Most overqualification in Singapore voluntary as workers prioritise flexibility, says MOM and NTUC study

NTUC and the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said they are committed to ensuring that every Singaporean worker has access to jobs that best suits their potential.

This comes after the two organisations released their own complementary studies on underemployment in Singapore on 14 April 2026.

While both studies showed that overqualification – or situations in which the employed person’s qualifications are higher than what is required to perform the job – is largely voluntary in Singapore, NTUC Assistant Secretary-General Patrick Tay said it is important to continue examining underemployment in Singapore.

He said: “Many workers are making deliberate career decisions that prioritise flexibility, fulfilment, or life-stage needs. This reflects a labour market that offers diverse pathways rather than one that is structurally misaligned. A dynamic labour market must offer both flexibility and security.”

Mr Tay added that NTUC will continue working closely with tripartite partners to “ensure the labour market remains flexible and inclusive,” and that workers are equipped to make confident career choices without the anxiety of job insecurity.

Key findings on overqualification

Both studies found that overqualification is more common in high-income economies, where a larger share of workers hold tertiary qualifications.

In Singapore, the overqualification rate stands at 19.4 per cent, below the high-income average of 21.6 per cent.

This comes even as the proportion of tertiary-educated workers in Singapore’s workforce rose from 51.6 per cent in 2015 to 64.0 per cent in 2025, higher than the 41.2 per cent average across high-income countries.

The relatively moderate rate reflects Singapore’s continued creation of higher-skilled jobs to match its increasingly educated workforce.

MOM Deputy Secretary (Workforce) Kenny Tan said that while the overqualification rate in Singapore is lower than that of other high-income countries, the Government is committed to ensuring Singaporeans have access to jobs that match their potential.

“Both workers and employers have their part to play ... Workers should embrace lifelong learning and new job opportunities. Employers need to recognise that workers have different needs at different life stages,” he said.

Mr Tan added that a new Skills and Workforce Development Agency will integrate training, employment support and job redesign efforts to better support workers and employers.

Most overqualification situations are voluntary

Most overqualification in Singapore is voluntary, with about nine in 10 affected workers choosing roles below their qualifications.

These choices are often driven by preferences such as flexibility, work-life balance or transitional career moves, rather than difficulty in finding suitable jobs.

Only a small share of workers, about 1.7 per cent of the resident workforce, are involuntarily overqualified.

This proportion has remained low and stable over the past decade, indicating limited structural mismatch in the labour market.

According to NTUC, voluntary overqualification reflects changing career priorities and evolving work arrangements, and workers are increasingly opting for roles that better align with personal needs, including family responsibilities, flexibility and alternative career pathways.

Among employed respondents, the most common form of underemployment was education field-job mismatch at 31.4 per cent.

This was followed by qualification-job mismatch at 23.0 per cent, skills-job mismatch at 22.5 per cent, and qualification-occupation mismatch at 20.3 per cent.

NTUC’s calls to support workers

Following the publication of the studies, NTUC has called on tripartite partners to strengthen support for workers across different life stages.

This includes:

• targeted support for early-career individuals and fresh graduates as job roles and aspirations evolve;

• enhancing employability through multi-skilling;

• developing a dedicated hub to support social entrepreneurship and the pursuit of personal interests;

• creating more collective job opportunities through community-based employment co-operatives;

• the development of a “career-revisioning programme” to help workers transition into their next career phase;

• pay-per-use childcare services and stronger workplace cultures to better support parents and caregivers;

• expanding the definition of underemployment to better capture skills, qualification and education mismatches for a more holistic view of the workforce.

Both NTUC and MOM said they encourage employers to support workforce development and enable employees to maximise their potential.

Employers are encouraged to redesign jobs to better retain talent with different work-life needs.

Read more:

NTUC’s Research Study on Underemployment in Singapore

MOM’s Report: Overqualification in Singapore 2025