platforms.
FAQ for Scholars
If you have received the SUSS Scholarship, Social Impact Scholarship, or Global Excellence Scholarship, you are required to remain in the Apprentice Pathway for the duration of your scholarship. This means attaining 4 LEAD points per calendar year (2 points per semester) until your graduation.
If you have received other scholarships, you are not required to fulfill the above requirements but are encouraged to participate in LEAD Academy programmes to accumulate LEAD Points.