​The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, met today (August 26) with over 50 university students participating in this year's Administrative Service Internship Programme, and listened to their sharing of internship experiences and learning outcomes. She encouraged them to apply for civil service positions such as the Administrative Officer (AO) post, where they can leverage their strengths and contribute to society. 

     She said that the Programme has been well received by university students in recent years, with nearly 600 applications collected over the past year. To enable more young people at different stages of study to learn about public service and plan their career development at an early stage, the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) has decided to expand the eligibility for the Programme to all full-time students pursuing undergraduate or postgraduate studies, regardless of their year of study, starting from this year's Winter Internship Programme. 

     At the gathering, Mrs Yeung listened to the interns share their work experiences and proposed policy initiatives. Drawing on her own civil service experience, she shared her insights and encouraged the interns to seize the opportunity to deepen their understanding of public administration, policy formulation and cross-departmental collaboration, with a view to contributing to the development of the country and Hong Kong in the future.

     The Permanent Secretary for the Civil Service, Ms Shirley Lam, and Deputy Secretary for the Civil Service Ms Elaine Mak also joined the gathering and spoke with interns to learn about their internship experiences and views on public policy formulation.

     Under the arrangements made by the CSB, the interns were assigned to various bureaux and departments for practical experience and to gain a deeper understanding of government operations. Drawing on their internship experiences, they also took part in group discussions and put forward policy initiatives on a range of social issues, including transport, tourism, green finance, innovation and technology, youth and district affairs, and elderly welfare.

     Mrs Yeung added that from their sharing, the interns had brought fresh perspectives to the team. She said AOs are required to develop skills to handle a wide range of matters, respond promptly to emergencies, and deal with issues with flexibility and a holistic perspective. Although the work is challenging, it enables AOs to serve the public and promote the stable development of society. She also took the opportunity to appeal to responsible young people who aspire to serve the community to join the civil service.

     AOs are professional public administrators who play a pivotal role in the Government. They are responsible for assisting in the formulation of public policies, co-ordinating and supervising various policy initiatives, managing the use of public resources, promoting district work and publicising Hong Kong externally, etc. To enable AOs to accumulate experience and unleash their potential in different public policy areas, they are posted to various bureaux and departments at regular intervals, thereby broadening their horizons and gaining a fuller grasp of the challenges and opportunities in public administration.

     The CSB organises the Administrative Service Internship Programme every summer and winter, offering students who aspire to become AOs opportunities to work alongside serving AOs for around eight weeks. It allows interns to gain practical experience of working in the Government at an early stage, and lay a foundation for their future career development.

     The Government will launch a new round of recruitment for the posts of AO, Executive Officer II, Assistant Information Officer (General), Assistant Trade Officer II, Management Services Officer II and Transport Officer II in September this year. Prospective applicants must first take the Common Recruitment Examination and the Basic Law and National Security Law Test, and attain the requisite scores. For the latest recruitment information of the CSB, please refer to the CSB website (www.csb.gov.hk).

Ends/Wednesday, August 26, 2026
Issued at HKT 17:50

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