12. Singing for his supper

"It costs S$400,000 (US$280,000) to study veterinary medicine in Australia," one young lady veterinarian informed members during a discussion at the Singapore Veterinary Association's Annual General Meeting in Nov 1, 2009. This is a large amount and veterinary scholarships are few. Therefore the majority of the new graduates in private practice is privately funded,usually by parents.

In 2009, the Australian dollar once again shot up by 30% within a year. That greatly increases cost for the parents. What happens if parents cannot support halfway through the course? I often wonder whether such Singapore veterinary undergraduates would succeed in the face of adversity? Every year, he would need $80,000 to pay the fees and the accommodation. And a car to travel to farms and university. A 10-year-old old car costs around $4,000 in Perth, Australia unlike $40,000 in Singapore, but still when you are in dire straits, $4,000 is a lot of money.

I visited Murdoch University in October 2009 and was surprised that there was a student volunteer group that provided free bread and butter for students. I doubt you will see such a group in Singapore's University. There must be a need for free breakfast by poorer students, presumably from Asia. These volunteers are very kind to help out those in need. What volunteer group this is, I don't know.

Back to my question: "Are there any young Singapore veterinarian who worked his way through college?" Are all graduates from well-to-do families as $400,000 is not a small sum to support a young adult to study veterinary medicine in Australia.

I met one at the President's Reception. I knew he loved veterinary medicine from the way he talked about the unusual bird and star tortoise veterinary cases. During his 4th year at Murdoch University, the Australian Dollar shot up by at least 20%. His savings ran out. He found difficulty in paying the room rental.

"Didn't your parents support you?" I asked him when I meet him at the President's Reception. From the way he nodded his head and gave no comments, I don't think that support was sufficient. $80,000/year is a killer amount for the majority of Singapore's middle-class parents as that meant one parent had to earn at least $7,000 per month before taxes to support a child. Money meant for retirement.

"What did you do?" I was curious.

"I played the baroque,." he said or some words sounding like "baroque". I did not ask him so as not to show my ignorance of music or musical instruments.

"One evening, on the eve of examinations, I was performing. I saw my two lecturers in the audience. Immediately I forgot my words!"

"That is why your lecturer who was at the Association's Annual Dinner remember you and waved to you at the dinner," I said. "Very few Asians sing in public. They must have talked amongst themselves about you needing to sing for your supper.

He was asked whether he could play the organ at the Church. So, music gave him some money to fund his education.

Would revenue generated from music be sufficient? He was in the 4th year and that was the most demanding year of lectures. The 5th year was relatively relaxed as the student does more clinical cases. The Veterinary Hospital accepts 82 undergraduates and a small number will be rejected. He needed to spend time to study. If he fails the 4th year, he would have to repeat another year.

"How much do you pay for room accommodation?" I asked. Rentals can be as much as $300 per week.

"I met an old classmate from Singapore. Her family had a house near where I rented a room. Her parents offered me her spare bedroom."

A guardian angel must have helped relieve him of the heavy financial burden.

"Do you have to marry the daughter?" I presumed the old classmate was single. Their paths had crossed. The girl's parents were wealthy. He got along well with the visiting parents and sang with them after dinner. The girl's mum liked him very much. All mums would want a good spouse for their child and being a parent myself, I would say, he was good husband material but I have no daughters. The boy-next-door type of young adult. Well brought up to respect elders and hard working despite financial setbacks to become a veterinarian.

He was offered a position to run a big piggery operation in China after graduation as his veterinary training and other characteristics would add immense value to this new business venture. Pork are in great in China as the country becomes richer. So there was a great business opportunity to be rich.

He was not into pigs.

How about his own veterinary hospital in Singapore since Singapore has only one veterinary hospital?

So, this was an opportunity to move up the social ladder and be well respected for being the owner of a veterinary hospital in Singapore. The financial backing was solid. Such opportunities don't come to anyone. What would you do if you were in his shoes?

"Didn't the girl object to such a proposal?" I asked.
"No," he said.
"So, what's the problem? Don't you love her?"

The young man quoted me two Chinese idioms in the course of our conversation. I don't know how to translate as my grasp of Chinese language is no good. I knew what he meant.

This is the second time I hear of a similar occurrence where the stars bring together a daughter from a very rich family with a young male undergraduate from a poor family. The daughter in both cases has no objections to the marriage and have offered to help the poor man financially.

The upbringing of a daughter in a very rich family is so much different from that of a girl from a poor family. She has everything and gets pampered to her every wish and fancy. Shopping for branded goods and clothes most of the time. What do you expect her to do since she has the money? She has no respect for the elders usually as they cater to her every whim and fancy. But this may be stereotypical thing as there are rich girls who are frugal and make good wives.

But can the poor man give her the high standard of living? Will she respect him for being an opportunist?

Love had not blossomed yet in this case. The boarder was the catch. He offered to wash the dishes when the mum cooked. The daughter, I presumed, would just let the mum do all the washing and cooking.

The mum was from the baby-boomer generation that knew hardship. She cooked and washed dishes as maids are not easily available in Australia.

She wanted what all mums want. A good husband for her daughter. In her eagerness, she made the proposal to set up a veterinary hospital for him in Singapore. This proposal is one that can sabotage any budding young adult relationship.

Did the poor young undergraduate men in both cases I encounter marry the girl for her money? No. So, there was no living together happily ever after.