I am 23 and barely have 5k in my bank. May I ask how can I earn passive income/start to invest/ways to earn more money? Am pretty clueless and would need to learn from 0..?

Wow, so rich.

I start from zero, fail my GCE 'O' level.

Just one sentence, "Do what you can do and do it the best you can."

Hey OP! I really respect you for not taking any allowance and working a part-time job while in uni!

First, I think it's important to evaluate why you are concerned about "barely having 5k" in your bank. Is this because you are comparing yourself to your peers? Or is it because you have specific goals in mind you would like to achieve in the near future but you are very far behind in terms of your savings? If it's the former, I would not worry too much as we are all at different stages in our financial journey and others may simply be ahead due to certain privileges from family etc.! It is best to focus on yourself and your own timeline :) However, if your worry stems from the fact that there are big milestones you want to work towards such as a grad trip (if a vaccine is available by the time you graduate), paying off your student loan, wedding, or BTO, then it's great that you're starting to think about how you can accrue more money!

Here are my suggestions on what actions you can take right now given your profile:

1. As you are only earning about $500 a month from your PT job, you might want to continue saving up the bulk of your earnings for your emergency savings, especially since we're living in really tumultuous times and it's hard to tell whether things will worsen or improve when you graduate.

2. As you're also in your final year in uni, I would recommend that you actually focus on your job search if you have not done so (start early!) to find the best possible opportunity in terms of job security, remuneration, and progression. With a good-paying job, you can afford to set aside more savings to achieve your goals and also have greater capital to invest.

3. Take the time to read up/watch videos on investments now so that when you start working full-time and earning a regular income, you will be ready to put that knowledge to good use. Always DYODD before you heed any investment advice.

Below are some extra tips based on the info you have shared!

HOW TO EARN MORE MONEY NOW

Participating in Paid Research

Uni faculties or research institutes/centres are always recruiting participants for paid studies, go find them through your uni's research portal! The reimbursement ranged from $10 to $30 for some. I did this in my final year at NUS when I had spare time in between my classes and earned close to $200 in about 3 months? You can try doing this on the days when you are on campus, provided the studies are still running during this time.

Rakuten Insights

This is a legit platform which helps businesses conduct surveys. You may not qualify for all but you do get points for completing each survey. The points can be cashed out via PayPal or redeemed for Grab codes. I have made about $90 since creating an account in March 2020, this averages to about $10+ each month. Not a significant amount but enough to cover part of your phone bill or a few meals. You can complete them in your spare time.

Selling Your Clothes

You can make some extra cash selling preloved clothes via good old Carousell or Telegram groups (I have linked one above). This is also a good way to clear your closet. I have not tried this method myself so I can't comment on how profitable it is!

WHERE TO PARK YOUR SAVINGS TO MAXIMISE YOUR RETURNS

Standard Chartered's JumpStart Savings Account

This is a fuss-free high-interest savings accounts (or what used to be high-interest anyway), which earns you 1% p.a. for your first $20,000. Probably one of the better options for young people like us with no criteria/tiers to meet!

Singlife Account

This is an insurance savings plan which earns you up to 2% p.a. for your first $10,000. So far they have consistently credited the promised amount since I opened my account in June 2020, other customers have verified this as well. I was lucky as I joined early when it was 2.5% p.a., so I've earned $20+ every month by simply parking my money in the account. Nonetheless, 2% p.a. is still a really attractive offer given that most banks have decreased their interest rates. If you're also keen to start an account, you can click on my referral link which will reward both you and me with $10 each: https://app.singlife.com/Zlc9urWzwab

Hope the above information is helpful and all the best for your final year!​​​