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Old 02-04-2011, 03:10 AM
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DSTA scholars should be able to lead a comfortable life. Not lucrative, but comfortable.

These scholars will likely be groomed to succeed the current generation of appointment holders just one rung below the elite administrative service.

I would estimate that the Chief Executive of DSTA to be Superscale B in the old grade (approximately $800k to $900k p.a.) and you can work downwards from there.

You can refer to the post by whoever on 1 April 2011 at 09:34 AM and 02:32 PM, obviously an insider who knows what he is talking about.

When you pursue a career with an organisation, you should not be thinking of leaving, as a large part of your paycheck is tied to the uniqueness of your skill related to that organisation. In the same way, a banker cannot suddenly pop in to head a department specialising in radars.

Although the pay won't be as high as those at the apex of the financial industry, it is more stable and you can work till around 60, whereas many in the private sector are usually let go in their mid 40's and quickly turn to teaching just before they are axed so they can claim that they are taking a pay cut.

Hence if you compare lifetime earnings, it's not that much different compared to those who succeed in the private sector (that is, those who have succeeded in the first place).

Somebody mentioned the phrase 怀才不遇 in an earlier post. The definition of 才 is very different in different settings. The 才 of a DSTA scholar is more academic in nature but the 才 in the private sector (especially the engineering private sector) is very different.

Which 才 will be more likely to be promoted to General Manager if, after signing a multi-million contract, your big boss asks "Which one of you will bring Chen Lao Ban out to relax?"

Will it be the "academically smart 才" who can write a thesis on Landau's prime numbers, or the "street smart 才" who can write a thesis on Geylang's odd and even numbers, like the one below?

Mar 3, 2011
Probation called for poly student who was a pimp
By Khushwant Singh, Court Reporter
A NANYANG Polytechnic student pleaded guilty on Thursday to living on the earnings of three Geylang prostitutes in January this year.
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