Job outcomes for polytechnic graduates in 2025 ‘comparable’ to past years: Gan Siow Huang

In 2024, there were 10,045 fresh polytechnic graduates.

Held at SP’s campus in Dover on Oct 22 and 23, the fair is open to all students and members of the public. About 3,000 participants – including students, alumni and employers – are expected to visit the fair.

More than 500 job roles, internship and training opportunities across 57 organisations, including Mediacorp, Singtel, SMRT, UOB and the Singapore Armed Forces, are available at the fair.

“I’m actually very heartened that employers and our institutes of higher learning are coming together to support our students, whether it’s in career coaching, providing internships, and also helping our students navigate the job landscape,” Ms Gan said, adding that there are employers still looking to hire fresh graduates, even though there are uncertainties.

This comes as the Graduate Industry Traineeships (GRIT) programme, a government-funded initiative for fresh graduates to gain industry experience and enhance employability, was launched at the start of October.

The programme offers up to 800 traineeship positions in various growth sectors, lasting three to six months. 

Ms Gan said the programme has drawn “quite healthy” demand, without giving the number of application figures. About 50 companies have indicated “strong interest” to participate and offer internship opportunities in a variety of sectors, she said.

“I hope that traineeships like this will be able to complement the job market and help our graduates land suitable jobs in time to come, and in the meantime, pick up new work networks and new skills, and clarify their career goals,” she said.

SP is one such organisation participating in GRIT, offering nine traineeship positions as at Oct 16. It also recently set up an Employment Support Office to support students and fresh graduates.

For 20-year-old Cherilynn Chua, who chose to take a gap year after graduating from SP earlier in 2025, taking time to find the right path meant more than “working for the sake of it”.

She had applied for university admission and received acceptance letters, but the food science and technology graduate realised that she wanted to try something different from what she had studied.

Ms Chua worked for three months as a food technician, but felt that it was not a good fit.

“Through the whole job process, I definitely learnt a lot about myself – what I like and what I look for in a job,” she said.

She was apprehensive about taking a gap year to discover her interests, she said. “I always thought that I had my route and life planned out, but suddenly changing from working full time to taking a gap year, or considering furthering my studies, was a confusing period.”

But her anxiety eased after speaking with career guidance counsellors from SP, and Ms Chua is now determined to spend her gap year building a portfolio to pursue media or marketing-related studies, having dabbled in video editing. She is also working part-time as a barista.

“For me, a job should come with purpose,” she said. “I would rather take a gap year and figure things out on my own terms, than rushing to find a job for the sake of it.”

Ms Chua said she felt a bit of pressure as her peers were already studying or working. “But I think reminding myself that I’m only just 20, and I still have time to figure things out, makes it a lot better.”