“Is a degree really important?”: Singaporeans weigh in

SINGAPORE: In Singapore news today, a handful of people have responded to a Singaporean online who asked “Is a degree really important?”

The writer took to a Reddit forum on Wednesday (April 17) to share, “I currently have a diploma cert and started working after graduation as I want to explore what I’m really keen but after working for almost more than a year, I started losing interest in studying and I’m not sure if I should further my studies.”

He asked, “Is having a degree really important? Those who only have a diploma certificate, are you able to share how life is and do you regret not getting a degree?”

Some of those who responded to his questions pointed out that it depends on the industry you work in. “Kinda depends on your industry,” said one. “In healthcare–not nursing, the difference is like 14 days of leave versus 21 days of leave. The salary difference is about at least 500 dollars, and you’re doing the same job.”

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“Depending on the field you are in and if the payscale and job progression/position isn’t a big concern, having a degree might not be crucial for you,” said another. “Let’s just say a degree with zero experience outweighs a diploma with 10 years of experience. From what I see, most people will eventually take a part-time degree (private if you have to) to open opportunities to be better paid.”

“Not so much for trades like plumbing, electrical or anything that uses your hands…” a third answered. “You just have to be good with your hands and build a good reputation. But a degree is good if you are ambitious and want to be promoted into management or start your own company and bid for large-scale jobs. Otherwise for other industries/office jobs, a degree will put you in a higher salary bracket to start and allow you to move upwards more easily.”

Others straight up said yes. “Absolutely yes, you are competing with local/overseas degree holders,” one said, “Think about it, if you have a lot of candidates, all with similar experiences, you with a diploma while the rest with degree. HR/hiring manager will definitely see people that have degree most of the time.”

Still, another pointed out, “A degree will open doors to more jobs but then you will realise very soon these jobs asking for degrees don’t really require a degree.”