Competition for a shrinking pool of jobs, particularly in choice industries like banking and technology, is rife. It’s no longer uncommon for fresh graduates to apply for more than 100 jobs without ever hearing back, or facing multiple rounds of interviews without success. Now, they’re urged to lower their pay expectations and labelled “entitled” if they turn down jobs that don’t fit their career goals or life plans.
Looking for work in this environment can be overwhelming, even demeaning, for young and eager graduates.
Yet, data shows that jobs are still available for fresh graduates in many industries, while the long-term unemployment rate for Singapore residents is just 0.9 per cent, a healthy figure that is also lower than that in both neighbouring Malaysia and the US.
There appears to be a mismatch in the jobs available and the roles fresh graduates aspire to or qualify for. To get ahead, those struggling to land positions need to rethink their career paths and be prepared to make some detours or even change course.
Explore other industries
If jobs in the more coveted sectors are elusive, there is no shame in pivoting to less conventional industries where demand for young talent remains strong, and the rewards in pay and career growth can be just as compelling.
In shipping, for instance, companies like G2 Ocean are looking for fresh graduates that simply have a keen interest in the industry. “It doesn’t matter what degree they have,” Mr Lim Sim Keat, managing director of G2’s Pacific operations, told me.
With Singapore investing heavily in its reputation as a maritime hub for the region, I am told most maritime graduates from local universities are snapped up even before they have officially left school, as shipping companies are looking to groom young talent for bigger roles in a growing, global industry.
At G2, fresh graduates start on trainee programmes, rotating across divisions such as ship operations, chartering, legal and insurance, and business development, before being assigned the roles they are best suited to.
Given the common misconception that working in shipping requires long periods at sea, it may surprise you that vessel operators perform important office-based work planning and monitoring voyages, coordinating with ships and ports, and ensuring that cargo arrives on schedule.
In the energy sector, too, what matters most to companies like offshore engineering giant Seatrium isn’t specific skills or qualifications, but the grit to negotiate with global energy firms, and the willingness to take on project management roles abroad and outside the office.
In a recent interview with The Straits Times, Seatrium chief executive Chris Ong said the industry needs younger hands to help drive the transition from fossil fuels to renewables, a growing priority not just in Singapore, but worldwide.
His advice to graduates: don’t focus on whether you get to work in an office in the Central Business District or a yard in Tuas, but on embracing opportunities across functions and geographies that can take you further in your career later on. The energy industry, he added, is where the younger generation can truly make a difference.
That’s not saying graduates with degrees in finance, law or tech end up wasting their knowledge by joining industries that appear unrelated to their course of study.
When I spoke with Mr Chua Chye Poh, general partner at venture capitalist ShipsFocus, he explained that the industry needs graduates trained in a host of areas unrelated to shipping. Finance graduates are needed to structure deals and manage investors, for example, and expertise ranging from software engineering to sales, marketing, legal and insurance are in demand to support a rapidly digitalising industry.
So, be open to exploring adjacent opportunities in alternative industries, and approach roles that may not initially align with your plans with curiosity and flexibility. You might discover exciting career paths.
Work part-time to fill the gap
Take up part-time work while waiting for that dream job. This doesn’t just fill a gap in your resume, but tells employers about your attitude and whether you’re proactive, resilient and adaptable.
While doing gig work for delivery platforms and start-ups is an option, there’s no better place to look for part-time roles than in industries where manpower is in demand, like in food and beverage (F&B).
While the sector isn’t usually the first choice for fresh graduates given its unglamorous reputation for long, back-breaking hours, difficult customers and lower pay, it exposes you to the realities and ethics of work. It will also help you build discipline and empathy, key characteristics bosses look for even before they meet you.
And, contrary to the perception that the skills and knowledge gathered from years of tertiary education may go to waste, joining F&B can in fact teach those without work experience valuable people and management skills, such as customer service, team coordination, handling high-pressure situations and problem-solving on the spot.
“I love these people,” Mr Chua of ShipsFocus told me, when I asked him if he would hire fresh graduates who have spent some time working in fields like F&B before accepting a full-time job. Not only does it demonstrate that they are being productive with their time, it shows humility and positivity, he said.
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There are other benefits, too, such as starting to earn, save and invest early while waiting for a proper job, which is always wise.
Mr Cheong Hai Poh, president of the International Food & Beverage Association based in Singapore, tells me that the local F&B sector is easily accessible to fresh graduates, especially front-line roles like being part of the service crew or cafe staff and kitchen and production work, which includes research and development and commercial baking.
While these roles typically pay below the national graduate median of $4,500, with service crew and kitchen staff starting at around $2,300 per month, and skilled production bakers earning up to $3,000, the industry offers flexible part-time options across a range of establishments. As the sector becomes more tech-driven, the work has also grown less physically demanding than in the past.
Find a role overseas
Another option is finding a job overseas, particularly in emerging market economies, where your skills, perspective and knowledge will be appreciated by local companies, and where the resilience you show and the experience you gain will make you more valuable to employers, fast track your career and mould you for bigger roles in the future.
I can attest to this, having spent four years working for The Myanmar Times in Yangon between 2017 and 2021.
My experience in a management role and interactions with international business leaders during my time there showed me that the willingness to step out of one’s comfort zone to take on work abroad can be highly valuable to both the overseas employer and future bosses.
At The Myanmar Times, I lost count of the times we could have tapped skilled Singapore graduates to clean up and make sense of translated copy, interview chief executives and business leaders, or contribute fresh ideas when we were building our marketing and video departments.
You’ll be a big help to firms in emerging markets, who will need your skills to build processes, lead operations, or take on tech, finance, marketing and communications roles, opportunities to enrich your career that you will not find at home.
When I returned from my stint in Yangon, I was not only able to find meaningful work at The Straits Times’ Business desk, but I also found that my bosses and colleagues valued my views and experience.
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Working abroad, whether in developed or emerging economies, enriches your skills and experience. No wonder, the Government has rolled out programmes to encourage Singaporeans to gain experience overseas.
For example, the Singapore Global Executive Programme, which targets relatively fresh graduates with less than three years of work experience, offers overseas attachments and business trips that provide them with market knowledge and a global perspective. Participants go through at least two job rotations, with access to mentorship and networking.
So, don’t be too stressed if your career goals or life plans seem stifled in today’s job market. The key to staying ahead lies in your ability to adapt by changing course when needed, learning from every role you take on, and trusting that the process can open up alternative pathways to a rewarding career.
Kang Wan Chern is deputy business editor at The Straits Times.
