What is the job market like after an SMU Singapore master's program, do some international students have to leave Singapore after graduation?

Yes, some students who complete master's programs in Singapore do not secure employment and return to their home country. This is the honest reality, and going in with awareness of it produces better preparation than assuming employment is automatic. The students who secure employment in Singapore consistently share certain characteristics: they started building professional relationships during the degree rather than after graduation, they completed at least one internship that gave them a Singapore employer reference, they were open to roles outside their first-choice sector when those sectors were slow to hire, and they persisted through the rejection process rather than stopping after early rejections.

• The job market in Singapore for international graduates has become more competitive in recent years relative to the open environment of five or more years ago.
• That said, the market does absorb international graduates with relevant skills and proactive job search behaviour.
• The critical period is the Post-Study Work Pass (PSWP), which gives time to search, but the search needs to begin during the degree, not when the PSWP starts.