Jobless Graduates Should Consider SAF
 

About half of fresh graduates polled here are unemployed. If you are a male fresh graduate affected by the recession, you should consider joining the Singapore Armed Forces.

As reported in ST today, a lieutenant-colonel retiring at age 45 (the current retirement age) will get about $700,000 in gratuity. Such lump sum payments make it attractive for SAF joiners to serve till retirement.

If you have a good honours degree, your starting gross salary is $3,630 as an Officer Cadet Trainee in a combat vocation. If you prefer engineering or logistics vocations, you get $3,390. Without honours, you get about 15-20% less. Still not bad.

If you sign on as a 3-year contract officer, you get a "sign-on bounty" of $10,000 and a end-of-service gratuity of about $6,000. There's also an additional "combatant bonus" of $6,000.

SAF joiners can also participate in the SAVER military scheme, which is "designed for a long term commitment."

Though the details of the SAVER scheme are not available, we now know that the financial rewards of this scheme can be very attractive indeed.

For more info, refer to army recruitment website.

http://www.salary.sg/2009/jobless-gr...-consider-saf/

4662
 

A narrowly-focused view; only the financial returns of a military career has been taken into consideration

4665
 

The armed forces offer a great career. Just look at their TV advertisements. Surely, if they can spend so much money producing such attractive TV commercials they must mean what they say.

4667
 

if that's the case, why is my army major fren always on the lookout for lobangs? seems he can't wait to get out of S.A.F.O.

4670
 

$700k is a myth. It assumes a particularly high rate of return AND doesnt apply to every LTC..a more realistic figure is about $300k.

whats $300k gonna do for you when one retires at 45/50??

:P

4672
 

Life in the army is very stressed out and the organisation often suck your weekends away. This is the price to pay for the salary.

4673
 

sign your life away.......

4674
 

How much an officer gets in his SAVER when he retires and how much he draws as remuneration when he is in service depends on who he is in the SAF.

Two officers of the same rank can draw pay in disparity of more than 100%.

There is a structured and organised tier system within the organisation for this separation.

4675
 

SAVER is simply a portion of an officer's monthly salary deposited into a special account, further topped up by the government by another percentage point. It functions on the same principles as CPF, so that the officer can withdraw at the end of his tenure at retirement, on top of his regular CPF. So basically, the amount of SAVER of an officer is entirely dependent on how much his monthly salary was during his service.

Which means the ST report that states a LTC can expect $700k in his SAVER is a flawed estimation and flawed reporting. Since two LTCs can draw a pay difference of over 100%.

4676
 

being in army do make sure u are prepared for lots of OT , coz every little thing that happens in saf will convene inquiry and every little thing is an emergency and your bosses will call u back 24/7, not even counting the weekends burnt coz of countless exhibitions or marathons or visits by vips/ mps. lots of office politics (worse than in many other organisations). and, oh, occasionally get sent to iraq even if you have young kid.

if all that's ok, yup, the pay's not bad. =)

4678
 

how abt the Military Domain Experts Scheme (MDES)?
they never put the pay scale.
is that for poly graduate or degree graduate?

Ok i have heard of a Scholar MAJ earning abt $8000 which a farmer LTC earn abt $7000...nia

and how many farmer will reach LTC when u retired??even u are degree holder?

4682
 

i say... jobless graduates do reconsider other options!

but nonetheless, SAF is probably a good training ground on office politics.

4689
 

Those with engineering degree can consider air engineering officer as it is not charge up the mountain with rifle and life during OCS is also better at the air force school.

In addition, you are doing engineering work, will be more useful to future employment after the contract ends.

4694
 

TO wiseinvestor

when i graduate in 2007 from ntu mechanical eng 2nd lower class, i apply for air engineering officer 5x, and got rejected letters from them 5x, even without any interview, test.whatsoever..

i was a combat medic CPL in my NS day from artillery unit

SO i dunno wat criteria is needed to get to air engineering officer

4695
 

firstly learn to spell, secondly do not apply for 5 times the same way without asking why you are rejected and evolving you application letter.

anyway i think it is a waste of time to be in SAF. You will have to start from ground zero when the market is better. If you are not a scholar, and without relevant working experience, you can expect to be a cab driver or mama shop owner.

4703
 

To axe,

Due to the plus points regarding air engineering officer, most with a good honors engineering degree would of course choose aeo rather than chiong up a mountain. Usually being rejected without any interviews is that they receive quite some applications and eliminate some by looking at academic results first.

As for saf, land and combat, because no one really wants to sign on unless no choice, any degree in any field will have a chance to go for interview. That one is look at whether you can make it as an officer.

This is like good MNCs companies hiring fresh graduates, those who get a chance to go for interviews are 2nd upper and above, as there are many of them and they can choose from among them.

4750
 

In Chinese , there is a saying " Good Man Does Not Be Soldier". So, Nothing better to do ???

But, if you are a SAF scholar, then it is different. Someone will map the career path for you and guarantee your promotion every few years. So,it is for you to judge the org tht receive the most $ from taxpayers.

4768
 

This is the typical prototype of the NTU undergraduate, can't think, can't spell and can't do anything. no wonder in the SAF, they and graduates from other local universities are called 'Farmers'.

4863
 

To to to axe,

Why do you have to insult NTU undergrads? What have they done to earn your belittling comments?
Which university were you from?

4926
 

A top one.

Oh it's nothing personal, it's all business. NUS, NTU or SMU, all the same. No use fighting among each other. All for farmers.

4927
 

Interesting and sounds elitist, but what is a 'top' uni? You're a scholar? The country does not thrive on scholars alone.

4928
 

The term scholar has two definitions, check it out. In Singapore, it largely refers to the scholarship system by which the state inducts the best into their fold. In the dictionary, a scholar is also "one engaged in the pursuits of learning; a learned person; one versed in any branch, or in many branches, of knowledge; a person of high literary or scientific attainments; a savant. --Shak. Locke."

There are a lot of graduates and undergraduates from top universities who think that these people are bumpkins. It's nice that so many of them sound so 'surprised' and have their heads in the sand. Like you? Have a nice evening. :)

4929
 

Oh, the NTU bumpkin above who got rejected over 5 times is perfect example. he's just one of the 15,000 of them....savour for yourself. toodles.

4930
 

Thought in this context where we're talking abt. farmers, u'd be the opposite- scholar, one of those state-sponsored to study in the so-called top unis.
In the real world, folks like u don't impress us at all. There are many of your type in organisations that failed big time. Have glib tongue the very most. Thought u have an axe to grind with the local u folks like us but u are just pure snob.
My head is very above ground and my feet are firmly planted on the ground.

Haha, have pleasant dreams and don't be haunted by the farmers who are many and may one day be your Boss.

i hope this is not drifting too far, but what are DXOs paid at mindef?

Who wants to be on standby 24/7?

Major aint a very big deal in our arms forces... it's almost equivalent to a senior administrator outside.

My 2 cents worth...

SAF is great. Every incamp training I look at what the regulars do and relate to their salaries, I cant think of that many comparable jobs in the private sector with as high a pay and as little to do.

http://www.salary.sg/2009/jobless-gr.../#comment-5048

Regulars earn a lot for what they are doing. Just ask any male citizen. Moreover, have you heard of retrenchments in SAF? Even after retiring from service, many of them get a comfortable second career is government agencies like DSTA and GLCs like ST.

If you don't mind the job and whatever "stigma" you may face, I'd say signing on with the armed forces may be a very good choice indeed.

2nd careers: I guess you are referring to the commisioned ocifers bah... i come to find out that some of the non-coms i know worked in ST (only, period) (for those who can make it)... Most of them end up as security guards... the COs i know who are looking for 2nd careers will need to be quite "high up" (typically > Majors) & are typically scholars... but COs do stand a significantly greater chance at it lah...

I believe I should re-iterate what somebody said somewhere in this forum lah: 不进则退, i tink watever u do, if stop rite there & be complacent, bet ur ass on somebody eating up your lunch for you...

Haha I like the word "ocifer". Reminds me of the good old days as men.

Is it really that bad that the warrant officers or sergeants end up as security guards? I'd rather go drive a taxi.

Adbie, believe me:

I saw my ex-SSG working in the shopping centre (BHG) as a security guard. That's like 5 years after I ORD...

May he prefers the guard's uniform. I know some come with stars on the collar, so he can feel like a general. :D

So, anyone know how much does a LTC earn? 15k? 20k? a month?
How about full col? or even a 1 star general earn?

LTC prolly earns arond $15k. To hit astronomical pay, you've got to be a scholar of the elite kind. Farmers can get max of $10k plus only.

LTC prolly earns around $15k. To hit astronomical pay, you've got to be a scholar of the elite kind. Farmers can get max of $10k plus only.

FT
 

Why not start hiring Foreign Talent.....cheaper!

We don't need excessive foreign workers.

To those bosses who say more and more foreign workers are good because it helps lower their labour costs, I say: Open the floodgates and invite FOREIGN TOW KAYS to compete with these bosses. It will boost competition and everyone will benefit, RIGHT? To encourage more to come, ask EDB to throw money to fund these foreign enterprises to set up in Singapore, construction firms, coffeeshops, factories, taxi firms, NTUC, you name it.

TOP ONE? Not that he’s not proud to reveal, from what I see he just looks down on you but prefers not to have you relate the name of his university to the scorn heaped on you.

farmer is a term to describe local grad or non top university grad, so top university grad “working as farmer” is logically impossible. You’re like saying a rabbit is not a rabbit, which of course is senseless.

so how does the MDES works.

The new state that MDES also can recuit mid career professional.

So can someone age 40 join MDES??

how many people will have 300k when they retire?

How many degree holders can get 1st payslip which pays them 3k at least?

I would say SAF is a good career choice if you have no other better options available.