Taking a break works for some

Though some graduates are choosing to take time off before kickstarting their careers, a gap break may not be for everyone

By Quah Jia Ling

Although School of Humanities and Social Sciences Student Tan Jian Rui, 24, has yet to graduate, he has already secured a position at consulting firm Accenture. He will start work immediately after he completes his studies this semester.
PHOTO: NICHOLAS YEO

When Ng Yuin Yi graduates this semester, she will head straight to California to work as a ride operator at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, a seaside amusement park.

Instead of diving headfirst into searching for a permanent job like her peers, the 23-year-old does not intend to start working full-time anytime soon.

Ng has further plans to travel for another three months after her four-month stint in the United States ends in August.

She said: “I am going to be working for the rest of my life so this is just going to be seven months off, relaxing and doing what I want before I start being a desk warrior.”

May marks the end of NTU’s second academic semester and the start of a new phase of life for final-year students as they embark on job searches.

While majority of graduates head straight into the workforce, some like Ng choose to postpone their careers to pursue personal interests.

Ng got the amusement park job through the Work and Travel USA programme organised by work-cum-travel agency Speedwing. Her sister had signed up for a similar programme six years ago when she also graduated from NTU.

“Ever since then, it has always been something I wanted,” said Ng, who hails from the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and In- formation (WKWSCI).

Ng intends to begin her job hunt only in October and believes in taking her time before deciding on her first full-time job.

“Don’t settle for something you weren’t intending to do in the first place. You’re not going to be happy,” she said.

Jumping straight into work

But other final-year students, like Tan Jian Rui from the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, have already secured a job even before the semester has ended.

Tan, 24, started actively looking for a job after a summer internship with renowned accounting firm Ernst & Young.

There, he realised his interest and potential in the business consulting sector. He scored a job in that field from his dream company Accenture, one of the largest consulting firms in the world, where he will start work this month.

Similarly, Melvin Chow, 24, a final-year student from Nanyang Business School, received a job offer as a territory manager at ExxonMobil just this January.

This came a year after he took a Leave of Absence from school in order to spend six months interning at Standard Chartered.

The experience, he said, taught him how to deal with expectations from employers and manage working in a high-stress environment.

Both students recommended internships as a good way for students to dip their toes into their prospective industries.

“It is best to try out for internships as they will tell you whether that’s something you want to do or not,” Chow said.

Tan feels the process of scoring internships is valuable in itself.

He said: “By going for (internship) interviews, you can not only network, but extract more knowledge about the industry.”

Graduates say yes to trend

Even graduates can consider taking up internships after leaving school to ascertain their career interests, said Ms Amanda See, who graduated from WKWSCI last year.

Although the 24-year-old specialised in journalism, Ms See joined fashion retailer Zalora as a public relations intern three months after graduation to pursue her passion in fashion.

She only began searching for a full-time job midway through the three-month stint.

Eventually, she joined insurance conglomerate Great Eastern Life and has been working as a life planner for five months.

“Having this break allowed me to think of what would truly make me happy in a job,” she said.

“The time does help you think through what you want to do.”

Other graduates said financial independence and parental advice also played pivotal roles in their decisions.

Mr Jeremy Keck, who graduated from the School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in 2014, wanted to start work early in order to clear his existing study loans as soon as possible.

He started his job search in January that year and scored a position in construction project management with the Housing and Devel- opment Board three months later.

He relishes the financial stability that a full-time job provides.

“I can also start clocking working experience,” he said.

Mr Keck added that being fresh out of school made for an easier transition into the workforce.

Parental advice is key

Ms Ivyna Tan, 24, was comfortable with taking a gap break post-graduation, but she heeded her father’s advice and took up a position related to her degree. PHOTO: NICHOLAS YEO

Although Ms Ivyna Tan, 24, was not in a rush to find full-time work after her graduation last year, her father felt otherwise.

Then, the Sport Science and Management graduate had been content with working part-time jobs at food and beverage outlets as she took her time to decide on a career path.

Her father, however, advised her to take up a job quickly, so she decided to apply for a position related to what she had studied.

Ms Tan returned to NTU to work as a sports administration executive last September.

“I ended up taking the conventional route of starting full-time work, although it was not the plan I originally had in mind, ” she said.