Employment prospects decline for Singapore's polytechnic graduates

By Phan Anh February 27, 2025 | 07:09 pm PT

Employment prospects for polytechnic graduates in Singapore have been in decline due to lower hiring demand and fewer jobs available, the country's education minister said.

Chan Chun Sing, Singapore’s Minister of Education, said earlier this month that graduates from courses such as health sciences and social sciences continue to have high employment prospects, while those graduating from engineering and information and technologies have been seeing higher unemployment rates, The Straits Times reported.

Sing attributed the drop in employment to be due to several potential factors, including a downturn in the tech sector. Certain graduates have also rejected full-time job offers over multiple reasons, including lack of work-life balance and low pay, he added, Business Times reported.

A graduate employment survey, conducted by five Singaporean polytechnic institutions issued in January, revealed that 54.6% of respondents had full-time permanent jobs last year, a drop from around 60% back in 2023.

In general, 87.5% of polytechnic graduates found either permanent, part-time or freelance jobs within six months after graduation or after completing national service last year, the survey added.