SINGAPORE — Graduates can remain confident that Singapore is still competitive and creating jobs, Coordinating Minister for Social Policies Ong Ye Kung said on Sept 7.

Addressing an audience of about 250 students, he also acknowledged a tighter graduate job market and greater job-search anxiety.

He said: “You are not entering a declining or stagnant economy. You are entering one that is growing, that’s attracting investments, and that’s still dynamic. 

“So you are not cooked. You’re still raw.”

He was speaking at the Kent Ridge Ministerial Forum at NUS’ University Cultural Centre, where he laid out his assessment of the changes to the job market and advised students on how to maximise their chances of succeeding in their careers.

He also called on employers to cool an “arms race” over grades and internships and prevent hiring from becoming an ever-escalating competition.

Pointing out that the way they hire ultimately shapes the arms race’s intensity, he said: “We are not asking employers to lower their hiring standards. 

“But every additional signal that employers send – hiring candidates with more internships, more credentials, better grades – becomes something that students feel you must chase to curate the perfect CV.” 

Ong urged employers to look beyond GPAs and internships when assessing fresh graduates, whose experiences may not fit neatly into a conventional CV,  but can demonstrate their resilience, initiative, discipline, empathy, character and work ethic.

Hiring a fresh graduate is “always about spotting potential and taking a chance in a young person”, he said.

“Help assure applicants that this is how you hire, and cool down an arms race that is energy-sapping, and I think making the undergraduate experience less holistic for young people at a critical formative age,” he added.