Singapore dream

I really don't remember how I've suddenly gained this desire. I was working as a Corporate Communications Officer in a local insurance firm in Makati and was slowly building up my portfolio as an employee just fresh out of college. But 'slowly' means turtle speed. Because I'm a newbie, I was never assigned challenging work even after a year of working. I've tried studying again to be able to input more creative ideas, but the company culture does not allow independent decision-making from um, well...a mere clerk. A 5%- annual increase (I can feel your shocked expressions) did not motivate me at all and promotion never happens unless the person your senior gets to be promoted first. So it wasn't surprising when I saw staff after staff resigning.

One of my best buddies who's also my lunchmate confided to me that he got a job offer as an IT analyst in Singapore. He was being recruited by a Filipino agent and they were offering a salary triple (or more) than what he was currently getting. Being an IT whiz and a fast worker, he would surely be a valuable gem the company is bound to lose. But as the character of Piscine in the book, Life of Pi by Yann Martel puts it, "People move in the hope of a better life." And so my lunch mate and my only advocate in the office left and took the too-good-to pass chance to work in Singapore.

I missed him but the thought of working abroad was too far-fetched for me back then. Few months later, I met Ivy, who was my classmate in graduate school in De La Salle. We were both taking up Master in Marketing Communications and she shared with me her plan to go to Singapore. Right then, I was wondering why everyone was going to that country. But Ivy told me the advantages:

1. It is very easy to enter Singapore. No visa is required.
2. SG is one of the safest countries to live in.
3. It harbours a multi-cultural environment so you won't feel marginalized or left out.
4. A lot of MNCs (multi-national corporations) had set up their headquarters in Singapore.
5. The economy of Singapore relies heavily on international talents. It will collapse if it does not open its doors to foreign workers; thus, it has very lenient regulations on hiring foreigners. In fact, the government encourages hiring them.
6. And last but definitely not to dismiss, one sgd is worth 33php!

As I look at the projects I've done with the insurance company, I did not feel that proud at all. I felt that I could do more and learn more. Suddenly there's a yearning to expand my area of responsibility and take on a more challenging role... So I thought about it long and hard. I prayed and asked for signs. Although my credentials and transcripts of records were quite impressive (I think), I felt that the chances of me getting a job (taking into consideration that I do not possess an IT experience) through an agent while still in the Philippines was slim. Fortunately there's EPEC (Employment Pass Eligibility Certificate). If you were granted an EPEC by MOM (Ministry of Manpower), you will acquire a one-year social visit pass that allows you to stay for 12 months or more in Singapore which will then give you ample time to look for employment. More information can be viewed here: https://epec.mom.gov.sg/epec/index.do.

So I took the shot. I was asked to give details about my academic credentials and which school I came from. Then I was asked to provide soft copies of relevant documents, such as passport details, resume, and diploma. After 5 days, I was informed via email that my application has been approved and they will send the certificate to my mailing address within 2 weeks. However, because of carelessness, I wrote in an incomplete mailing address so I wasn't able to receive the certificate even after 4 weeks of waiting. Because I was too excited to go for I already received calls from prospective employers, I tried applying again. EPEC is only issued once, but I tried to work around the system. I tried calling the MOM officers for some help, but they said they could not re-issue the certificate. I applied for EPEC once again but this time under a different email address and it worked! My EPEC certificate came into my mailbox just a week after my application got approved.

I have a lot of friends and officemates whose EPEC applications were not successful, but because MOM will not disclose their rationale for not approving, I can only guess:
1. Incomplete documents or information
2. Undergraduate course is not relevant to recent job experience
3. Underage or below 20 years old
4. Multiple applications
5. MOM's quota has been reached.

For those of you whose EPEC application has been rejected, do not be discouraged. You can still go to Singapore and try your luck maximising the 30-day visit pass for tourists. But before doing that, make sure you have contacted or sent resumes to hundreds of hiring companies. Look into all the job portals and inform them of your date of arrival in Singapore.

I would not end this entry by saying that after getting my EPEC approved and finding a job after 3 weeks of searching, everything went well with me, because it did not. Well, thank God I do not have horrifying stories to tell and it has been so much better now since I started less than a year ago, but I will never regret going through all those struggles that I will narrate in my upcoming entries. Working in Singapore is truly challenging, stressful, fun, and full of epiphanies and learning experiences.