BIG CAREER CHANGE IN MY LATE 20s! PLS HELP!

[MAKEAWAY]

Hi everyone! First, I want to give my gratitude to all the invaluable contributors on this wonderful forum. Believe it or not, all of you are making an intangible difference. For the sake of time and brevity, i'll do my very best to be succinct, but i apologize early to those who will find my entry to be lengthy, or subjectively unsatisfactory in any way or form. There's just so much I want to know and to be answered in regards to relatively the biggest decision of my life. I know this is an everyday scenario and i'm not the first man to do something as earth-shattering as making a life advancement by switching a career stance. To paint the picture, I'm a US citizen, New York resident, single, in my late 20s with a degree and 1 yr experience in Nursing (US graduate) and Retail/Sales (over 5 years, no degree), and with the greatest intention to move to Singapore to basically start a new life and profession. In fact, I'm going to visit that very special place for the first time next month to directly discern the true nature of the country's employment situation (opportunities, visa requirements, salaries, etc), living costs and everything else that need consideration, as much as i can to help me prepare for the best as well as the worst. Now my first question is, what are the most suitably potent jobs out there in terms of demand, salary, stability, and attainability? I would like to add the fact that I am willing to enhance my marketability and professional strength by attaining a pertinent degree from a university, if necessary. If I have to do that, should I pursue my education here or there? Where can I receive the salary advantage? Or does it make a difference where I get my degree? And, can anyone give me a slight clue about the average cost of living in SG (rent, food, transportation expense, etc). I've read that the housing expense is similar to NY's. Here, the rent for a 1 BR apt w/ small kitchen&bath is at least ~$1200USD. My lifestyle is not considered extravagant nor frivolous in the economic sense, but I have the propensity for getaway travel, dining out, and shopping for nice clothes once in a while. Here, my total expenditure (rent + food + car insurance + gas + utilities) is about 1800USD/month. Having said all of that, I'm hoping someone out there is kind enough to share their thoughts, insights, or any information pertinent to my purpose or undertaking. I highly appreciate any response. Thank you all in advance. Have a good day everyone!

[smayrhofer]

Hi,

Your message is really very wordy. you may want to list your questions in bullet format so people can immediately focus on the important stuff.

you can rent a room for below SGD$1000/month without a problem. How far below depends on your living standards, etc. If you want a place of your own, you can get a small, low-end HDB flat for SGD 1000-2000/month depending again on your standards.

If you buy groceries or eat locally, you can expect to spend about $15/day on food.

Electricity/water bills depend on what kind of place you rent. for an HDB, these are very low. My bf and I paid less than $100 a month for these services. Some months, we didn't pay anything at all due to the subsidies. It all gets more expensive once you look at private apartments or condos.

[MAKEAWAY]

Smayrhofer,

Thanks for your reply. Very helpful. My apologies for my wordy nature. I guess I got carried away.

I definitely like the sound of cheaper living and I understand that it's much cheaper there, but what about entry level salary figures? Am I going to make enough to pay for necessities and still have some left for diversional activities and most importantly, Savings?

To give you an idea of my financial situation here, I'm making 5000 USD/m but I only see about 65% of that after taxes = approx 3300USD, and I shell out around 1700-1800USD on necessities (rent, food, gas, utilities, insurance, ), which means I still have 1500USD left for savings and other things. but since I still go out on weekends, go shopping, and pay for my gym membership, I'm actually saving around 1100USD/month. That's enough for low-end 30yr mortgage here, but I'm not planning to buy a house here since my heart is set on SG.

I'm not expecting to earn as much over there, but what kind of residual income or leftover money am I likely to see, based on an entry level salary?

Thanks again for your time! Take care!

[jpatokal]

You're going about this entirely the wrong way. To get a job in Singapore, you have to be able to demonstrate to your employer and to Immigration that you can do a job that nobody else can. But you're saying you want to have a "BIG CAREER CHANGE" and do something completely different -- well, then you're going to have to gain that expertise somewhere else, because you'll find it next to impossible to get hired here with no experience.

[CSG]

MAKEAWAY, if you care about money - your much better off in the U.S.
Do you want to come here just to see/experience something different? and do you ever plan on returning to the U.S and settling down there?

to answer your questions:

3.3k usd can go a long way in the U.S/CAN; decent/nice place to rent/buy, going out to nice places, renting/owning a car, and even saving a little

3.3k usd is approx 4.8k sgd. you wont be able to live alone downtown here at all, will never have a car (not a problem - as public transport is excellent here), and the cost of living here is rapidly increasing each yr.

entry level roles here are between 2ksgd - 3.5ksgd - you will def. need to share a room with someone or get into "public housing" - HDBs

but theres more imp. issues than cost of living; you may not even be able to get a work permit in the 1st place (see jpatokal post)

[Matney]

It would be better for you in the long run to apply for a position from the US. You would get some sort of pkg to help with your living expenses. You mention nursing, apply as that. Are you a specialized nurse? That may help. Your retail sales won't get you anywhere in Singapore. So you either apply at the various hospitals/clinics with your nursing experience or you work on another degree, find a job in the US that is willing to post you to Singapore.
Teaching is another possibility. Lots of schools need teachers. But you have to enjoy being with children/teenagers--minor detail
Good luck!

[nkn1129]

Not to burst your bubble, but it is going to be tough if not impossible for you to find anything with your background especially in this enviroment. Not sure you realize this but basically think of it as similar to what you would do in a career change in the US but much harder as here you are the foreigner. My advice is this:

1. find a job in the US that will transfer you. Again, based purely on your experience that may be a challenge in itself as usually you have to have about 3 years + before given an overseas assignement. May even be higher in this environment.
2. Look for nursing jobs in SG.

Frankly, I would say that your task is hard but in this enviorment it is even more tough to get a job here based on your background.

Good luck as you are going to need it.

[irvine]

When are you visiting Singapore?

Between now and your visit, and thereafter.. go ahead and apply for jobs from where you are now. Do you have any friends in Singapore? If you do, you may want to put their address and contact number on your resume. It is quite difficult for employers to hire someone who is not currently in Singapore. That, plus unemployment is high here.

If you're into nursing, and wish to remain in nursing, and you want a high income, I suggest the middle east. However, there's not much of a life over there. But hey, I thought US is paying quite well for a nurse?

If you're looking for a change, apply a job from where you are first. Unless you have a lot of cash stashed, try not to make the big move to Singapore without a job. Housing is expensive here, and recession is tough.

It is possible to get a job via online skype or telephone interviews.

[BodyBlitz]

Nursing?

You're going to compete with "bang for buck" pinoys.

Unless you can fight for a senior position, its very hard to compete with them - some of them are graduates too but work for much less.

[markk]

Hi

Singapore is a lovely place, my brother lived there for 3 years and I went out to visit him a few times.

But yer, you will definitely need to get in with a recruiter first, otherwise it will be extremely difficult to find anything.

[TennoHekka]

Hi everyone! First, I want to give my gratitude to all the invaluable contributors on this wonderful forum. Believe it or not, all of you are making an intangible difference. For the sake of time and brevity, i'll do my very best to be succinct, but i apologize early to those who will find my entry to be lengthy, or subjectively unsatisfactory in any way or form. There's just so much I want to know and to be answered in regards to relatively the biggest decision of my life. I know this is an everyday scenario and i'm not the first man to do something as earth-shattering as making a life advancement by switching a career stance. To paint the picture, I'm a US citizen, New York resident, single, in my late 20s with a degree and 1 yr experience in Nursing (US graduate) and Retail/Sales (over 5 years, no degree), and with the greatest intention to move to Singapore to basically start a new life and profession. In fact, I'm going to visit that very special place for the first time next month to directly discern the true nature of the country's employment situation (opportunities, visa requirements, salaries, etc), living costs and everything else that need consideration, as much as i can to help me prepare for the best as well as the worst. Now my first question is, what are the most suitably potent jobs out there in terms of demand, salary, stability, and attainability? I would like to add the fact that I am willing to enhance my marketability and professional strength by attaining a pertinent degree from a university, if necessary. If I have to do that, should I pursue my education here or there? Where can I receive the salary advantage? Or does it make a difference where I get my degree? And, can anyone give me a slight clue about the average cost of living in SG (rent, food, transportation expense, etc). I've read that the housing expense is similar to NY's. Here, the rent for a 1 BR apt w/ small kitchen&bath is at least ~$1200USD. My lifestyle is not considered extravagant nor frivolous in the economic sense, but I have the propensity for getaway travel, dining out, and shopping for nice clothes once in a while. Here, my total expenditure (rent + food + car insurance + gas + utilities) is about 1800USD/month. Having said all of that, I'm hoping someone out there is kind enough to share their thoughts, insights, or any information pertinent to my purpose or undertaking. I highly appreciate any response. Thank you all in advance. Have a good day everyone!

Dude, I heard the US army needs more nursing officers even as we speak, so why not sign up? You got Shinseki taking over the VA soon, your GI Bill will ensure further training during and after your tour, PLUS you get to serve your nation instead of coming here where nurses are abundant, and whatever they can't find, they'll get more from China anyway...