Singapore - Expat Jobs and Careers

The very large expatriate community creates its own employment opportunities in the fields of health, education and other services. The American Association has set up Career Resource Centre for Expatriates (CRCE), which specializes in helping trailing spouses to find employment.

• Career Resource Centre for Expatriates (CRCE)
  American Association of Singapore
  c/o American Club
  21 Scotts Road
  Singapore 228219
  Tel: +65 6733 4257
  Email [email protected]
  website: www.aasingapore.com

This centre provides employment links between organizations and individuals. Membership is open to all nationalities at a cost of  $100 per year including membership of the American Association. Members have access to an emailed job list and the resource centre. A one-time, free career counselling session is included. Regular coffee mornings and seminars are held with talks on topics such as writing a resume, networking and setting up a small business.

The types of jobs available through CRCE include part-time and full-time positions and often target people with European or Asian language skills. Types of jobs include:

• Sales, marketing, public relations
• Education-language teachers, kindergarten teachers, tutors, swimming instructors
• Librarians
• Office administration
• Massage therapists, personal trainers
• Catering, chefs
• Accounting and finance
• Relocation

Other jobs exist in the fields of health and education.

Trailing spouses usually find their best employment opportunities are with foreign-owned companies or companies run by other expatriates. Large Singaporean companies have managerial and business practices that are similar to foreign-owned companies. However, small to medium-sized Singapore companies may not have very good work environments. Many expect employees to work long hours.

Links
www.business.gov.sg for information on business registrations, licenses and permits, networking, taxation etc.

• Primetime
  Tel: + 65 6234 0973
  Email [email protected]
  website: www.primetime.org.sg
  This is a professional women's networking organization with many expatriate members. 

Portable careers

Portable careers are defined as all sorts of activities that do not require you to be in a geographical location. Therefore the list, thanks to the advent of the internet, is becoming quite a long one:

• writing/editing
• translation
• consulting
• artist (painting, sculpting etc.)
• computer graphics
• web design 
  With excellent internet connections and the availability of all the latest computer hardware and software, Singapore is an excellent place to pursue these kinds of careers.

Singapore visa and work permit requirements do not necessarily stop foreigners from easily setting up small businesses in their own homes or in a small office.
Teaching English or any language for that matter is another career that you could pursue in Singapore and take with you to other Asian destinations.

Telecommuting

It didn't exist a few years ago, but with the advent of the internet, the possibility arose of being available to a company by remote access. Telecommuting is also a relatively new career choice for many people. 

This geographical freedom does not necessarily apply across country borders and thus there is a grey area.
This is a subject which needs further feedback from anyone who has experienced telecommuting, in order to avoid nasty surprises for those who plan working in a different country from their employer. At present, we are unaware of enough examples to scrutinise and advise.