If you’re a fresh graduate still looking for a job, here’s some good news.
Manpower Minister Tan See Leng said that as of June 2025, 51.9% of university graduates from this year’s cohort have already found jobs — a 4 percentage point increase compared to the same time last year.
Speaking at the Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce press conference on July 10, Dr Tan reassured graduates and parents not to worry.
“I would appeal to graduates and parents to stay calm. We have taken a more granular and careful look at the data on jobs and graduate employment this year. While it is still early days… we do see some silver lining in the data.”
He added:
“If you compare June 2025 with June 2024 the employment rates have gone up.”
Dr Tan also reminded everyone that many graduates are still in the early stages of their job search and gave a strong assurance:
“Rest assured, the Government, our tripartite partners, will continue to support you and walk every step with you.”
He encouraged businesses to do their part by investing in young workers, calling them the “future leaders of our workforce”.
He also confirmed that the number of entry-level job openings in Singapore has remained stable.
What jobs are available right now?
Currently, there are around 2,400 entry-level roles up for grabs. These include jobs for engineers, software developers, and other public service positions.
Graduates can explore these opportunities at the upcoming Public Service Career Fair in August, or browse listings on the Careers@Gov portal and various government social media pages.
Hiring is also picking up in sectors like healthcare, social care, and sustainability — alongside steady demand in education, technology, finance, insurance, and professional services.
NTUC: Fresh grads face four big hurdles
NTUC Secretary-General Ng Chee Meng also weighed in on the challenges facing young job seekers. He highlighted four key obstacles:
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Skills gap – Many young workers still need to build technical or soft skills.
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Expectation gap – Differences in views between job seekers and employers, especially on things like work-life balance.
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Opportunity gap – Global uncertainty and AI developments are changing what jobs are available.
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Experience gap – Some employers still want prior work experience, even for entry-level jobs.
Mr Ng had this advice for young job seekers:
“As Minister Tan has highlighted, the labour market remains resilient today. There are job opportunities for our young.”
“We do encourage our young workers, our youth to keep an open mind, consider all the different possibilities and the job offers available, even when they may not feel that the job checks every box. These jobs can open the first doors to experience, networks, and potentially new directions.”
Support is available: Youth Excel, Career Health SG and more
To support youths entering the workforce, Mr Ng shared that NTUC’s Youth Excel programme will be expanded.
This programme offers help with job searches, skills training, networking events, and mentorship. Since its launch in 2017, it has already supported around 12,000 young people.
He also encouraged young workers to consider the NTUC Starter membership, which gives access to various career support initiatives, including one-on-one mentorship.
These efforts are part of a broader push to help not just new job seekers, but also existing workers.
In fact, a new national platform called Career Health SG was launched on the same day. It acts as a one-stop portal to help workers and employers better understand what career support and resources are available.
