Y’all know the saying: “Choose a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life”. But with most Singaporeans’ erring on the practical side of things, dream jobs often remain as just that – dreams. Those who do venture on the path less trodden, however, get to happily flood social media with pictures of themselves doing cool stuff on the job, becoming subjects of FB/IG envy.
If you crave those job-related bragging rights and can’t see yourself doing something “boring” just to pay your bills, consider one of these non-typical professions for your future career.
Source: Sophie Willocq
With #wanderlust appearing in 50% of millennials’ Instagram bios these days, travel writing is the hot new job everyone wants to clinch. Sponsored flights, pretty Instagram pics, and stepping out of your comfort zone for new experiences in a foreign land – that’s the epitome of livin’ the life, especially for restless souls who have difficulty sitting still in an office cubicle.
Take your doodles from sketch to screen, and watch them come alive in theatres like the whimsical characters of Hayao Miyazaki. But animation isn’t just limited to cartoons – other film genres also require graphic artists for special effects. Think Harry Potter’s wand-off with Voldemort – now that was some kickass animation work.
A Disney animator’s sketch of Moana, the newest Disney sweetheart. Source: @bshum79
And with a Lucasfilm studio right in our red dot, you won’t even have to relocate to San Fran to pursue a career in Hollywood animation. Yes, that’s the company founded by George Lucas that produced Star Wars!
Marketing duties by day, fangirling/fanboying by night – that’s the life of a concert promoter. Aside from creating publicity, organising press conferences, and dealing with concert logistics, these lucky folks get to watch free concerts and rub shoulders with your fave singers like it’s NBD.
This can include taking them out for meals and to experience the sights of Singapore. You basically get to be their BFFs for a few days…until the next group of stars comes along.
Source: @styledbyhirzi
So not all of us can afford the luxury threads that celebrities wear, but here’s the next best thing: helping dem rich and famous pick their outfits. Imagine getting to dress Benjamin Kheng in whatever you want! That’s like having him as your very own life-sized dress up doll *heart eyes emoji* …Okay, maybe I’m going a bit too far with that #totallynotcreepy.
But you get the drift. Lavish fashion + hanging out with celebrities = ultimate glitz.
Meet Pepper, a humanoid robot by Softbank that has the ability to speak, as well as read emotions through face and voice recognition. Source
Remember when the very first iPhone seemed like something straight out of a sci-fi movie? Well, imagine revolutionising our world with something YOU created – with mankind moving towards smart living, the possibilities of the cool new gizmos you could create are endless. After all, things like thumbprint locks and bionic limbs already exist, so who knows – you might even be able to engineer your very own Iron Man suit someday.
Source: @sbramerica
Check the home screen of your phone. How many app icons do you have? Yup, thought so – too many to fit onto one page. From Snapchat to Uber, there are apps for just about every imaginable purpose these days. And it’s not going to stop here.
We humans are constantly searching for ways to entertain ourselves and simplify our lives, so the minute a hot new smartphone app makes it big, we’re ready to pounce. It’s only a matter of time before the next “in thing” of social media emerges and takes over the current Instagram obsession. What a time to be alive!
How many of these app logos do you recognise? Source
Source: @aaron__sim
For those who eat, sleep, and breathe the #gymlyfe, now’s your chance to capitalise on your muscle gains. Strong is the new sexy, and personal trainers are highly sought after these days. There’s nothing more rewarding than sharing knowledge of what you’re passionate about and inspiring others achieve their fitness goals.
Source: @aircraftmaintenance
There are few things in life that compare to the rush of soaring through the skies. Ideal for those who enjoy tinkering with machines, the job of an aircraft engineer is to upkeep the maintenance of planes and their components, and of course, run test drives – that’s where the flying comes in! It’s almost like having your very own fleet of jets.
Source: @aircraftmaintenance
For most of us, wine is an indulgence reserved for special occasions. But as a professional wine taster/sommelier, you’ll get paid to enjoy fine wine, all day, err day. Yes, even the premium stuff that costs a couple of hundred bucks. In fact, you might even get to fly to places like Italy and France to handpick the best pours.
Just make sure you can hold your liquor – if you’re prone to mabok ramblings after a few glasses, this probably isn’t for you.
Similar to how there are architects for buildings, there are also architects for boats – betcha didn’t know that. Other than designing the ship’s aesthetic aspect, a naval architect/naval engineer is also involved with its construction process and maintenance. Oh, and you’ll get to enjoy joyrides out at sea on your creations too. Ships, ahoy!
Such amazing jobs may only seem like lofty dreams, but the fact is that they’re not as out of reach as you think. Turn your dream job into reality with the various local Diploma courses that the 5 Polytechnics in Singapore offer.
The in depth coverage of topics relevant to your desired specialisation will equip you with the right knowledge and skills to enter the workforce upon graduation – not just for any job, but one you’re passionate about.
With the Engineering scene in particular becoming more vibrant in Singapore, there are now more and more courses catered to the various professions in the industry – for example, Mechatronics for aspiring Robot Engineers, Marine Engineering for sea-lovers, and Computer Engineering for those setting their sights on Silicon Valley.
There are more than 60 highly specialised Engineering-related courses to choose from. Check them out – you might just find something that will take you on the road to the best job ever.
This post was brought to you by engineering@Polys.
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