Singaporean earning S$5K regrets degree choice, wonders if S$10K salary is still realistic

SINGAPORE: One Singaporean whose dream is to earn a five-figure monthly salary recently took to Reddit to ask whether “hitting S$10k/month salary is out of reach.”

Sharing his career journey, the young man revealed that he studied marketing at one of Singapore’s “Big Three” universities, a decision he now looks back on with more than a little regret.

“Horrible choice, I really regret it and I recently transitioned into public sector,” he wrote, adding that he now earns S$5,000 a month in a completely different role.

While he said he was grateful to have made the career switch, he admitted that doubling his salary to S$10,000 feels almost impossible.

Seeking perspectives, he asked, “What age did you guys hit S$10k/month? It would be good if you could answer: what kind of job you have, private/public sector, how many years of experience you have, your starting pay and what university you graduated from (if it still matters in this day and age…)”

‘You need to jump around a few times’

Many Reddit users said earning S$10,000 a month is certainly achievable, but added that it is much more common in industries such as technology, finance, and oil and gas.

One shared, “I also thought S$10k was an impossible dream when I started out; I couldn’t believe it when I got the offer for about that amount! Thought I’d misheard haha. I was fortunate enough to secure a tech role at an asset manager (finance) for just over S$10k. I was from a local university, if that matters.”

Another wrote, “If you look around, the most common are tech and finance. Oil & Gas is also well paid. Devs are usually quite well paid, especially those working in banks. I recall seeing a few posts with them hitting almost S$10k with low YOEs.”

Others said the quickest way to reach a five-figure salary is by changing employers every few years.

One engineering graduate said, “If you want to climb fast, outside of law, medicine, finance, and similar fields, you need to jump around a few times, with a bit of luck.”

He shared that he had switched jobs four times, growing his salary from S$3,100 to S$10,500 in just four years.

How common is a S$10,000 monthly salary?

While earning S$10,000 a month may feel unattainable to many, recent figures suggest a sizeable number of Singaporeans have already reached that milestone.

According to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), around 24% of full-time employed residents earn about S$100,000 a year, while roughly 18% earn at least S$120,000 annually, which works out to S$10,000 a month.

That translates to around 373,700 people out of the 2.067 million residents.

The largest group of S$10,000-a-month earners works in the Financial and Insurance Services sector, with about 86,800 workers. Wholesale and Retail Trade comes next with 47,500 workers, followed by Public Administration and Education with 44,700.

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