SIT Engineering Graduates Earn Far Less Than NTU Graduates. Myth or Fact?

Mostly myth. In the Ministry of Education's 2025 Graduate Employment Survey, SIT engineering graduates earned a median gross monthly salary about 5 percent below NTU graduates in matched programmes, a typical gap of $240 a month. One programme, civil engineering, matched NTU exactly. The official tables for SIT, NTU and NUS use the same survey and the same definitions, so the comparison is direct.

The gap between NUS and NTU is larger. In the five disciplines where both offer a degree, NUS graduates earn a median 8.7 percent more than NTU graduates. Rankings add little for SIT. QS ranks NUS 8th and NTU 10th in the world for engineering and technology in 2026, and SIT does not appear in any QS subject table.

The useful question is not which name ranks higher. It is what each programme leads to.

How QS Ranks NUS, NTU and SIT for Engineering

NUS ranks 8th in the world for engineering and technology in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2026, up from 12th. NTU ranks 10th, down from 11th. By discipline, NUS is 3rd for mechanical, 3rd for chemical, 3rd for electrical and 2nd for civil engineering. NTU is 5th, 6th, 4th and 6th. We cover that gap in NTU Engineering Is Stronger Than NUS Engineering. Myth or Fact?.

SIT is absent. QS's engineering and technology table lists 556 institutions, and SIT is not one of them. It appears in no other 2026 QS subject table either. That is not a finding about its graduates. QS puts 70 percent of the weight in these engineering tables on academic and employer reputation surveys, with the rest on citation and research-network measures, and those favour long-established research universities.

SIT describes itself as Singapore's university of applied learning, and its degrees are built around work placements.

What the 2025 Graduate Employment Survey Shows

The Graduate Employment Survey is run jointly by NUS, NTU, SMU, SUTD, SIT and SUSS and published by MOE. It surveys graduates about six months after their final examinations, and in 2025 all three universities surveyed their graduates in November.

The table below matches degrees by discipline. Each cell shows the median gross monthly salary of graduates in full-time permanent work, followed in brackets by the share of graduates in the labour force who were in full-time permanent employment.

Source: MOE Graduate Employment Survey 2025, official tables for NUS, NTU and SIT. SIT degrees are labelled with the partner university under which MOE lists them.

Against NTU, SIT's median is lower in 6 of the 7 matched comparisons and equal in 1. The median gap is 5.2 percent, or $240 a month, and it ranges from zero to 12 percent. Against NUS the median gap is 12.4 percent across 6 comparisons. Between NUS and NTU, the median gap is 8.7 percent in NUS's favour. In the five disciplines where all three universities have a degree, SIT trails NTU by between 3 and 7 percent, depending on which of SIT's two electrical programmes is used.

Pay ranges overlap too. The 25th to 75th percentile salary ranges of SIT and NTU graduates overlap in every matched pair. SIT and NUS ranges overlap in every pair except computer engineering. These are descriptive figures for one graduating year, not a forecast.

Employment rates point the same way. A larger share of SIT graduates than NTU graduates were in full-time permanent work in 3 of the 7 matched programmes: mechanical (75.0 against 73.3 percent), chemical (75.9 against 69.1 percent) and electronics and data engineering (77.5 against 75.8 percent).

Where SIT's Numbers Are Weaker

The belief holds most clearly in three places. Computer engineering at SIT has a median of $4,534, against $5,150 at NTU and $5,600 at NUS. Only 64.6 percent of its graduates were in full-time permanent work, against 75.4 and 78.5 percent.

Aerospace engineering, offered with the University of Glasgow, has a median of $4,400 against NTU's $4,640, and only 51.6 percent were in full-time permanent work against NTU's 62.9 percent. Electrical power engineering, offered with Newcastle University, has a median of $4,250 against $4,800 at NTU and $4,900 at NUS.

Those are the programmes where the comparison favours NTU and NUS. A student considering them should compare the programme's own row, not SIT's overall reputation.

How SIT's Degrees Are Built Differently

SIT's Integrated Work Study Programme is compulsory for every student in SIT-conferred and SIT-joint degrees. It involves eight to 12 months of relevant work. SIT runs a trimester calendar to make room for it, and degree lengths range from two to four years depending on the programme. The electrical power engineering degree with Newcastle University, for example, is a direct honours degree that runs 2 years and 8 months and includes an eight-month work period.

NTU and NUS build work into their engineering degrees too, in shorter blocks. NTU's College of Engineering requires a 20-week professional internship of single-major undergraduates. NUS engineering students complete an industrial attachment of at least 20 weeks or a vacation attachment of at least 12 weeks, depending on the programme. SIT's placement runs about 35 to 52 weeks. The difference is length and structure, not whether work is part of the degree. SIT's nursing pathway follows the same partner-and-work-study model, which we cover in NUS vs SIT Nursing.

SIT's engineering degrees are offered with several partners. MOE lists them under Newcastle University, the University of Glasgow, the Technical University of Munich and DigiPen, alongside SIT-conferred degrees such as computer engineering and pharmaceutical engineering. Glasgow describes its civil engineering programme as a degree jointly awarded with SIT. SIT's mechanical engineering page lists a local polytechnic diploma among its entry criteria and offers module exemptions for relevant diplomas.

SIT Programmes With No NUS or NTU Equivalent

Several SIT degrees have no direct counterpart in the other two tables.

Pharmaceutical engineering is the standout. Its median is $4,500, and 92.1 percent of graduates were in full-time permanent work, the second-highest figure of any engineering degree across the three tables, behind only NUS civil engineering at 92.4 percent.

Naval architecture and marine engineering, offered with Newcastle, has a median of $4,700 and 77.3 percent in full-time permanent work.

Robotics systems has a median of $4,650 (72.0 percent), and mechatronics systems, offered with DigiPen, $4,600 (69.7 percent).

Sustainable infrastructure engineering ranges from $4,000 and 80.4 percent for building services to $4,550 and 65.3 percent for land.

Which Singapore University Is Best for Engineering?

For rankings, research depth and the highest medians, NUS is ahead. It ranks 8th in the world, and both its median salary and its full-time permanent employment rate are higher than NTU's in all five disciplines the two share. NTU follows closely on rankings and is still among the top 10 in the world.

SIT suits a different student. A polytechnic graduate who wants a longer, structured work period and is comparing programmes rather than brands will find outcomes close to NTU's in several fields. Chemical, mechanical, and electronics and data engineering sit within $300 a month of NTU's medians. The weaker fields are computer engineering, aerospace and electrical power.

Whatever the choice, compare programme rows rather than university averages. Check the response rate and the 25th to 75th percentile range, and ask SIT what share of work placements convert to job offers. SIT says its work period can lead to full-time employment after graduation, but the published survey does not report conversion rates.

One limit applies to every figure here. The survey measures outcomes six months after final examinations and does not adjust for who enters each university, including prior work experience or polytechnic backgrounds. It describes what happened to the 2025 cohort. It does not predict what will happen to the next one.

NUS vs NTU vs SIT Engineering: Comparison Table

Bottom line: SIT engineering graduates do earn less than NTU graduates in six of seven matched programmes, but the median gap is about 5 percent, smaller than the 9 percent by which NUS leads NTU, and SIT's full-time permanent employment rate is higher than NTU's in three of seven programmes and within five points in two more. It is a myth that the gap is large. It is not a myth in computer engineering, aerospace and electrical power, where SIT trails on both pay and permanent employment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do SIT engineering graduates earn less than NTU graduates?

Usually, but not by much. In MOE's 2025 Graduate Employment Survey, SIT's median gross monthly salary was lower than NTU's in six of seven matched programmes and equal in one. The median gap was 5.2 percent, or $240 a month, and the largest gap was 12 percent in computer engineering.

Is SIT engineering worse than NTU or NUS?

Not on the 2025 employment data as a whole. SIT trails NTU and NUS on median pay in most matched programmes, but the salary ranges overlap in nearly every pair, and SIT graduates had a higher full-time permanent employment rate than NTU graduates in three of seven matched programmes. SIT is weakest in computer engineering, aerospace and electrical power. It has no QS ranking to compare.

Is NUS or NTU better for engineering?

NUS is ahead on both measures used here. It ranks 8th against NTU's 10th in the QS Engineering and Technology table 2026, and its median salary and full-time permanent employment rate are higher than NTU's in all five disciplines the two share. NTU ranks 4th against NUS's 3rd in electrical engineering, so the gap there is narrow.

Is SIT ranked by QS for engineering?

No. SIT does not appear in QS's 2026 Engineering and Technology table, which lists 556 institutions, or in any other 2026 QS subject table. QS puts 70 percent of the weight in its engineering tables on academic and employer reputation surveys.

What is SIT's Integrated Work Study Programme, and do NTU and NUS have something similar?

It is a compulsory work period of eight to 12 months in SIT-conferred and SIT-joint degrees. NTU and NUS also build work into engineering degrees, in shorter blocks: NTU requires a 20-week professional internship of single-major College of Engineering students, and NUS requires an industrial attachment of at least 20 weeks or a vacation attachment of at least 12 weeks, depending on the programme.

Who awards SIT engineering degrees?

It depends on the programme. Some degrees are conferred by SIT, such as computer engineering and pharmaceutical engineering. Others are offered with partner universities, which MOE lists as Newcastle University, the University of Glasgow, the Technical University of Munich and DigiPen. Glasgow describes its civil engineering programme with SIT as a jointly awarded degree.

Which SIT engineering programme has the best employment outcome?

Pharmaceutical engineering. In 2025, 92.1 percent of its graduates were in full-time permanent work, the second-highest rate of any engineering degree in the NUS, NTU and SIT tables, behind only NUS civil engineering at 92.4 percent. Its median gross monthly salary was $4,500.

Can polytechnic graduates apply to SIT engineering?

Often, yes. SIT's mechanical engineering page lists a local polytechnic diploma among its entry criteria and offers module exemptions for relevant diplomas. Entry criteria differ by programme, so check the specific programme page before applying.

Final Words on SIT, NTU and NUS Engineering

A ranking and a salary survey answer different questions. QS tells a family which universities are best known for engineering, and NUS and NTU earn their top-10 places.

The Graduate Employment Survey tells them what happened to graduates six months after their final examinations, and there SIT sits closer to NTU than its absence from the rankings suggests, while NUS stays ahead of both in every shared discipline. Neither source settles the choice. The programme does. Chemical, mechanical, and electronics and data engineering at SIT sit within a few hundred dollars of NTU, while computer engineering trails on pay and permanent employment.

Before choosing, find the programme's own row in each university's table, note the salary range and response rate, and ask what share of work placements turn into offers.

Seven More Comparisons, Checked Against the Data

NUS and NTU aren't the automatic answer in every field. See where SMU, SUTD and SIT actually lead, and where popular assumption and the rankings quietly part ways.

Each article below takes one widely held belief about Singapore's universities and checks it against current rankings and institutional data, not received wisdom. Some assumptions hold up. Several don't.

NTU Engineering Is Stronger Than NUS Engineering. Myth or Fact?

The most widely believed assumption in this whole series, and the one the data disagrees with most clearly.

NUS Business School vs SMU Business School: Head to Head Comparison 2026

NUS wins the ranking most people check first. SMU already leads on the ones that actually predict where research gets noticed.

NUS Architecture vs SUTD Architecture: Old Guard or New Standard?

NUS built its reputation over 68 years. SUTD skipped the queue entirely and built its curriculum with MIT instead.

NTU's Accountancy Programme Is a Recent Addition to an Engineering School. Myth or Fact?

NTU reads as an engineering school with business bolted on. Its accountancy lineage runs to 1956, and SMU's founding accountancy dean came from it.

NUS vs SIT Nursing: SIT Is Only for Registered Nurses. Myth or Fact?

SIT's known for upgrading nurses who already hold a diploma. Since 2024, it quietly opened a direct path for students who've never held one at all.

NUS and NTU Are Top in Asia for Computer Science. But What the Rankings Don't Tell You

Singapore holds Asia's top two spots. SMU sits far behind on that table, and outranks Carnegie Mellon itself on the one measure that isolates software engineering.

NUS and NTU Lead Asia in AI. But What the Rankings Don't Tell You

SUTD sits in the 101-200 band, yet ranks 40th in the world for citations per paper. Reputation surveys explain about nine-tenths of the gap.