For piano teacher Clarisa Tan, there is no such thing as a day off.
With anywhere from 35 to 40 students to see each week – ranging from seven-year-olds to adults – she adheres to a tightly packed class schedule.
Her weekdays typically start at 1pm and end between 6pm and 9pm, while Saturdays are filled with lessons from 9.45am to 7pm. She “takes it easy” on Sundays, with two lessons.
Her only rest days are when she falls ill.
“I try not to teach on my birthday – like a little gift to myself – but I don’t always keep to it,” the 33-year-old said.
She left a career in law eight years ago to pursue piano teaching full-time.
Despite her heavy workload, Ms Tan said that she remains highly satisfied with her job and sees herself sticking with it for another 20 to 30 years.
By comparison, the average job tenure in Singapore was 8.2 years in 2025, data from the Ministry of Manpower showed.
In February, job-search website Indeed released its 2026 Best Jobs Index. It ranked roles by overall job quality across five factors: median wage, postings volume, wage and postings growth (both measured as percentage changes from 2022 to 2025), and remote work availability.
In Singapore, three more filters were applied:
- At least 20 per cent of the job postings had to include salary information
- Only roles with monthly or annual salary data were considered
- Each role needed at least 100 postings in 2025
The top 10 list of best job roles featured the usual suspects in finance and IT, as well as managers of one sort or another.
However, not many readers may have expected to see “piano teacher” on the list – much less ranked at second place, just under financial adviser.
In a job market rocked by threats of economic volatility and tech advancements such as artificial intelligence (AI), the role of piano instructor remains largely insulated from these.
It also offers a high degree of flexibility and job satisfaction – but income levels, while decent, remain vulnerable to external shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic.