Best Graduate Employers in Singapore 2023: Expected Salary, Area of Study, Work Environment, and More

Graduates in Singapore will face an uphill struggle to secure a stable job. With the Singapore labour market continuing to improve in 2022 – total employment hitting 99.5 percent of its pre-COVID-19 level – the external demand outlook remains uncertain.

Job prospects have weakened due to the projected recession and high inflation environment. There are also global headwind factors, including the war in Ukraine, geopolitical tensions, and the trajectory of COVID-19, which means that the labor market is not equally strong across industries. 

Understanding which companies are secure and suitable for you would be key. With more than 220 million companies in the world, how do you choose which employer to join for your internship or post graduation. 

In this guide, we’ll break down the top employers you should join based on your field of study and future trends. 

Also, we’ve written a similar article for India

Top 50 Employers for Business Graduates and students in Singapore

If you’re a business graduate, these are the top 50 employers you should consider based on research conducted by Universum among 7,341 students from top universities in Singapore. Google, Apple, and J.P Morgan remains the top 3 most attractive employer since 2021 for business and commerce graduates. DBS dropped from 4th to 8th place year over year while Walt Disney Company gained 1 position during that same period. Singapore Airlines was notably in the top 3 positions for 2019 and 2020 but only achieved 7th position in 2022.

2022 RankBest employers for business graduates in Singapore
1Google
2Apple
3J.P. Morgan
4Walt Disney Company
5Goldman Sachs
6Changi Airport Group
7Singapore Airlines
8DBS
9Shopee
10TikTok
11PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers)
12Morgan Stanley
13Facebook
14Ernst & Young
15Deloitte
16Grab
17Unilever
18Microsoft
19KPMG
20Amazon
21Procter & Gamble (P&G)
22Credit Suisse
23McKinsey & Company
24OCBC Bank
25LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton
26Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)
27L’Oréal Group
28Resorts World Sentosa (Universal Studios)
29USB
30Bloomberg
31IKEA
32Singapore Tourism Board (STB)
33Marina Bay Sands
34Nestlé
35Temasek Holdings
36Deutsche Bank
37Citi
38GIC Private Limited
39Ministry of Finance (MOF)
40Bank of America
41Boston Consulting Group (BCG)
42Ministry of Education (MOE)
43Lazada
44United Overseas Bank (UOB)
45Visa
46CapitaLand
47Rolls-Royce
48Lego
49The Coca-Cola Company
50HSBC
Top employers for Business Graduates in Singapore

Top 50 Employers for Engineering and natural sciences graduates in Singapore

If you’re an engineering and natural sciences graduate in Singapore, these are the top 50 companies you need to know about. Based on a survey by Universum of students in Universities in Singapore, these companies are rated the highest in terms of most attractive employers. A*STAR overtook Google for the best attractive employer since 2020 but have continued to maintain the top spot for 2022. ST Engineering rose one position from 5th to 4th in 2022. Rolls-Royce broke back into the 5th position – They have not achieved top 5 since 2020.

2022 RankBest employers for engineering and natural sciences in Singapore
1A*STAR
2Google
3Apple
4ST Engineering
5Rolls-Royce
6Singapore Airlines
7Pfizer
8Dyson
9GSK (GlaxoSmithKline)
10Microsoft
11Defense Science & Technology Agency
12Land Transport Authority (LTA)
13Johnson & Johnson
14National Environment Agency (NEA)
15Boeing
16Changi Airport Group
17ExxonMobil
18Procter & Gamble (P&G)
19Ministry of Health (MOH)
20Ministry of Education (MOE)
21DSO National Laboratories
223M
23Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA)
24Shell
25J.P. Morgan
26Samsung
27Shopee
28Ministry of Defence (MINDEF)
29SMRT
30Takeda Pharmaceutical
31Facebook
32Amazon
33GE – General Electric
34Nestlé
35Sembcorp
36Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS)
37Intel
38Jurong Town Corporation (JTC)
39Novartis
40Siemens
41Walt Disney Company
42Unilever
43DBS
44McKinsey & Company
45Lego
46Goldman Sachs
47Keppel Corporation
48Government Technology Agency
49TikTok
50Grab
Top employers for engineering and natural sciences Graduates in Singapore

Top 50 Employers for Information Technology graduates in Singapore

Here’s the top 50 employers for Information technology students and graduates. This list will run through which employers IT Universities and graduates find most attractive. Google, Microsoft, Apple, Facebook remains in the same top 4 positions respectively. Amazon gained one position since 2021 to occupy the 5th most attractive employer for IT graduates and students. Shopee lost one position and dropped to 6th place.

2022 RankBest employers for Information technology in Singapore
1Google
2Apple
3Microsoft
4Facebook
5Amazon
6Shopee
7TikTok
8Grab
9Government Technology Agency
10J.P. Morgan
11Visa
12DBS
13Paypal
14Samsung
15IBM
16Ubisoft
17Walt Disney Company
18Goldman Sachs
19Intel
20Defence Science & Technology Agency
21LinkedIn
22Accenture
23Lazada
24Singapore Airlines
25A*STAR
26Sony
27SingTel
28SAP
29Dyson
30Info-communications Media Development Authority (IMDA)
31Ministry of Defence (MINDEF)
32Marina Bay Sands
33Salesforce
34Airbnb
35OCBC Bank
36Dell Technologies
37Ministry of Home Affairs
38Changi Airport Group
39Deloitte
40Autodesk
41Resorts World Sentosa (Universal Studios)
42Standard Chartered
43Citi
44DSO National Laboratories
45Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)
46GIC Private Limited
47Ministry of Health (MOH)
48Morgan Stanley
49Rolls-Royce
50IKEA
Top employers for information technology Graduates in Singapore

Top 50 employers for humanities, liberal arts, education graduates in Singapore

For humanities, liberal arts, education graduates, here are the top 50 employers based on survey respondents from Universities in Singapore. Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) shot to the 1st place in 2022, overtaking Google. Ministry of Education also gained one position, finishing as the 2nd most attractive employer for humanities, liberal arts and education graduates in Singapore. Apple also made it into the top 5 position in 2022 for the first time. It’s interesting to note that TikTok, which was founded in 2016 only, is in the 10th spot even though they are a young company.

2022 RankBest employers for humanities, liberal arts, education graduates in Singapore
1Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF)
2Ministry of Education (MOE)
3Google
4Walt Disney Company
5Apple
6Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY)
7Ministry of Home Affairs
8Ministry of Health (MOH)
9Ministry of Foreign Affairs
10TikTok
11Singapore Airlines
12Ministry of Defence (MINDEF)
13IKEA
14Mediacorp
15Facebook
16Shopee
17Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI)
18LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton
19Singapore Tourism Board (STB)
20Changi Airport Group
21Lucasfilm
22Singapore Press Holdings
23Microsoft
24Marina Bay Sands
25Resorts World Sentosa (Universal Studios)
26Lego
27Ubisoft
28National Environment Agency (NEA)
29UNIQLO
30Airbnb
31Amazon
32McKinsey & Company
33Grab
34Unilever
35Sony
36A*STAR
37Temasek Holdings
38Ogilvy
39Info-communications Media Development Authority (IMDA)
40L’Oréal Group
41Bloomberg
42Boston Consulting Group (BCG)
43Economic Development Board (EDB)
44J.P. Morgan
45Goldman Sachs
46DBS
47The Coca-Cola Company
48Enterprise Singapore (ESG)
49H&M
50Dyson
Top employers for humanities, liberal arts, education Graduates in Singapore

What do graduates look for in an Employer?

Preferences change overtime. Based on Universum, an encouraging work-life balance, a friendly work environment, and high future earnings are the top 3 most important factors Students look for in an employer. Secure employment and professional training, and development were ranked as 4th and 5th (Two positions lower since 2021).

2022 RankPreference and Employer Considerations among students and graduates
1Encouraging Work-Life Balance
2A Friendly Work Environment
3High Future Earnings
4Secure Employment
5Professional Training and Development
6Flexible Working Conditions
7Competitive Base Salary
8Clear Path for Advancement
9Good reference for future career
10Respect for its people
What do graduates look for in an employer in Singapore

What do female graduate look for in an employer?

Female graduates place secure employment as a key criteria they look for in an employer, followed by encouraging work-life balance, a friendly work environment, high future earnings, and professional training and development.

2022 RankTop Preferred Industry for Graduates
1Secure employment
2Encouraging work-life balance
3A friendly work environment
4High future earnings
5Professional training and development
What do female graduates look for in a Singaporean Employer

What do male graduates look for in an employer?

Male graduates place high future earnings as the most important criteria they look for in an employer, followed by professional training and development, encouraging work-life balance, a friendly work environment, and competitive base salary. Out of the five key considerations, two of the considerations are related to earnings and salary. Males tend to express more risky and aggressive behavior which can be seen in their higher demand for earnings as compared to females. Males tend to apply for jobs when they are only 60% qualified for the job while women prefer to be 100% sure they fit the job before they apply. This confidence gap tends to open more opportunities to men as well.

2022 RankTop Preferred Industry for Graduates
1High future earnings
2Professional training and development
3Encouraging work-life balance
4A friendly work environment
5Competitive base salary
What do male graduates look for in a Singaporean Employer

Top preferred industries and sectors for graduates in Singapore

A survey by Universum showed that the computer software and technology is the most preferred industry for Graduates in Singapore. Education, Banking, and eCommerce were ranked in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place respectively. If we break down by gender preferences, Males graduates prefer the computer and software industry the most while females prefer the education sector.

2022 RankTop Preferred Industry for Graduates
1Computer Software and Technology
2Education
3Banking
4eCommerce
5IT and engineering consulting
What are the top preferred industries for graduates in Singapore

What is the expected annual salary of graduates in Singapore

On average, Graduates in Singapore expect an annual salary of $50,388 SGD, according the Universum. Male graduates tend to expect 13% more salary ($54,510) than women graduates in Singapore ($47,149). It’s revealing to see that full-time female employees, aged 25 to 54, earned 14.4% lesser than male full-time employees in Singapore. While the gender pay gap has narrowed by 2.8% from 2008 to 2018, we are still anticipating gender pay gap in Singapore, even for graduates.

What do employers look for in graduates and students: Skills and Competencies

A study by NTUC learningHub surveyed employers in Singapore to understand what are the in-demand skills they are looking for in graduates and the workforce.

2022 RankAdaptive skills employers in Singapore are looking for
1Effective communication
2Teamwork
3Leadership
4Negotiation and Influencing
5Innovation
6Service Excellence
7Conflict Management
8Creativity
9Design thinking
10Lean Principles
What skills are employers looking for in gradates in Singapore

Singapore employers are increasing it’s focus on digital skills. In the same report, businesses and employers shared the key in-demand digital skills they look to have in graduates. Digital marketing is ranked the most important digital skill employers are looking for.

2022 RankDigital skills employers in Singapore are looking for
1Digital Marketing
2Data analysis
3Project Management
4Basic IT Support
5Data-driven decision making
6Web/app design and development
7Cybersecurity
8Governance, Risk Management, and personal data protection
9AI/Machine Learning
10Robotic process automation
What digital skills are employers looking for in gradates in Singapore

Not all roles require digital skills, but it’s important to note the trend to be comfortable with digital transformation in whatever roles you end up with. Very little focus is placed on in-demand adaptive skills such as effective communication although it is one of the most transferable skills. More awareness and training is needed to equip graduates and students with better communication skills.

Conclusion

With inflation rising and a poor outlook of the economy in the next few years, Students and graduates need to better train themselves in the right skills, and to approach the right companies that fit their career aspirations.

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