Job ad for nun with offer of $5,000 to $11,000 monthly salary pulled after 3 days

An online job post by a Buddhist organisation in Singapore has triggered reactions from netizens ranging from surprise to scepticism.

The reason? The advertisement published on March 16 for the position of a nun comes with a monthly salary ranging from "$5,000 to $11,000".

According to the post on the My Careers Future job portal, the job scope for the Buddhist nun for Ling Jiou Shan Buddhist Society includes "overseeing and managing religious programmes", "teaching and conducting religious training sessions", as well as "providing mentorship and guidance".

Applicants for the permanent, full-time position would also need to have 10 years of prior job experience.

On Reddit, many users expressed incredulity over the perceived high salary for the position.

Wrote one user: "A nun pays much better than a preschool teacher... I clearly had the wrong calling in my life."

However some indicated that the salary was justified, considering the responsibilities.

"Job title says nun, job scope describes a department head / educator / religious counsellor, among other things. No wonder the pay so high, it's three-in-one," stated another user.

Shin Min Daily News reported on Saturday (March 22) that the post had garnered 10 applications within three days.

However, according to reporters from 8world and Shin Min who went to the Geylang address of the Ling Jiou Shan Buddhist Society as indicated in the post, the doors to the organisation were locked and knocks went unanswered.

An employee at a neighbouring dessert stall told Shin Min that the society only opens its doors for classes on Tuesday and Sunday evenings.

Further checks by Shin Min revealed that the society is based in Taiwan, and the chairperson of the local outpost is currently overseas. When contacted, the chairperson told Shin Min through a volunteer that while it had engaged a job agency to put out the post, a mistake had been made.

"We are sorry for the inconvenience, and the agency has come under pressure due to this," said the chairperson, indicating that the post has been removed.

According to 8world as of Thursday (March 20), the post on the My Careers Future portal states that "applications have closed for this job". While the post was still up as of Sunday, AsiaOne observed that the same notification remained.

When contacted on the matter, president of the Singapore Buddhist Federation (SBF) Venerable Seck Kwang Phing told 8world that monks and nuns typically do not receive a monthly salary and instead rely on offerings by believers or receive alms.

While he had heard of the society and is aware that they are from Taiwan, he noted that the organisation is not part of the SBF.  

He also postulated that the society could be hiring foreigners due to its requirement for applicants to have a decade's worth of experience. 

"I can't fathom the reason for the high salary, it could be for reasons of applying for a work permit," he added.

Speaking to Shin Min, he noted a shortage of Buddhist religious teachers locally and shared that it was not uncommon among societies here to "borrow" these teachers to conduct classes or ceremonies. 

However, he expressed disapproval of any practice that entices individuals to join the monastery with the promise of a high salary.

candicecai@asiaone.com

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