Engineering and Technology Careers are Not Valued - Singapore is "High Cost Low Tech"

I would say it also depends on the company culture.


I believe that having started as an entrepot trading center, Singapore company culture generally does not value engineering. Such a company would likely be a distributor, a middleman who benefits from volume. The more you sell, the more valuable you are to a company, because ultimately, the product/concept/idea originates from somewhere else.

A lot of private companies in Singapore with R&D facilities have them to take advantage of grants from EDB or IDA, or simply because it makes the company look more attractive to prospective clients. The basic nature of these companies are still manufacturing.

Companies who have R&D need to recognize that the products are made possible by the product planners (those who really come up with the ideas for a product) and engineers who make the product happen. These companies have not got rid of the 'middleman' mindset.

Stats used for benchmarking ministrial pay against the top private sector professionals have also shown that top 'engineers' earn much less than the lawyers, doctors and accountants. Such is the sad stat of affairs in Singapore.

Hey all, I'm currently with the force and has a BSc in computer sciences, which means I do all the techie stuff at work.

Lets not talk about my pay(which is blatantly on the MINDEF website), as we all went through NS we are always on standby, exercises over weekends, long long working/physical hours and demanding higher ranking officers.

My contract is coming to an end and I'll be 26/27 by then. What are the odds for me to break into banking and finance? I've thought of getting CFA but not really sure if the other industries acknowledge my past years of experience in the force.

army_regular, many people are still hoping to get into the banking & finance industry even at times like this and you are certainly not alone. Many are willing to take on contractual roles in banking until the recession is over before scouting for another more permanent role. Even with the relevant certs and degree, it is very diificult to get in the industry without any experiences. So i can only say good luck to you.

hi all. i see that so much discussion about finance and engineering sector going on, is there anyone with hindsight on the IT sector. I got a B.Comp and noticed that IT grads usually get a much lower starting pay than almost everyone, usually below 2.6k/mo while fresh engineering guys etc usually find themselves carrying home 3.5k/mo or more.

hi baka-neko

think u are one of the lower income earners around. Check
http://www.salary.sg/2009/graduate-employment-surveys-published-2009/

Yeah, definitely low cost low tech is correct.

Baka-neko, IT grads are paid that low probably because you join the wrong company. In my company even fresh grads get almost double of what you're getting. No offense there, just stating facts.

Hai~
My company just have some engineer lay off. So sad and the best part is that my company which is a large MNC have never retrenched any engineer since it have set up in spore 30 years ago. I can't help but think

1)engineer is low cost low tech, but if it is stable, so be it. Be a tortise, yet you still compete the race. However, i seriously doubt, as we are also in danger of retrenchment
2)I have work 4 yrs in eng, & my pay is only 3400 and I am now 30 yrs old. Is it too late to switch?

Worrying days

engineers are not of much value. if engineering is important, sg govt will set up singapore engineering university in bras basah, not singapore management university.

30yrs old is not too late. I now 28 and pay 3500. but feel current engineering job not suitable to me in long run as soon I will have to bring home works to do. I want spend my weekends 100% on family life.

I think you have to decide what life-style and trade-in u are comfortable with. I even consider buy house in Johor and work in SG after married. This will increase my salary "2 times" loh. Of course, that mean I have to spend more time & effort on travelling (can watch video using PSP)but I think worth it.

bad reasoning.. still need engineers.. just that they are not well paid.. pay at times is not tagged to value of the job/work.. and this is very much the case.