When you realize your savings plan from your insurer earns you 0.5% annually

I was talking to this friend of mine who recently talked to me about his insurance plans. He is a guy who is ahead of his peers in terms of planning his future. He got a savings plan from one of the major insurers in Singapore, saving about $200 a month.

As a student with little income, $200 is quite a significant amount and naturally, he was curious to know the interest he was getting annually. I just did some simple calculations for him and his rate of return was about 0.5% annually. He was shocked and somewhat appalled at the amount and decided to cancel his plan the next day. It will come in as a loss and it is alright in some sense because he knows how to invest and have been doing so for quite some time.

Do you have a savings plan?
Do you know your rate of return?
Do you know how much your advisor is getting paid from the amount you pay for premium?
Other than savings, what kind of insurance coverage am I getting?

I think all these are questions you should have before or after buying a plan. It's our hard earned money after all. It's akin to shopping for clothes where you would want the best value for your money. So, go on! Give your advisor a call if you ain't sure about your savings plan!

This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Possibility of a career in another field with a Degree in Electrical Engineering

As a student doing a degree in Singapore, what are the career prospects in the future? Most people will continue to work as an engineer while some signed on with the military. What about those who are not keen on engineering after enduring the 3 years of studying?

I wonder if there will be career prospects or even entry level jobs to begin with. For me, I was always fascinated by the finance industry and it would be awesome to get in. You can't really count sales as a finance job because it is somehow related to finance but at the end of the day, it is still sales. I feel that insurance is getting saturated by the day that insurance agents get calls from insurance agents to sell their products.

Although I have 2 more years left in my degree, I am worried. Grades definitely matter whenever you want to get a good job, it isn't easy when you do not really like what you are studying. On the bright side, I still have 2 years before I enter the workforce and who knows?

This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.