AI reshaping and creating Singapore jobs, but lack of experience a hurdle for fresh grads

The Business Times, AI reshaping and creating Singapore jobs, but lack of experience a hurdle for fresh grads

Recruiters say employers are prioritising candidates who can deploy artificial intelligence in real business settings

[SINGAPORE] OpenAI is hiring more than 200 people in Singapore. But nearly all the roles require at least five years of experience.

The tech giant’s desire to hire experienced talent is “not an outlier”, with such hiring patterns observed across companies racing to adopt artificial intelligence, noted Richard Farmer, managing director for Asia at talent firm CXC.

While AI investment is fuelling demand for talent, recruiters who spoke to The Business Times said that employers are prioritising candidates who can deploy AI in real business settings, making it harder for fresh graduates to break into the industry.

Recent findings by professional services firm Aon showed that only 24 per cent of Singapore firms are confident in hiring AI talent.

“AI is reshaping existing roles and requires new talent, particularly in integrating technology with business outcomes, decision-making and workforce strategy,” Puneet Swani, head of talent solutions for Asia-Pacific at Aon, told BT.

“This often requires experienced talent who can lead transformation and apply AI within organisational contexts.”

Experience becoming a key differentiator

With recruiters saying that the strongest demand is increasingly for professionals with commercial experience, fresh graduates are in a challenging position as they face a tougher labour market.

This year’s Ministry of Education’s Graduate Employment Survey data showed lower full-time employment rates across most tech-related degrees in Singapore.

Some 75 per cent of graduates studying data science and analytics at the National University of Singapore (NUS) secured full-time employment in 2025, a decline from 80 per cent in the previous year.

Against this backdrop, Farmer noted that a degree in computer science, data science or AI is “increasingly viewed as the entry ticket rather than the differentiator”.

Instead, employers are looking for candidates who can combine AI expertise with software engineering, cloud platforms, data architecture, cybersecurity or industry-specific knowledge.

“It is not a shortage of people,” he said. “It is a shortage of people with the right combination of skills and experience.”

Checks by BT showed that job postings for similar AI-related job scopes from large companies such as Micron and Google all require at least two years of experience in a related field.

The hiring trend comes even as AI investment in Singapore accelerates.

In February, the Republic’s sovereign wealth fund GIC led a US$30 billion Series G funding round in Anthropic. OpenAI has also invested S$300 million in Singapore, as it seeks to expand its presence.

However, much of that investment will flow into R&D, product development and engineering teams that typically require experienced hires rather than entry-level employees.

Universities adapt

Universities, however, say employer demand for graduates remains resilient.

The number of campus recruitment events at NUS increased by 19 per cent in academic year 2024/2025 compared with AY2023/2024 – driven by technology and AI-related firms. The university told BT that it expects the number of recruitment events for the current academic year to remain high.

Singapore Management University and Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) also noted sustained demand for campus recruitment events.

An NUS spokesperson said: “We recognise that, globally, softer hiring demand in parts of the technology sector has contributed to a broader decline in the proportion of fresh graduates securing full-time permanent employment.

However, the university noted that it points to a tightening of hiring standards, rather than a weakening demand for tech-related talents.

Linda Teo, country manager of ManpowerGroup Singapore, concurred.

“What many organisations are looking for is the ability to apply those skills in a specific business or industry context,” she said.

To narrow that gap, Singapore universities are working more closely with the industry.

Professor Li Xiaoli, head of pillar (information systems technology and design) at SUTD, said that the school partners companies to provide students with real-world problem statements, domain expertise, project sponsorship, mentorship and evaluation of student projects.

Meanwhile at NUS, it has revamped its information systems major to business AI systems, and launched a new bachelor’s degree in AI.

Students, too, are increasingly building experience outside the classroom.

Leena Soo, a fresh graduate with a bachelor’s in applied AI, sent about 50 applications before landing a full-time job as a generative AI analyst at a financial services firm.

Even for someone studying a field in hot demand, her four-month-long job search experience also led her to reflect on the extent to which qualifications matter over on-the-job experience.

“I do think a degree can have a stronger impact during the fresh graduate stage than people sometimes admit,” she said, noting that employers use the degree as an “initial filter”.

“However, I believe its importance gradually decreases as you gain more work experience.”

The softening hiring numbers are also being reflected in the job search by her peers.

“From the conversations I’ve had, the current job market does seem more competitive than many of us expected,” she said.