Opportunities in Far East are abundant but jobseekers are still afraid to make the move

Jan. 19, 2012 - PRLog -- As winter grips Europe, jobseekers daring to move are reaping the career benefits posed by the resilient economies of the Far East. As unemployment in Europe and the US hovers over 9%, some economies had drastically different figures on show. Asian economies like China, Singapore and Indonesia have shown that they are somewhat sheltered from the downturn, and are continuing to offer an abundance of opportunities to fresh graduates and experienced professionals alike.

In Singapore overall unemployment hovers close to the 2% mark. This is about as low as it can get. To provide a clearer idea of what that meant for the jobs market, Singapore’s Straits Times announced in June of this year that there were 100 jobseekers for every 139 jobs on offer. Just over a week later Britain’s Daily Telegraph came out with the headline “Graduate gloom as 83 students apply for every vacancy”.

So why don’t grads want to fill this void of potential? Isa Schaller, co-founder of http://GatewaySingapore.com, explains why people find this so difficult. “…everybody knows about the abundance of career opportunities in Asia but people are still afraid to make the move because of the deluge of uncertainties and insecurity that surrounds such a change. When I decided to work in Singapore, so many questions needed answering around jobs, visas, accommodation, and making friends. That’s why we launched GatewaySingapore.com: to provide solutions to all the problems that this once-in-a-lifetime experience can pose from the start.”

The benefits of working abroad in progressive economies like Singapore are substantial. Schaller adds that those who make the decision to work abroad will wield a huge advantage when they return home, and will leapfrog those who decided to stay and wait for the recovery to come. “Nobody knows what’s going to happen in Europe- just watch the news. Many European graduates can count themselves lucky to be part of a ‘migrant elite’. This is especially true for those with financial and technological backgrounds, which make up the majority of the opportunities for foreigners in Singapore. Also, the first language is English here.”

Schaller finishes by adding that career is not the only reason to get excited about a move to Asia: “The lifestyle out here is phenomenal. I’d be here all day expressing my love for this side of the world but the things that keep me here are the weather, the social life and the endless travel opportunities on your doorstep... and I almost forgot to mention the food!”