We've compiled the top 10 jobs (full-time, part-time, and temp) every Singaporean student has worked at, at least once in their lifetimes. Curious? Find out more below!
10. Banquet Server
A tiring but popular job most students choose. Ask around your close group of friends and confirm some have worked a day of their life as a banquet server. In our second BGC Huddles episode, one of our cherished staffing intern told us a story of how a customer requested for a bowl of warm water, to soak her feet in. Which lets us believe that banquet servers will end up with a number of fascinating stories about their workplace. How cool is that?
9. Tuition
Tutoring is a popular part-time job for smart alecs or the JC students amongst us. Freelance tutors often advertise their services on popular online platforms including Gumtree and Carousell to name a few. The reason why tutoring is a popular choice is simply because students love the idea of working at their own time, travel to specific areas of their own choosing, and earn a decent pay (up to $20) per hour.
Unfortunately, it is tough to secure a proper, well-paying position as a tutor. Don’t forget to take into account, the length you’ll be willing to commit because it’s not nice to abandon a struggling student at their time of need.
8. Food Delivery Person
We’ve seen our fair share of food delivery people, carrying vehicles of all shapes and sizes. From e-scooters to bicycles, to even using the MRT, a food delivery person is dedicated to sending their food to its destination no matter the cost.
According to Reddit, food delivery jobs are quite common among students on holiday. Additionally, your pay often depends on the number of deliveries made, as opposed to the number of hours worked. Because of this, those who have worked as a food delivery person claim that the job wasn’t as worth it, compared to other gigs available.
You can read up more about what it’s like to be a food delivery person in this Reddit thread.
7. Tourist Attraction Jobs
USS? Gardens By the Bay? Science center? You name the attraction and we bet that you know someone who worked there. The best part about working at a tourist attraction in Singapore is being able to experience an amazing attraction for free! Wanna know what it’s like to work at a popular tourist attraction like Gardens by the Bay? We’ve written an article here, about The Smart Local Xenia’s experience at Singapore’s most popular indoor garden!
6. Fast Food Cashier
KFC, McDonald's, Starbucks, are just some common examples of all the food establishments students commonly work at. Work as a fast food cashier is one for those who love to meet new people, but do something simple and methodical at the same time. Your duties as a fast food cashier usually involve taking orders, handling and counting money, as well as greeting and meeting new customers.
Maybe you can take a page from this KFC cashier’s book and gift your customers, little heartwarming notes to make their day brighter, and your job a little sweeter!
5. Retail Assistants
Retail is a job that your mother, grandmother, and grandfather have confirmed worked at, at least once in their lifetime. To succeed as a retail assistant, you’ll have to be sales driven, with the ability to upsell and convince customers to buy into your store promotions. Because of this, becoming a retail assistant is a great way to build up your soft skills. All you have to do is sacrifice your time, energy, and love of humans in the process (just kidding)!
4. Coffee Assistants / Barista
Gap year students and coffee lovers! This is the job for you! Like bartending, being a barista is the hottest job on the block! Watch as people stare in awe at your ability to whip up interesting drinks and the best coffee, they’ve ever tasted (probably).
So if you’re curious to know what it’s like to be a coffee slinger, or want to experience life as a barista, then this is the job for you! Some perks that you’ll be able to experience include free coffee, awesome latte and milk foam skills, as well as the ability to impress your friends with your vast coffee knowledge! Impressive right?
3. Beauty Adviser
Do you consider yourself to be a beautiful person? Are you interested in the world of luxury skincare, and beauty products? Or do you spend time wandering aimlessly through Sephora wishing you have the cash for the latest makeup drops?
Then surround yourself with your passion and earn money along the way by taking the time to work as a beauty adviser! I mean, can you think of a better way to spend your time doing other than recommending people products to make themselves look good? Imagine how happy you’ll feel every time your customer thanks you for helping them feel attractive! As a beauty adviser, your responsibilities will be much similar to that of a retail assistant. Your aim is to hit your sales target and sell as many beauty products as possible.
2. Event Promoters
Event promotion, the job reserved for some of our chattiest and noisiest friends. A popular job amongst the hype men amongst us, event promotion requires an upbeat and spontaneous person to help market a specific event. Who knows, you could be promoting for major concerts by some of your favorite Kpop or American celebrities.
1. Admin Assistant
The job all our guai guai friends want. What’s there to hate? Office hours, a relatively chill job, especially for our tech-savvy and touch typer friends! Not to mention a comfortable environment with air-con and good chairs etc. With all these perks, we guarantee that a lot of people will be fighting for admin roles, once the holidays roll by.