[LoRDo]

Hey all,

Just wondering how many ex-pats are working in Singapore? What is it like?

I have always considered looking to move for work - to Syd/Melb or even overseas and with my degree starting to finish up it is sparking my interest more.

Any info appreciated

If in wrong section please move to more appropriate

[Frogmite]

I am an expat in Singapore. Life is good in Singapore when you're expat.
The only problems are the weather and the crowd, apart from that it's a beautiful expat life.

Quick Comments

LennX:

We are actually having a "cool" period now thanks to the monsoon winds. :)

[LoRDo]

Is the job market stable? How was finding work?
Cost of living is pretty high for Asia though right?

[Frogmite]

I found a work from France pretty easily as i did an internship in this company. I am now looking for a job opportunity. There are not a lot of opportunities if you're an engineer in Singapore. If you work in finance that should be easier to find.

The appartments are very expensive, for example my appartment cost 5000SGD to rent every month.
The cars are also impossible to buy, alcohol/cigarettes very expensive as well. The rest is pretty much affordable , subway and bus are cheap.

[x5.Revenant]

Originally Posted by Frogmite

I found a work from France pretty easily as i did an internship in this company. I am now looking for a job opportunity. There are not a lot of opportunities if you're an engineer in Singapore. If you work in finance that should be easier to find.

The appartments are very expensive, for example my appartment cost 5000SGD to rent every month.
The cars are also impossible to buy, alcohol/cigarettes very expensive as well. The rest is pretty much affordable , subway and bus are cheap.

You only rent a room in that apartment right? If not..OH MY GAWD HOW MUCH DO YEW EARN?

[Frogmite]

Originally Posted by Revenant

You only rent a room in that apartment right? If not..OH MY GAWD HOW MUCH DO YEW EARN?

I earn enough to live correctly in singapore . As most of the expats do.

[LoRDo]

Yeah the subway system is amazing.

Sounds like the rent is crazy. Most attractive thing I think is not having to pay tax (?) on income and not having to pay my HECS debt in Australia

[mGGDrGooSe]

Originally Posted by LoRDo

Yeah the subway system is amazing.

Sounds like the rent is crazy. Most attractive thing I think is not having to pay tax (?) on income and not having to pay my HECS debt in Australia

The Australian tax office have some pretty funky rules when it comes to overseas income. Think from memory that's what Paul Hogan was in so much trouble over. Double check your local before moving away.

[ProAnnn]

Rent is expensive depends on the quality you want. Ranges from 500 a month to 10k a month from basic 1-room flats to an entire apartment for yourself. Everything else as frogmite says.

[crAzerk]

From what I've heard the food here is considerably cheaper as well. (though the pay for jobs may be lower as well)

E.g. For $2-4 you can get a good filling meal of local cuisine

[ProAnnn]

Originally Posted by crAzerk

From what I've heard the food here is considerably cheaper as well. (though the pay for jobs may be lower as well)

E.g. For $2-4 you can get a good filling meal of local cuisine

Where you find $2 food? Cheapest now is like $2.50

[Neoneoz]

It really depends where you but it , cheapest chicken rice would be around $1.50 , some could be $4.50++ .

[ZC.EvilSWAT]

Originally Posted by iRLProAnnn

Where you find $2 food? Cheapest now is like $2.50

Go to a Primary School canteen

Frog's house is expensive because its so awesome. Great location, amazing view, spacious apartment, you get what you pay for!

Quick Comments

TCPKiaSu:

LOL! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I just started secondary so I CAN go to a primary school canteen :) 1 dollar

[Frogmite]

Originally Posted by EvilSWAT

Go to a Primary School canteen

Frog's house is expensive because its so awesome. Great location, amazing view, spacious apartment, you get what you pay for!

You should have seen my bed. Wait i don't remember the end of the night maybe you saw it .

Quick Comments

	Nemo:	lol
	ZC.EvilSWAT:	YOU WIN THIS TIME

[DM.MCZ.Shondy]

Still can find $2 but difficult keke

[EveLoire]

Singapore is an expensive and boring place :P

[dKiWi]

u kidding me? For a decent meal here you need to fork out at least SGD 4. unless u drink plain water or dont eat meat

[crAzerk]

@kiwi
Most meepok, cai fan, chicken rice, ban mian, all cost under $4 so I don't know what you're talking about.

I guess your decent meal consists of... I don't know. Western food?

I always drink plain water yea. Great money saver. Think about it, if you buy a drink for dinner and lunch, that's $60 ++ in a month. You could have bought SC2 TW/KR version!

@proann
NUS has some cheap food, come check it out haha. But yea $2 is a rarity now, mostly $3 or so.

[syfChadMann]

Originally Posted by crAzerk

@kiwi
Most meepok, cai fan, chicken rice, ban mian, all cost under $4 so I don't know what you're talking about.

I guess your decent meal consists of... I don't know. Western food?

I always drink plain water yea. Great money saver. Think about it, if you buy a drink for dinner and lunch, that's $60 ++ in a month. You could have bought SC2 TW/KR version!

@proann
NUS has some cheap food, come check it out haha. But yea $2 is a rarity now, mostly $3 or so.

what about the BOO SACK NOODLES?

You Tube

You Tube

[dKiWi]

Originally Posted by crAzerk

@kiwi
Most meepok, cai fan, chicken rice, ban mian, all cost under $4 so I don't know what you're talking about.

I guess your decent meal consists of... I don't know. Western food?

I always drink plain water yea. Great money saver. Think about it, if you buy a drink for dinner and lunch, that's $60 ++ in a month. You could have bought SC2 TW/KR version!

@proann
NUS has some cheap food, come check it out haha. But yea $2 is a rarity now, mostly $3 or so.

I'm not talking about canteens. I interned at Asia Pacific Breweries and a meal there is $1.50. Meals are subsidised in schools as well. And i can easily get a sweetened drink and soup at the company. If we cut out the the soup, the meal is very close to SGD4. Not AT LEAST sure, i said wrong but its very close. No-drink meal is not considered decent imo, we even get that when we were conscripts in the army. Students may be fine with that but idk abt expats

And im pretty sure u dont want to eat meepok and cai fan and chicken rice everyday if u're an expat.

[TCPKiaSu]

cool crazerk u go NUS? niceeeeeee

[Sc2Clare]

i have chicken rice tht is for 1.50 near my house

[LennX]

Originally Posted by iVnClare

i have chicken rice tht is for 1.50 near my house

It used to be $1 though. Pretty decent for what you pay for.
Then again you pay for what you get. Just look at what the army is serving :P

[crAzerk]

No-drink meal is not considered decent imo, we even get that when we were conscripts in the army. Students may be fine with that but idk abt expats

Lol, so expats have to fine dine often?

Regardless, my original post said "For $2-4 you can get a good filling meal of local cuisine", which isn't wrong at all, so I don't see what's there to kid you about. Sure, if you want a 'decent meal' you have to fork out some extra money... just like how you have to fork out much more if you were say, in the US.

[Theend]

remember dun tio caught on stomp
remember dun eat on public transport -> "fine"
remember dun kana caught throw rubbish -> "fine"
remenber dun get trap in mrt
other than that a lot of thing in singapore is "fine"

[dKiWi]

ya well its a ball park figure

and yes Singapore is a "fine" city if u get my drift

[nirvAnA]

Here is my two cents if you're overseas and thinking of working in Singapore.

For developed countries like Australia, New Zealand or the United states, Singapore is an awesome place to be working in as an expat ONLY if you get expat pay. Kinda the good life froggy is living right now. You get a lot of perks like nice accommodation being taken care off, good pay, and are given a fantastic opportunity to discover a new culture / city.

Generally you want to be either hold a P1 or P2 and need to be "skilled" in a certain area. I had a friend who only dated P1 guys so she was always asking what EP (employment pass) they were holding when she first met new people lol. P1's are at the top of the food chain earning > 8K SGD / month and P2s earn > $5k which is more than enough to live comfortably in Singapore. 1K SGD = $750AUD.

So for developed nations do not come to work in Singapore for menial jobs like in the tourist industry, service industry, etc because you will find the jobs in your own country are going to be FAR better paid and with far lesser working hours. Generally the working lifestyle in Singapore is similar to most Asian countries. It is very competitive, long work hours, less pay than Western countries etc. Unless of course, you're an expat then its quite a different lifestyle.

---

If you're from a third world country, Singapore is a good place to work but only RELATIVE to your own country. Thats why we have so many Chinese, (Average pay in China is like $450 USD / month? In Singapore its like 3.5k USD) Indonesians and lastly Pinoys - especially in the service industry because they speak English well. Just yesterday I went to the Night Safari taking my jap friend around and there were many Pinoys employed as tour guides etc. The wage earned here even in menial jobs is quite abit more than what they can earn back home and hence choose Singapore because its safe, easy to get work and nearby home.

Lastly, the best place the work IMO is Australia/New Zealand (for working holidays / menial jobs) because the wage there is SIGNIFICANTLY higher than Singapore, working hours less, and they put more emphasis on experience and practical skills then certifications and paper. The problem with that is it is quite far from home so psychologically its a lot more difficult and some of them have very strict employment regulations, or people just haven't fully caught on to this as a feasible option.

I personally think working holidays in a relevant industry in a developed country is a fantastic way to build up experience and get integrated and discover new cultures.

Quick Comments

dKiWi:

i dont like some of the laws in Australia but I'll have a look at New Zealand then. :)

[Cute]

Bit disheartening to hear that it's hard to find work as an engineer in Singapore. Would love to spend some time there. Ah, maybe one day!

Your food sounds so cheap too! I consider myself lucky if I get a half decent meal for less than $10AUD

[Sc2Clare]

yup yup. so sad... but its still cheap compared to others tht are lik 3$

[ProAnnn]

LOL @Kiwi and crAzerk. Everywhere also must fight

[dKiWi]

Originally Posted by iRLProAnnn

LOL @Kiwi and crAzerk. Everywhere also must fight

Its called constructive debating ^^

[Strafe]

fck it come to bkk baby

Quick Comments

Frogmite:

soy cowboy ftw

[dKiWi]

SGD3.60



Steamed rice soaked with hainanese curry with:
1. Eggplant fried with chilli and tiny dried shrimp
2. Braised vegetables/vermicilli chinese style
3. Fried meatballs

and hot tea with evaporated milk and condensed milk