Search for job or apply for E/S pass first?

[Marinka]

I graduated May 2008 with a bachelor's degree in International Economics from a top 20 university in the United States. Will this mean anything to Singapore employers or is experience more important?

As a recent graduate, I have very little experience working full-time (only 4 months in HR consulting so far). As a result, I am trying to figure out the best way to approach the job search on an international scale.

To make myself a more competitive candidate, is it better to obtain an E/S Pass? Is it important to get one? Or will it be more efficient to get a job and have a company sponsor me? Is this the more common practice?

Any help would be appreciated!

[Saint]

You can't apply for an E/S Pass yourself, only a company can apply for one for you. There's no way you can get around it, that's the rules

[Marinka]

I read somewhere that a new law allows workers to apply for temporary 3-6 month employment. After some more research, I saw that the new law applies to work permits for specialty workers and laborers. Your post saved me a lot of research time. Thank you

[Hithnar]

You could try to go for the Landed PR scheme, but with no experience I don't think you can get it.

If I were you, I'd get at least a year or two experience before trying to fish a job here. A degree from a top uni is nice, but I think Singapore has more than enough local fresh grads.

[ching]

That's good advice from Hithnar - getting some experience first will help you.

A company has to go through some extra paperwork, etc. in order to hire a foreigner... and if there are local fresh grads who can do the same job you can, there's no good reason to go the extra mile.

So, specialized skills or relevant experience will definitely help.

[Hithnar]

It's not only about the company having to go through the application procedure. They also have to deal with risk of Ministry Of Manpower denying the Employment Pass - and the more popular your major is, the more reluctant the MOM is to let you go through. It's a huge inconvenience for the company, as they have to sign you up first, apply for the EP later, risking that the whole recruitment process will go to waste Its another aspect of the EP - getting hired does not mean you can get the job.

[Marinka]

The experience issue has been brought up before. Please consider the following:

I graduated high school early and worked full-time for international company for 8 months.

During college, I worked part-time and full-time (part-time during year, full-time during summer) as an accounting assistant for 2 years.

I have also had two internships: one at international investment banking firm and one at a non-profit company.

Although these positions are not the typical full-time jobs, I thought that they would make add a little competitiveness.

Any opinions?

[here_i_am]

I think you will qualify for an EPEC but you'll have to check and confirm with the Singapore ministry of manpower website.

http://www.mom.gov.sg/publish/momportal ... icate.html

As well, you might want to tap headhunters. I know a young lady with the same profile as yours who got a job in NUS through a headhunter.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Again, I must stress that using the EPEC elgibility tool on the MOM site does NOT guarantee you will be able to get an employment pass. It only means that you "probably won't be rejected" on your educational qualifications. It does not mean that MOM will issue an Employment Pass to the Employer as it is they who have to justify hiring somebody with no real experience instead of hiring a local with similar qualifications and similar lack of experience.

You can look into the Landed PR scheme possibly

http://www.smcmc.com/immigration/immigration.html

or the Work Holiday Pass:

http://www.mom.gov.sg/publish/momportal ... _Pass.html

or the best bet is to get some "relevant" experience before attempting to come here.

sms