Thank you very much for the replies! The opinions, both negative and positive, were very refreshing and I really appreciated it. I don't mind getting more opinions as well.

Regarding some of the statements put forward in the few recent posts though, I would like to inquire more about them.

For example, why should I reassess if I would want to enter civil service after 5 years? Is it because I would be at a disadvantage in terms of pay compared to my peers, or that the pay will not match my experience, or because I will turn into a paper engineer due to skills mismatch as another post mentioned?

Regarding the above post, I really appreciate the long and detailed explanation. I found out about their work culture leading up to this past few months and I have no problems in trying it out as I dont really intend to stay forever. My current plan and idea is to gather valuable experience from working there for a few years, maybe 3-5, as I have mentioned and to return to Singapore to get a job here (after comparing the 2 countries, no one can deny Singapore is still a much better place for living in terms of alot of stuff)

And that is where my question before comes in: I do not mind earning lesser at the start to gain the valuable experience but I wonder if that amount of experience is worth it and can translate to a better prospect in future after returning, be it in public sector or private sector.

In short, I was hoping that my time in Japan, working under that kind of environment and earning that kind of pay can be worth it in future, and hence I initiated this opinion gathering question because some say yes, some say no you are better off staying here and changing jobs here(that the experience in Japan makes no difference), and in your case you seemed to have been overqualified in your 10th year, that's why you had trouble finding another job.

Thank you guys once again for your honest replies! Really appreciate it