Working Lives Singapore: Lecturer

Director and lecturer Frazer Macdonald Hay, his Dutch wife and two young sons came to Singapore 18 months ago.

He is setting up an educational partnership between Glasgow School of Arts in Scotland and the Singapore Institute of Technology, part of a government initiative to forge links with overseas educational institutions.

"It's a really big investment in the education of their youth," he says.

Frazer's day is split between teaching and management, but it is engaging with the students that gives him the most satisfaction.

"You see their shoulders start to straighten and the smile starts to broaden and they suddenly take belief in an idea that they generated," he says.

Frazer's day starts at about 08:00. His departure is governed by his bike ride home. "They close the gates at 19:30 so if I go after then I have to pick the bicycle up and jump over the gate," he says.

He earns about $7,000 (£4,350) a month. "The salary isn't that great," he says, "but it's all the bits and pieces that come with it and the experience you've got to take into account."

Glasgow School of Arts looks after his family's medical expenses, housing and three flights home a year to see family and friends. There is also money set aside for his children's education.

At school, his two boys are learning Mandarin.

"They're engaging with people they wouldn't normally engage with, so I think all in all it's a win-win situation," Frazer says.