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These Are The Highest Paying Industries for Polytechnic Graduates in Singapore

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These Are The Highest Paying


Industries for Polytechnic
Graduates in Singapore
By Peter Lin | MoneySmart Thu, Jan 21, 2016 12:00 AM SGT

I grew up in a time when people assumed JC education was superior


to Polytechnic education. After almost flunking my A-Levels and
spending most of my 20s in University, I sometimes wish I had the
chance to go back in time and tell my younger self to go to Poly
instead.
That being said, the decision to go into Polytechnic should always
depend on whether you have a clue what you want to do with your

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life. 16-year-old me still wouldnt have known what he wanted to do


with life. All he wanted to do was make a difference in the world,
and earn a fair bit of money while doing so.
I wish I had something like the Polytechnic Graduate Employment
Survey back in my time. The results for the latest survey are out,
and apparently fresh polytechnic graduates today can expect to earn
a median salary of $2,100 a month.
But which courses lead to jobs that pay the most?
The Survey results are presented this way:
Median Gross

Median Gross

Course

Monthly Salary Monthly Salary

Category

for Fresh

for Post-NS

Graduates

Graduates

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Health Sciences

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$2,350

$2,610

$2,200

$2,500

$2,000

$2,500

$2,000

$2,478

Applied Sciences $2,000

$2,338

Hybrid Courses

$2,000

$2,300

All Courses

$2,100

$2,500

Built
Environment,
Engineering and
Maritime
Business,
Management,
Design & Others
Information &
Digital
Technologies

Of course the survey results wouldnt say specifically which


diplomas command the highest salaries, so heres our educated

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guesses on the courses a list of the highest paying diplomas would


include.
1. Diploma in Optometry
Singapore loves being number 1 in the world. Except were also
number 1 for childhood myopia between seven and nine years of
age. Thats a pretty crazy statistic but really not surprising. In the
first few months of National Service I was assigned to a special
platoon in BMT we all suffered from acute myopia. An entire
platoon of recruits, practically blind without our glasses.
As a result, optometrists are in high demand in Singapore. But only
a 120 or so students go into the three-year Diploma in Optometry
each year. Both Singapore Polytechnic and Ngee Ann Polytechnic
offer this course. The interesting thing is that there currently is no
full-time Degree in Optometry offered in Singapore, the only degree

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course shut down in 2013 when it couldnt meet its enrolment target
of 60 students.
Optometrists in Singapore today are earning a median of $3,571,
based on MOMs Occupational Wage Table for 2014. Someone
starting out could possibly expect to earn about $3,000.
2. Diploma in Micro and Nanotechnology/Diploma in
Nanotechnology and Materials Science
One of the few manufacturing industries that remains a driving
force in Singapore is the semiconductor industry. This is despite
stiff competition from countries like Malaysia and China, which
enjoy lower labour costs and as a result, lower production costs.
Sadly, while it once enjoyed a huge boom, the semiconductor
industry is now seen as a sunset industry. In response, companies
are diversifying their business, entering into other sectors while still

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retaining their core advanced manufacturing advantage.


It therefore still makes lots of sense to enter the nanotechnology
diploma courses offered by Nanyang Polytechnic and Republic
Polytechnic. Graduates of these courses usually become assistant or
associate engineers in a variety of roles.
Assistant and associate engineers are earning a median of $3,310,
based on MOMs Occupational Wage Table for 2014. Someone
starting out could expect to earn about $2,500.
3. Diploma in Banking and Finance
This is a no-brainer, honestly. The finance industry is generally
capable of sustaining the significantly higher incomes that almost
all their employees earn. Even though a diploma may not accelerate
your journey up the corporate ladder as quickly as a degree, theres
no reason you cant earn incredible salaries in your starting role

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especially if that role is foreign exchange dealer/broker, one of the


10 highest paying jobs of 2015.
But even if youre not losing sleep and putting your long-term health
at risk by working as a foreign exchange broker, finance diploma
graduates can look forward to a myriad of jobs, including financial
planning, accountancy, corporate finance and risk management.
A credit and loans officer, for example, can earn a median of
$3,510, based on MOMs Occupational Wage Table for 2014.
Someone starting out in the finance industry could expect to earn
about $2,700.
One last word
Its interesting to note from the Survey which courses did not lead to
very high-paying jobs. The category of Hybrid Courses saw the
lowest median monthly salaries among the respondents. Strangely

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enough, this category includes courses like Aviation Management


and Services, Financial Informatics and Logistics Management, that
typically lead to high paying industries.
Perhaps one reason why graduates of these courses were unable to
command higher salaries is because hybrid courses are a
combination of 2 or more disciplines. For example, Aviation
Management combines Aviation modules with Business modules.
While this would be expected to lead to a more all-rounded learning
experience, employers may not be willing to pay for what they
perceive as a less in-depth education.
Ultimately though, you shouldnt be choosing a course based on
what pays the best thats a sure way to end up doing something
you probably wont like and will make you unhappy at work. If you
know what you want to do in life, do it, and do it well, regardless of
how much it pays at first.

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How did you choose your course in Polytechnic? Let us


know in the comments.
Image Credits:
Michelle Lee.
The post These Are The Highest Paying Industries for Polytechnic
Graduates in Singapore appeared first on the MoneySmart blog.
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