After class: A guide to credit bearing internships

Your degree at NTU opens doors, but it’s real-world experience that helps you walk through them. Internships are opportunities to gain that valuable insight - you can upskill in interest areas while familiarising yourself with the working world! Moreover, the credit-bearing internship is an integral part of the undergraduate experience, with students expected to complete either a semester or summer attachment in a role relevant to their course of study.

However, searching for internships can be daunting. It is not easy navigating job portals, preparing for interviews and handling rejections, while juggling various extracurricular and academic commitments. Therefore, the U-Insight team compiled a short opinion piece for students who are currently searching for their semester internship in the upcoming Semester 1 window, as well as students thinking about applying for professional internships in future windows. With the Sem 2 application window opening soon, we sat down with two engineering undergraduates who are currently (or recently finished) pursuing their professional internships/attachments. Read on to learn more about the tips and tricks of interning straight from them, as well as the resume templates they use!

Introduce yourselves!

Joey: I’m a Year 3 MAE student, and I just wrapped up my Professional Internship at ST Engineering, an aerospace MNC.

James: Same here! I’m also a Year 3 undergrad MAE student and am currently doing my Professional Attachment at UBS.

How should I find out what roles I am interested in?

Joey: I faced this dilemma as well earlier in uni! I would encourage you to reflect about what modules you are the most interested about in uni - is there a mod that awakened your interest in a particular field?

Beyond that, going into fields you are already good/experienced in sets you up for success.

However, if there are fields you aren’t particularly doing well in but are very passionate about, do some research on that field to see if it is worth it for you to consider a career in that field.

What if I don’t have prior internship experience in these roles?

Joey: Even though you might not have prior internship experience in the roles you want to apply to, there are several things you can do:

• You can build a personal portfolio through personal or passion projects, such as building a personal website, app, blog, or design portfolio depending on your field

• You can get additional experience by getting certified in tools or skills relevant to the role (through online courses or self study), such as google analytics, python, adobe suite, etc

James: It would be good to look at the skills or requirements the company has had and then try to see if your skillsets and experiences match up with what they are looking for! For example, if you are applying for tech and engineering roles, highlight projects or pro-bono work youve done ; if you are applying for marketing roles, having a personal portfolio or school projects ; if you are applying for consulting roles, membership in a club or case competitions. I feel everyone starts somewhere, so if you cast a wide enough net someone will take a chance on you.

What’s the difference between Professional Attachment and Internship? Which one did you apply for?

Joey: I applied for the Professional Internship - it’s a 20-week internship during the semester.

James: I applied for the Professional Attachment, which is a 10 week internship during the summer break.

How did you apply?

Joey: I Obtained PI from the InPlace portal; sent applications to roughly 40 companies in mechanical and aerospace engineering industries across both application rounds (Round 1: July-Aug, Round 2: Sep-Nov). I began sending out applications in late July; went through most interviews in early Oct and got my role mid-Oct.

James: I self-sourced my PA, applying to roughly 10 companies across banking and hedge funds and a few others in the oil and gas / CPG (think Ben and Jerry’s) industry. I began sending out applications in early June and interviewed from Jul - Oct. Once I had the internship offer, I submitted the self-source form on Inplace.

What should my cover letter or CV look like?

Joey & James: Most employers look out for different things, so you should check what the company you apply to looks out for. That being said, some general tips would be:

Cover letter: This is an (optional) opportunity to directly appeal to an employer about a) Why you are interested in the role, b) Why X company particularly appeals to you, and c) What makes you stand out. This should not be repeating info in your resume but instead be telling your unique story. But when would cover letters be more helpful? According to Ananya, an EXCO member of a consulting club, while cover letters are more frequently requested by larger companies, they serve as more of a formality, with greater emphasis placed on CV content and online assessments. In contrast, smaller companies or startups value cover letters more, using them to gauge a candidate’s motivation and fit. Regardless, whenever you are considering sending a letter, do your research into the company and personalise your story to them first! Keep it to one page, and if you’ve talked to their hiring team before (e.g. at a NTU career fair), that would be good to mention.

CV: This is a chronological summary of your experience to highlight a) Why you want to intern with the company and b) That you have the skills and experiences which are relevant to the role.

A few tips below (we are attaching the CV template we use here)

• Do search the job description beforehand and tailor your CV to the role!

• Keep to one page; using a font size between 10 to 12 is usually recommended for the right balance between readability and detail

• Submit in PDF format to avoid formatting errors on the company’s end

• Highlight specific accomplishments made

• Tailor to the keywords / qualifications they are looking for

• Check and check again! Spelling and grammatical errors

• Only include necessary info - no need to have things like your address or age

Confused about where to start? NTU students can use the VMock platform to craft a resume that hits keywords and is tailored to what companies wish to see.

Who should I reach out to for advice?

Joey: Each school has their own career coach who can provide great and insightful advice regarding internships and even jobs post-graduation! CAO is the go-to place when it comes to advice regarding your career—it’s called the Career Attachment Office for a reason. Attend their workshops or go to their office to get solid tips for interviews, CVs, and securing your internship.

James: On top of career coaches, seniors who’ve went through the same can offer the most up to date advice from their personal experience - you can reach out to friends or GLs from hall, seniors from your CCAs, or perhaps connecting with students who have gotten experience in your desired industry. (Most of) them are friendly and won’t bite :)

Any closing words?

Joey: Even though prior experience may not necessarily be mandatory for certain internship roles, try to get as much exposure in the field you’re interested in, whether it be through seminars, research, job shadowing, or even full-on internships. These would really help with obtaining your professional internship as well as future career opportunities!

James: Try to go for internships where the role aligns with your career aspirations and what you are interested in, even if it seems “unconventional” for your degree. I feel that employers are increasingly caring about interdisciplinary experiences - your unique academic background could actually be a strength. For example, a social sciences background teaches you analytics skills appreciated in business careers, while a business background will help in knowing what to prioritize in product management. CAO recognizes this and gives some flexibility in exact jobscope of credit-bearing internships. And lastly, reach for the stars if that’s what you want - all the best!