Which degree is the best return on investment - Salary.sg Forums
Salary.sg Forums  

Go Back   Salary.sg Forums > The Salary.sg Discussion Forums: > Income and Jobs

Income and Jobs Discuss jobs, career options and of course salaries




Which degree is the best return on investment

Reply
 
Thread Tools
  #1 (permalink)  
Old 25-10-2017, 10:14 PM
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2017
Posts: 2
swagdaddypimpin is on a distinguished road
Smile Which degree is the best return on investment

I am planning to apply for a local U next year. Due to personal reasons, I will be paying for my own education either through a study loan or hopefully picking up a scholarship.

I have excellent results and can get a place in almost any degree course. Barring subject interest as I have no particular course preference, what degree will offer me the best ROI upon graduation and in the long-term. Money is a priority to me and I want to provide my family with a good life in the future.

From my knowledge, I've heard high finance (IB, trading) pays the most but the hours are one of the worst. The law market isn't doing very well and compsci grads are being replaced with foreign grads. Accountancy and engineering are pretty stable but the starting pay is relatively low. My parents have also advised me against going into arts although I wouldn't mind doing it provided it pays well.

Assuming I wish to get a job in investment banking, will a finance degree (biz) from a local U suffice? I have also heard stories of many finance grads going into property/insurance due to oversupply. The job market seems pretty depressing and I really hope to secure a good job in the future.


Last edited by swagdaddypimpin; 25-10-2017 at 10:19 PM.
Reply With Quote
  #2 (permalink)  
Old 25-10-2017, 10:43 PM
Unregistered
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

medicine is highest ROI if you take into account the risk of studying biz not getting an IB job

Reply With Quote
  #3 (permalink)  
Old 25-10-2017, 10:47 PM
Fanny
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

While you might be good at scoring in exams that allows you to join any discipline in a local U, I must say the way you have framed the whole question thereby reflecting your critical decision making process is rather underwhelming.

I would have expected a bit more maturity and clarity of thought then 'I wanna make big money so what to study'. This is the sort of juvenile and singular thought process seen in many private distance learning grads, but this coming from a straight A (I assume) cream of the crop undergrad is surprising.

Reply With Quote
  #4 (permalink)  
Old 25-10-2017, 10:58 PM
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2017
Posts: 2
swagdaddypimpin is on a distinguished road
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Fanny View Post
While you might be good at scoring in exams that allows you to join any discipline in a local U, I must say the way you have framed the whole question thereby reflecting your critical decision making process is rather underwhelming.

I would have expected a bit more maturity and clarity of thought then 'I wanna make big money so what to study'. This is the sort of juvenile and singular thought process seen in many private distance learning grads, but this coming from a straight A (I assume) cream of the crop undergrad is surprising.
I reckon padding my question with feel good platitudes, the glories of education and the unparalleled benefits a great mind would bring to society sounds pleasing. But that is besides the point, I know what I need, I know what I want, and I want the bluntest, most honest way to get there. Thanks.
Reply With Quote
  #5 (permalink)  
Old 25-10-2017, 11:33 PM
Unregistered
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

If you have almost perfect grades then local scholarships shouldn't be hard to get. The worth of a degree is very hard to be quantified per se and depends very much on your networking ability and also how well you prove yourself to be in front of prospective employers.

If you're taking up a loan with the intention on maximising your ROI then you might as well take up a loan and learn to run a business that you are interested in. Learning how to run a business is worth many times more than merely earning a salary.

The next question would be: do you think you need a degree? Considering the nature of the job market and the need for skills. (rather than qualification) Some people make lots of money off making videos.

No doubt better-paying salary jobs(consulting, IB) do require a degree as a prerequisite, but these jobs hire across all disciplines and you need to pass anywhere between 4-8 levels of assessments/interviews to get hired. Most finance grads don't even land an interview with an IB firm let alone get hired by them.

Good luck!
Reply With Quote
  #6 (permalink)  
Old 26-10-2017, 07:23 AM
Unregistered
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by swagdaddypimpin View Post
I reckon padding my question with feel good platitudes, the glories of education and the unparalleled benefits a great mind would bring to society sounds pleasing. But that is besides the point, I know what I need, I know what I want, and I want the bluntest, most honest way to get there. Thanks.
You’re joking right? Have you seen the indicative grade profile for business at NUS? The 10th percentile entering has AAA/C for A levels. Even if you got in using AAAA you’d just be an average graduate in NUS business, and the overwhelming vast majority (99.9%) on this ‘top’ course won’t even come close to smelling an IB interview. Not sure if you’ve searched on LinkedIn recently, but you can literally count on one hand the number of new Analysts entering investment banking across Singapore from a local university (if any at all in the 2017 cycle)

Sorry to burst your bubble, but straight A’s for a levels is hardly excellent results but indicative of a average grade profile in NUS business. Commendable absolutely, but hardly exemplary. If you were truly the cream of the crop you’d be with PSC on a plane to the UK/US right now, not wondering which course to study in our ‘local ivies’. Sorry to be harsh, but a level grads with straight A’s nowadays are a dime a dozen in the top few courses in the local universities.
Reply With Quote

  #7 (permalink)  
Old 26-10-2017, 10:10 AM
Unregistered
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

The jobs with the best starting pay out there are:

a) Investment Banking
b) Consulting
c) Other banking functions (trading, corp finance etc)
d) Prestigious MAPs
e) Law (big firms)
f) Certain government jobs (Economist Service, SAF,, DSTA, MFA, EDB etc)

For a) to d), the degree doesn't generally matter if you get top grades and top CCAs/case competitions /internships. So choose the course you can do well in. Of course, being in a quant course helps.

For law, you have to be in the top 30% or so to have a good chance in snagging a big law job.

For specific govt jobs, generally the niche jobs pay more e.g. DSTA, Economist Service, Intelligence Service. For the general govt jobs that pay more, these include EDB, SAF, and MFA.

And of course you have medicine and dentistry with decent starting pay but very good job stability and prospects. But the cost of studying medicine and dentistry is 2-3 times other courses, and work-life balance for medicine sucks.

All in all, if you want to open your doors the widest, you should take an engineering degree (preferably Mech or EE) and do very well in it. Easier said than done.
Reply With Quote
  #8 (permalink)  
Old 26-10-2017, 10:13 AM
Unregistered
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Unregistered View Post
The jobs with the best starting pay out there are:

a) Investment Banking
b) Consulting
c) Other banking functions (trading, corp finance etc)
d) Prestigious MAPs
e) Law (big firms)
f) Certain government jobs (Economist Service, SAF,, DSTA, MFA, EDB etc)

For a) to d), the degree doesn't generally matter if you get top grades and top CCAs/case competitions /internships. So choose the course you can do well in. Of course, being in a quant course helps.

For law, you have to be in the top 30% or so to have a good chance in snagging a big law job.

For specific govt jobs, generally the niche jobs pay more e.g. DSTA, Economist Service, Intelligence Service. For the general govt jobs that pay more, these include EDB, SAF, and MFA.

And of course you have medicine and dentistry with decent starting pay but very good job stability and prospects. But the cost of studying medicine and dentistry is 2-3 times other courses, and work-life balance for medicine sucks.

All in all, if you want to open your doors the widest, you should take an engineering degree (preferably Mech or EE) and do very well in it. Easier said than done.
forgot to add, good CS jobs are now very well paying. and for CS you dont even need to do well in sch if you have an excellent portfolio. But doing very well for a CS degree probably opens as many doors as doing very well in Mech or EE, or even more.
Reply With Quote
  #9 (permalink)  
Old 26-10-2017, 10:25 AM
Fanny
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by swagdaddypimpin View Post
I reckon padding my question with feel good platitudes, the glories of education and the unparalleled benefits a great mind would bring to society sounds pleasing. But that is besides the point, I know what I need, I know what I want, and I want the bluntest, most honest way to get there. Thanks.
My goodness, I can't believe I actually need to elaborate on this to a supposedly straight A student. You've totally missed the point. Where on earth did you get the idea I was alluding to nonsense like "feel good platitudes, the glories of education and the unparalleled benefits a great mind"?

The vast majority of Singaporeans would want to make big money and treat pay as the primary career goal. You are making this sound like you've got some unique perspective buttressed with an honest and blunt style. Give me a break - that's about as typical Singaporean on the street as you can get.

By immaturity of cognition, I am referring to your simplistic notion of tying up future pay to the course of study and somehow thinking you can calculate ROI for each course and thereby choose the course with the highest ROI. And seriously asking this sort of broad and generic question on an online forum?

The type of degree one studies is just one of the many contributing factors to long term pay. On an individual level, there are many other career elements, some within while others outside your control, that ultimately determine your lifetime earnings. Most people also do not experience linear pay growth, there are ups and downs, long periods of stagnation etc. over the years all subjected to vagaries of life.

Grow up dude.
Reply With Quote
  #10 (permalink)  
Old 26-10-2017, 10:50 AM
Unregistered
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Another clownfish dreaming of riches as a trader / investment banker but no idea what it is...
Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

« Previous Thread | Next Thread »
Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Up to 80% off with daily deals + free shipping & return alex13689 General Discussions 0 04-08-2015 11:12 AM
Help me out! Should I return? bounded Income and Jobs 16 03-06-2015 11:06 AM
Dilemma: Should I Return To Study Here? undecided2012 Education and Personal Growth 2 02-08-2012 10:10 PM
A lot of humility will return Salary.sg Income and Jobs 12 18-12-2008 09:18 PM

» 30 Recent Threads
GovTech ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
5,070 Replies, 2,135,910 Views
Civil Service Performance Bonus ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
5,293 Replies, 4,705,501 Views
Q: Big4 - Yearly salary increment ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
15,052 Replies, 4,938,699 Views
HTX (Home Team Science and... ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
686 Replies, 342,997 Views
merit increment in civil service ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
229 Replies, 268,965 Views
Career as Teacher ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
10,573 Replies, 6,554,677 Views
IMDA (under MCI) ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
1,255 Replies, 605,584 Views
Lawyer Salary ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
20,970 Replies, 10,282,751 Views
MINDEF DXO (All FAQ on it) ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
5,806 Replies, 4,627,081 Views
Civil Svc/ Statboard - Typical... ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
6,103 Replies, 3,714,783 Views
MAS for Mid Career Professionals ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
1,775 Replies, 1,030,608 Views
Local bank BO pay
2 Replies, 136 Views
ST Electronics ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
3,734 Replies, 1,528,495 Views
UOB Management Associate Program ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
1,388 Replies, 769,222 Views
Roles in accenture singapore ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
7,263 Replies, 2,292,353 Views
NUS (National University of... ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
315 Replies, 315,181 Views
ITE Polytechnic Scheme ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
302 Replies, 362,448 Views
Aon Centre for Innovation and...
9 Replies, 6,061 Views
CSA (Cyber Security Agency) ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
904 Replies, 500,403 Views
Compare civil service salary ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
16,314 Replies, 12,398,390 Views
Standard Chartered International... ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
476 Replies, 262,788 Views
DSTA (under Mindef) ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
1,435 Replies, 1,363,070 Views
Ex-MOE Teachers ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
403 Replies, 485,969 Views
Engineer Pay ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
664 Replies, 454,435 Views
Cybersecurity/Info security career ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
501 Replies, 264,346 Views
LTA (Land Transport Authority) ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
651 Replies, 377,083 Views
OCBC Graduate Talent Programme... ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
1,165 Replies, 641,006 Views
DBS ACE Programme ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
119 Replies, 76,984 Views
How is life as a doctor in... ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
7,233 Replies, 3,376,618 Views
Work culture in IHiS ( 1 2 3... Last Page)
717 Replies, 535,601 Views
Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.2



All times are GMT +8. The time now is 07:20 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.5
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.3.2