Who Can Decide What is a CPD Generic Competency Course?

February 2021 - 2 min read 

With the change in CEA’s Continuing Professional Development (CPD) framework in October 2019, salespersons have to fulfil a total of six credits annually - four credits under Professional Competencies and two under Generic Competencies.

Generic Competency courses contribute towards KEOs’ and salespersons’ overall personal development and hone their soft skills. These courses include those offered by SkillsFuture Singapore and estate agents’ (EA) in-house training courses that are in line with the Singapore Skills Framework’s list of Critical Core Skills (CCS). Key Executive Officers (KEOs) and salespersons may refer to the MySkillsFuture website for a suggested list of SkillsFuture courses.

Update: The Singapore Skills and Workforce Development Agency (SWDA) was launched on 1 July 2026. SDWA was formed through the merger of Workforce Singapore and SkillsFuture Singapore.

Who approves Generic Competency courses?

Generic Competency courses are assessed and approved by KEOs. KEOs can decide on the relevance of Generic Competency courses taken by their salespersons and accord CPD credits for these courses. KEOs also have to ensure that the CPD credits for Generic Competencies comply with CEA's requirements as set out in the CPD Guidelines on CEA's website.

Estate agents should maintain close supervision on Generic Competency courses taken by their salespersons and be satisfied that the courses meet CEA's requirements if they wish to recognise the Generic Competency courses.

As for salespersons, they must seek their KEOs’ approval for the achievement of CPD credits for Generic Competency courses.

Find out more about the CPD framework at the CPD Portal.

Information on SWDA updated on 3 July 2026.

This article was originally published on 9 February 2021.