Singapore Expats

im 20 years old
just a high school grad
american/canadian citizen.
with no official work experience.
i plan on moving to singapore.. but i dont have that much cash either
probably like S$5,000-6,000.

Would i have a hard time finding a job?
companies give the working permits correct?

Why does it say on call centre jobs that i need to be a Singaporean PR?
does that mean i cannot apply to be a call centre agent?

how hard of a time would i have finding a job that pays enough for me to live there?
(ide be willing to accept basically any job)



thanks for the input.

say its a bad idea, i mean it sounds bad to me.
but i cant help it guys ill loose the girl of my dreams if i dont follow her there.


sincerely,
jason winter

singapore is big on educational attainment and with no experience, no tertiary education, you will not get a working visa in singapore.

even if you do get an opportunity to live here, it will most probably a very notable and very rare exception. foreigners are seen as competition with jobs and civility (or is it law?) is the only thing that's stopping the locals from forming a lynch mob. with such a small country, problems with the job market are really magnified.

if you're chasing after a girl, you'll have to be more creative to overcome these hurdles then.

sorry, man, but them's the breaks.


EDIT: waitafreakinminute. what the heck are you doing in the philippines?

You don't have a snowball's chance in hell.
See your other thread.

ill loose the girl of my dreams if i dont follow her there.

OMG a 20 year old! Dream girls tend to be the worst nightmares No chance of a job here, though i'm sure someone will look after your dream girl for you Cut the string before you have a nervous breakdown.

nakatago wrote:singapore is big on educational attainment and with no experience, no tertiary education, you will not get a working visa in singapore.

even if you do get an opportunity to live here, it will most probably a very notable and very rare exception. foreigners are seen as competition with jobs and civility (or is it law?) is the only thing that's stopping the locals from forming a lynch mob. with such a small country, problems with the job market are really magnified.

I thought the only reason Singapore companies hired expats is because there isn't enough competition from the locals...? I don't get why someone would be resentful of a foreigner taking a job they're not qualified for. I know, in my husband's company at least, if there were any more Singaporeans involved the whole project would be a farce. They've already had to fire locals and hire foreigners because the locals just weren't cutting it. Singapore seems like it's great at churning out MBAs but it's a long long way from covering all the positions in every industry. As has been clearly demonstrated to me in my short time here, an MBA matters for squat in the entertainment industry if you know nothing about the arts.

Sorry OP, off topic for you. What about if he applied to a college here in SG? Can he live here on a student visa?

Is there another type of visa that pertains to performers? I know for certain that the average performer at Resorts World Sentosa does not make $7000/month. Perhaps if he can sing/dance/act/tumble he has a shot there. I think they're auditioning now for new contracts starting in September.

Long shots, I know, but I have a soft spot for people in cross-border romances

This is actually really funny, I don't normally respond to threads on this forum but I really can't help but say something here.

Vegasripper I was in an identical situation as you were when I was about 21 or 22, I was dying to move to Singapore because my then girlfriend was from there and lived there and I was dying to move over to be with her. Not saying anything but obviously she is something of the past now and back then I was a fresh grad with a university degree with no working experience. I've yet to move over there and I'm now 24. The girlfriend factor isn't there anymore but I still wouldn't mind moving there.

I also had roughly the same savings as you did back then, only to have broken up with her and saying to myself, I may as well just spend my money and have a good time if none of this is going to work out.

Anyway to the point, if you have no university degree or experience, your chances are close to zero...

poodlek wrote:I thought the only reason Singapore companies hired expats is because there isn't enough competition from the locals...? I don't get why someone would be resentful of a foreigner taking a job they're not qualified for..

* the government knows industries need to fill some positions only foreigners can fill. unfortunately, a lot of locals don't want to admit that.
* in the case of OP, he's clearly not in the segment of the market that only expats can fill

poodlek wrote:Sorry OP, off topic for you. What about if he applied to a college here in SG? Can he live here on a student visa?

I reckon OP's best shot would be to enroll in a school here.

You could more easily find a call center job in Kuala Lumpur and the permitting process would be easier.

nakatago wrote:

poodlek wrote:I thought the only reason Singapore companies hired expats is because there isn't enough competition from the locals...? I don't get why someone would be resentful of a foreigner taking a job they're not qualified for..

* the government knows industries need to fill some positions only foreigners can fill. unfortunately, a lot of locals don't want to admit that.
* in the case of OP, he's clearly not in the segment of the market that only expats can fill

DERKA DERB!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLni3wbndls

What about all those Tamil construction workers I see here? How do they get in? I can't imagine all those guys are a) locals or b) educated. Does Singapore have a deal with India or Sri Lanka?
Still...the KL call centre sounds like the best idea so far.

poodlek wrote:

nakatago wrote:

poodlek wrote:I thought the only reason Singapore companies hired expats is because there isn't enough competition from the locals...? I don't get why someone would be resentful of a foreigner taking a job they're not qualified for..

* the government knows industries need to fill some positions only foreigners can fill. unfortunately, a lot of locals don't want to admit that.
* in the case of OP, he's clearly not in the segment of the market that only expats can fill

DERKA DERB!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLni3wbndls

What about all those Tamil construction workers I see here? How do they get in? I can't imagine all those guys are a) locals or b) educated. Does Singapore have a deal with India or Sri Lanka?
Still...the KL call centre sounds like the best idea so far.

I think construction workers get in via an agency or something.

poodlek wrote: What about all those Tamil construction workers I see here? How do they get in? I can't imagine all those guys are a) locals or b) educated. Does Singapore have a deal with India or Sri Lanka?
Still...the KL call centre sounds like the best idea so far.

This is basically the type of the job Singaporeans don't want to perform so no political issues here. Street cleaners/sweepers and maids are some other good examples.

Going to college here will be your best option man. I wish I was this romantic at 20 (sigh...)

howie85 wrote:Going to college here will be your best option man. I wish I was this romantic at 20 (sigh...)

How do you propose he goes to college here ?