Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98734)

Hi there. hope i can shed some light based on my experience.

Working culture depends on your unit/dept itself. Some are administrative in nature, some is project based and some are operational based. If you are in operational based, it will be more time sensitive and 'more stressed' as tempo is high.

work life balance is there if you are those who insist on knocking off work on time. myself, i always choose to OT although no one forces me to. its a personal sort of responsibility. no right or wrong.

pay is always competitive for DXOs. dont expect to get rich though. we are still civil servants and we cant compare to bankers and those who work their way up in the private world. the pay is a gradual increase depending on performance and promotion. there is a ceiling for each grade, and if you dont promote, no increment.

you might be a DX12 for a manager position, a major rank equivalent. myself, im not a DX12. so i cant really comment on salary. but if i were to estimate the range, it would probably be 6-8k? but at this rank, be prepared to work your ass off. MINDEF money not so easy to earn as most would think. each position is optimized to squeeze you dry for the pay you would be getting.

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98862)

May I know what is usually the starting average salary of a DX9 fresh grad with a second upper honours degree from local uni. I applied for a logistic role in MINDEF

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98881)

Wouldn't agree with the point. Some DXO jobs dealing with administrative work are paid over the top salary as compared with their actual output. A lot depends on where you are posted and the culture over there.

If you are posted to a "retirement home", you can expect more work life balance than other DXOs of similar "rank".

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 95350)

Anyone can advise if there's a chance I might get in? Final year student with first class grades but received a police warning letter in 2011 for something stupid, no criminal record, no charges or conviction.

Please advise me. Thanks in advance

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98922)

Anyone knows if it's guaranteed you will go for the psychometric test as long as you've applied? Are there also instances where they just skip right to the interview (and under what circumstances does this happen)?

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98929)

As long as you have a degree from a local university with a good honours, you shld be guaranteed for a psychometric test

As for skipping right to the interview, requires more information and the role you applied for

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98932)

Hmm I submitted my application ~1.5 weeks ago but no response to go for the PT. I meet those criteria so thought it's quite odd. I applied for a policy role.

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98934)

I waited 3 weeks plus for my PT test. They do take a longer time to process nowadays cause there are lots of university students graduating.
Are you a fresh grad? Some roles are not open for fresh grads

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98964)

I am going for the PT next week,

Dress code is smart casual- Polo Tee with jeans okay?

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98966)

Yes PT is like a school exam, no interview

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98940)

Hi,

I went for the PT on 18 Jul (last tues). no news yet...

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98934)

I waited 3 weeks plus for my PT test. They do take a longer time to process nowadays cause there are lots of university students graduating.
Are you a fresh grad? Some roles are not open for fresh grads

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 99101)

Hi , anybody within the DCO of MINDEF currently? Can share where is the working location , attire and workload like ?

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 99166)

Anyone had the experience of going for Unit Preview, and then got rejected after that?

I would have thought that candidates are almost 'confirmed' when they get to the unit preview stage.

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 99188)

completed PT 4 weeks ago but no rejection yet from HR. what is going on? should i continue waiting?

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 99166)

Anyone had the experience of going for Unit Preview, and then got rejected after that?

I would have thought that candidates are almost 'confirmed' when they get to the unit preview stage.

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 99356)

Hey guys,

Just to share my timeline..
Send application on 6July
Received a call on 25 July
Attended first interview on 31July
Received call from hiring manager on 4 Aug
Site preview on 7 Aug
Verbal offer on 8 Aug..

Originally Posted by cymcollin (Post 99401)

Currently im working in a stat board but would like to apply for DXO position. I was told that mindef would only accept the local U degrees.

1) Would like to check if anybody knows is that true as my degree is from Murdoch Kaplan?

2) if it is true that only the local U degrees are accepted would HR consider the masters from Singapore University of Social Sciences (previously known as SIM) as one of the local U?

3) And if the HR do consider the masters from Singapore University of Social Sciences as local U would they still view it unfavorably given my degree is not from local?

4) I would be around 40 years after getting my masters, not sure if age then be an issue?

Hope someone here can enlighten me as i do not want to waste my time and money on a master only to find out it is not going to help me in applying for a DXO position, thanks

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 98884)

No idea which point you did not agree with.

at no point did the previous poster mention pay depends on actual output. over the top salary depends on rank, not the job they hold.

no idea what you meant by MORE work life balance. work life balance is always there if you knock off on time. we may have difference definitions on it. if you meant job scope, as mentioned, some are more operational than others while some are more administrative. Hence, there is different level of stress.

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 99109)

Hi please advise!

Anyone knows how much is the starting pay now for fresh grad?
Female, 2nd upp, local uni
Thinking of applying for a psychologist position

Do I enter as a DX9?
Roughly how long will it take to be promoted to DX10? and how is the salary like?

TIA!

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 99434)

All uni grads enter as DX9. Promotion to DX10 is usually within 2 years (some within 1.5 years) assuming nothing major happens. Just do your stuff diligently for 2 years and you get the promotion.

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 99514)

The thing is salary will stay stagnant at 7K + at the max for average performer. That is insufficient if one has family and kids. Private sector can allow for growth into the 5-digit bracket.

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 99583)

Hi, I have previously passed the PT, attended interview, unit preview for a DXO post earlier this year. However, was not offered the job and it was offered to another candidate. I now see that the same post is advertised in mindef dxo website. Do I stand a chance to be considered again if i were to apply for the same DXO post or any other relevant post? Or should I not waste time applying for the same post? Thanks

Originally Posted by Unregistered (Post 99582)

It is a gamble in the private sector. Most people don't break 5-figure per month. If you want a stable future, choose civil service. They offer substantial bursary to civil servants' kids and have one of the best overall package in the industry accounting for leaves and whatnot.

One thing to note is that, when you graduate with a 2nd lower from NUS/NTU/SMU, you are a job taker, not a job chooser. You have to be realistic with your capability.