STEM Internship Scheme enters third summer break
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According to the findings of surveys conducted by participating universities after the completion of the internships (see Annex), among the students who joined the Scheme in 2021-22, most of them (98 per cent) upon completion of their internship gained a better understanding of the innovation and technology (I&T) field, while 97 per cent would consider pursuing careers in I&T in the future. Furthermore, almost all participating employers considered that the job performance of their interns had met or even exceeded their expectations and planned to join the Scheme again. The findings reflect that the Scheme has met the expectations of students and companies or organisations, and its effectiveness is recognised by the universities and business community.
The participating companies were mostly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) or start-ups. About half of them were from the information technology sector with the rest from various sectors, including biotechnology, electrical and electronic engineering, financial services, construction, environmental protection and import and export trade. The internship positions offered covered various I&T elements, such as programme coding, web design, big data analytics, user interface/user experience design, digital marketing, machine learning, robotics, artificial intelligence, engineering and biotechnology.
Participating universities said that the Scheme had encouraged employers to provide more I&T-related internship places, offering students the opportunity to apply their STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) knowledge in the workplace. It had also promoted STEM students to enrol in I&T-related internships, thus enabling them to understand the I&T work environment and culture. In addition, some SME employers said that the Scheme had helped them hire interns with STEM knowledge.
"The STEM Internship Scheme has been well received by the universities and the business community since its launch in summer 2020. Entering the third summer break of the Scheme, we look forward to the participation of more employers and students. Apart from providing students with internship opportunities, the Scheme assists companies in recruiting suitable I&T talents, thereby enlarging the local I&T talent pool," the spokesman for the Commission said.
The STEM Internship Scheme provides university students in STEM disciplines with internships of at least four consecutive weeks with a monthly allowance of $10,500 for up to three months in every academic year. To enhance the flexibility of the Scheme to cover a broad spectrum of business sectors, an internship place is regarded as I&T-related as long as its actual work contains I&T elements. The universities that will continue to participate in the Scheme this year are the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, the University of Hong Kong, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Baptist University and the Education University of Hong Kong. Interested students and employers may contact the participating universities. Details are available at the website of the Innovation and Technology Fund (www.itf.gov.hk/en/funding-programmes/nurturing-talent/stem-internship-scheme).
Ends/Thursday, June 2, 2022
Issued at HKT 12:35
Issued at HKT 12:35
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