‘Maybe I should become an influencer’: NTU graduate says she’s spent nearly two years job hunting

SINGAPORE: After nearly two years of fruitless job hunting, an NTU graduate quipped that she might have better luck in becoming an influencer.

In a post on the r/NTU subreddit on Sunday (Aug 2), the graduate shared that the job hunting experience has been rather “frustrating.”

According to her, a lot of companies nowadays are reluctant to teach new hires. “They want someone who is already trained,” she wrote. “They aren’t willing to invest in training fresh graduates.”

“I know I have skills I can offer, but it’s frustrating when my skills and academic achievements don’t seem enough to convince employers to take a chance on me.”

“I understand companies need people who can contribute immediately, but how are fresh graduates supposed to gain experience if everyone requires experience first?”

Seeking the views of others, she asked whether former fresh graduates had faced the same challenge and whether companies still “genuinely train and develop entry-level employees,” or if this has simply become the reality of today’s job market. 

“It’s not too late to start”

In the comments section, one Singaporean Redditor joked, “You need at least 5 years of experience for an entry-level job.”

Another shared, “In that case, you should have started 2 years ago, and now you would have 2 years of influencer experience. But it’s not too late to start. I’m saying this as someone who has made close to 3000 videos on YouTube.”

A third wrote, “Many people take the same path in China, due to similar reasons.”

A fourth encouraged her to give content creation a go, commenting, “Start posting to see if it’s a viable career path for you.”

According to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), there were around 32,800 entry-level Professional, Managerial, Executive and Technician (PMET) vacancies in recent quarters, more than the number of fresh graduates entering the workforce each year.

Even so, many degree holders continue to spend months, and in some cases years, searching for their first full-time role, raising questions about whether employers’ expectations for entry-level candidates have shifted.

Read more: Why are Singapore fresh graduates still struggling to get a job when more than 32K entry-level PMET jobs are available?