# Singapore vs Abu Dhabi opportunity



## expat_123

In a delima, and looking for an opinion from experienced expats...
My profile:-
Indian and working in India in an MNC Automation company(one of the global big 6) in a sales based role.
Engineer by qualification, 5yrs workex, Single.

I recently interviewed at one of our's biggest competitors for a position based in Singapore, and got an offer from them for SGD4000p.m +AWS+Bonus. Even visited S'pore for the final interview and other formalities. Apart from the obvious location advantage, the position is exciting as unlike India, though my profile would be same as in my current company, as Singapore is the Asia-Pac HQ of this company, I'll be handling the entire APAC region, and will be part of the nodal team for other asian sales regions.
I had put down my papers and was mentally preparing for the migration, when another big company(from the same league) has offered me an Account Manager position based in Abu Dhabi. The non-taxable salary is AED 24000(appox), which is more than double the one earlier offered, and the bonus component is also better.
Though there's no debate that the Abu Dhabi offer is more rewarding financially, I'm still very confused on which one to finally choose & which one to ditch. The following are the pros&cons of both:-

*Singapore Position:-* 
Pro's
*Location: I would choose S'pore any day over abu dhabi. 
Loved the night life here. Friday nights at Clarke's made sure of this.
*Exposure: As stated above, the APAC exposure.
*Future Opportunities: As S'pore is just a city-country with a huge setup of Engineering companies & EPC's in the vicinity, hopping & jumping inside S'pore for money or growth should be good after a few years. Moreover, people say that a Singapore workex has a lot of weightage in the international market(dont know about the weight in this philosophy).
*MBA: I've already given my GMAT and am planning to do an MBA in a year or two. Infact, even before this opportunity came, I was targeting Singapore colleges like NTU, NUS, SMU, etc. Dont know whether a S'pore PR status will have any weightage when applying to these colleges. But just a thought.

Cons
*Financial: The money is low and it should only be a hand-to-mouth kinda case. Moreover the very high cost of living makes the matters worst.
*No Perks:The offer does not have even basic expat perks like a return tckt for self once an year. 
*Cars: Buying (&driving) any vehicle in S'pore is a super-luxury. Though I admit that the public transport there is world class, but still.... Having your own vehicle gives you a lot of flexibility. 

*Abu Dhabi*
Pro's
*Financial: The salary this company is offering is much higher than that offered at my experience level. On top of this, tax-free rule, and a lower cost of living (as compared to S'pore) further increases the saving propensity.
*Designation/Position: The profile that is being offered is what I would get in my current company after 2 promotions.
*Expat perks like air-fare, etc. over & above the salary.
* The "Car" advantage that is not available in S'pore. Infact the company will support me in buying a car as they give interest free auto-loans to sales people. 

Cons
*Location: Though I've already visited UAE a few years back, and really liked the place, it cannot beat S'pore.
*The market exposure I'll get will be limited to GCC region.
*Future jumps to other companies very difficult because of the visa & NOC requirements in UAE.
* A little less professionalism in day to day working as compared to S'pore. 

As both the companies are of same stature & repute, the choice boils down between money, designation, exposure & location.
I'm totally confused as both are good offers in their own right.
Please advise??


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