Workforce Singapore (WSG) is expanding its Volunteer Career Advisors (VCA) initiative to support young adults entering the workforce gain industry insights and career advisory as they embark on their careers.

Since its inception in December 2020, the VCA initiative has provided mid-career workers with peer support and career guidance as they navigate professional pathways to advance their careers, or transition to other jobs.

The VCA initiative has benefitted over 7,600 individuals to date with the support of more than 550 VCAs. Encouragingly, more than 97% of VCA advisees shared that they would recommend the programme to others, which underscores the significant impact made by the VCAs.

As part of the next phase of the VCA initiative, Senior Minister of State for Manpower Mr Zaqy Mohamad announced a new pilot programme “Polaris by VCA” at the annual VCA Appreciation Night 2024. “Polaris by VCA” is designed to support young adults entering the workforce, leverage the industry expertise of VCAs through one-on-one career advisory sessions, and access support to craft career development plans based on practical insights on industry trends and opportunities.

Expanding Support for the Next Generation of Professionals

Polaris by VCA is an expansion of WSG’s VCA initiative and the Polaris career guidance programme. Through this new programme, young adults can tap the industry insights and real-world experiences of VCAs to plan out their career trajectory and gain early exposure to career planning.

Starting in Q1 of 2025, the pilot Polaris by VCA programme will involve 50 VCAs in 2025. Young adults who are about to enter the workforce will have the opportunity to:

• Receive industry-specific career guidance from experienced industry professionals

• Gain insights into industry trends and job market demands

• Explore career pathways within their preferred industries

• Craft industry-informed career development plan

Participants of the Polaris by VCA programme will gain a deeper understanding of their preferred fields and develop career plans informed by the career experience of industry professionals.

Ms Dilys Boey, Chief Executive of WSG, said: "We are heartened to see many Volunteer Career Advisors stepping forward to provide peer support to fellow workers through their career journeys. The expansion of the VCA initiative to provide guidance to young workforce entrants under Polaris by VCA represents a significant step in our ongoing efforts to help individuals make more informed career decisions as they navigate their career journeys. By connecting young adults with experienced professionals, we hope to complement existing school-based career guidance initiatives with access to valuable industry insights and professional networks to support their longer term career growth."

The Polaris suite of programmes is part of Career Health SG, a national initiative in support of the SkillsFuture movement. Career Health SG seeks to empower Singaporeans to achieve their career aspirations and develop resilient and fulfilling careers.

Through Career Health SG, the Government is committed to empowering Singaporeans to chart longer-term career pathways through career guidance and deepening one’s knowledge and skills with insights on growth jobs and industries. Polaris by VCA focuses on young adults entering the workforce, with the aim of providing them with a head start in their career journey and improve their career resilience.

More details will be available on the WSG website closer to the roll out date.

About Workforce Singapore

Workforce Singapore (WSG) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Manpower that promotes the development, competitiveness, inclusiveness, and employability of all levels of the workforce. Its key mission is to enable Singaporeans to meet their career aspirations, take on quality jobs at different stages of life, and help enterprises be competitive and manpower lean. WSG’s focus is on strengthening the Singaporean core and ensuring that Singaporeans are able to have better jobs and careers. WSG, in partnership with key stakeholders, also provides support to business owners and companies to enable them to transform and grow, while building a future-ready workforce.

About Career Health SG

Career Health SG is a national initiative in support of the SkillsFuture movement. It arose from the Forward Singapore conversations in 2023, as a concept to empower Singaporeans to achieve their career aspirations and develop resilient and fulfilling careers.

The initiative seeks to empower Singaporeans to chart long-term career pathways through career coaching and deepening one’s knowledge and skills with insights on growth jobs and industries. With this, Singaporeans can take proactive steps to improve their career outcomes through training, on-the-job learning and intentional career moves. They can also make the best use of the wide array of Government upskilling and career conversion programmes.

Career Health SG also enables our businesses to widen their access to talent. Through Career Health SG, we will equip businesses to take a skills-first approach to hiring and investing in human capital development. By offering meaningful career progression pathways, businesses will be better positioned to attract and retain talent to drive growth.

Career Health SG is about realising the potential of Singapore's most precious resource – our human capital; and through this, supporting Singapore’s economic and social goals.

Career Health SG is a joint initiative by Ministry of Manpower, Workforce Singapore and SkillsFuture Singapore.