Singapore internships with startups - Hiring process part I

This blog usually teaches you how to apply for an internship, but today let me touch on the topic of how to hire interns for your company, in particular for startup companies. Many schools and students may not be convinced that startup internships could be comparable, if not better than internships at multi-national companies. It would take quite a bit of convincing to attract students to intern at your startup, but maybe the following tips can relieve your workload a little.

When to start hiring?

You were once a student too and you should be familiar with the academic calendar, know when students are likely to be looking for an internship. In Singapore, there are typically three periods a year when majority of the students are likely to embark on their internship.

• January to August: Students whom just completed their A levels and are looking for a job before university begins.
• May to August: Local university students are enjoying their summer break and may wish to take up internships for more experience or to satisfy their academic requirements. 
• September to December: This is when polytechnic students begin on their industrial attachments, usually coordinated by their school

Knowing the peak season for internships, you should be prepared to list your internship offer through various channels a couple of months before so as to garner more applications.

Where to hire?

Depending on your target group of students for the internship, you may wish to post your job listing on different channels. For A level graduates waiting to enter university, they would tend to look for internships via typical job search sites such as InternSG, recruit.net, recruit express etc.

For university and polytechnic students, you may wish to reach out to the school's career offices. These offices usually maintain career portals where most of the students would go to for their internship hunt. For more specific roles you may wish to connect with the relevant faculties within the school to narrow down your target audience. Typically the career offices would ask you to create an employer's account with them to list your job on the career portal. When applications begin, students will start applying to you directly or the offices may filter through and collate resumes for you depending on the schools' arrangement.

As we have mentioned earlier, it takes some convincing for students to give up their MNC internship that would look fabulous on their resume for your startup. So make sure you appeal to them in the job description. Interns don't just want to be your coffee boy or girl or be printing and filing papers everyday. In your job posting make sure to excite them and show them how much fun they will have working in a dynamic startup environment. Students would love to be put on projects and given the autonomy to speak up and innovate.

Look out for my next post to find out more on the hiring practices of Singapore internships for startups.

Singapore internships with startups - Hiring process part II

Hi there! As I promised, here’s part 2 of the hiring practices of Singapore internships for startups. We will be discussing student expectations and doing a quick summary of the steps to take when hiring Singapore interns for startups.

Student expectations

A level graduates waiting to enter university are probably looking for a high salary rather than experience through an internship as they have still yet to decide on what to major in university. One way to appeal to them without a high salary would be to show them that the experience gained through the internship will give them a headstart in university and prove to be much more valuable in the future.

Local university students do not place as much emphasis on the salary offered, but focus more on how the internship can give them industry experience and beef up their resume for the future. Explain to them that while working at established MNCs would offer more stability, working at a startup can be very dynamic and provide them with much more exposure than what they would get from an MNC. This experience would allow them to be involved in many more domains outside of their expertise which puts them ahead of others. They might also discover new talents through the dynamic job scope as a surprise takeaway from the internship.

Finally for polytechnic students, they are probably completing the internship as a requirement for their final year project and they would be more interested to know if the internship can get them that A+ than how much salary they will be paid. You would appeal to them greatly if you explain that the job scope is flexible and can be adapted to fit their final year project requirements and provide guidance on their internship report.

The final steps

After sorting out your expectations and deciding on your target group of students as your potential interns, the hiring process begins. It is really as simple as reaching out to the career offices, crafting that perfect job description, reviewing resumes, scheduling and conducting interviews, and finally giving the offer.

As a startup you probably have limited manpower, but it would be great if you can have one person devoted to the entire hiring process and knows things inside out to answer any questions from the career offices and your applicants. Show that your company is organized and values the hiring of interns despite being a short staffed startup company. Having said so, you would probably want a co-founder to be present in interviews, once again to show that you value the employees that are hired, even if its just an intern.

Startup culture sounds like fun, yet mysterious at the same time as there are probably few reviews available for your applicant to read online. During the interview, be upfront about your company culture and tell the students how fun it would be to work for you. Manage their expectations and let them know what types of projects they will be working on, what their responsibilities will be. You want a good fit for your company and the intern would want a good fit for his/her personality as well. 

Hopefully my blog was a good read and these tips can help you find that star intern for your startup.

Singapore internship video interview tips

Short video interviews are becoming a common way for companies to quickly screen their applicants before spending precious hours on face to face interviews with their applicants. It saves time for both the company and the applicants, allowing the applicants to complete the interview from the comfort of their homes. But, video interviews are not as easy as it seems. How do you try to appear natural on screen when you are in fact speaking to your camera? How should you dress for the video? Let us give you some tips below:

1. Dress appropriately
Dress appropriately like you would for a face-to-face interview, at least waist up. This video is the first impression the company would have of you and you would want it to be good. Even though it is unlikely for the interviewer to ask you to stand up during the interview, dressing formally would get you into the correct mindset and help you to answer the questions smoothly.

2. Have a clean and quiet background
You wouldn't want the interviewer to hear your dog barking in the background or see explicit content lying around in your room as that would be extremely distracting and give them a poor impression of you. You are given plenty of time to prepare for this interview, so spend some time on cleaning your room or picking a clean and quiet spot for the interview.

3. Check the video and audio quality
Before the actual interview begins, you would be given a chance to test your camera and microphone. Record a sample of yourself speaking for about a minute or so, and see if your image appears clearly and your voice is audible. The area should be brightly lit, but do not have a lamp shining into your camera or it could be glaring to the audience.

4. Smile and be natural
You may be nervous since it is your first video interview so many people have the tendency to swivel in their chair or twirl their hair etc. Avoid such distracting and unnecessary actions, look at the camera, smile and appear calm. Before beginning the actual interview you may want to practice by recording videos of yourself giving a self-introduction.

To summarise, you should treat the video interview seriously just like any other interview you may have, prepare and dress for it appropriately. Practice, practice and practice till you look good in the video so that you can impress your interviewers at once.

Good luck for your video interview!

Preparing for an internship in the United States

Many Singaporean students take up internships during the course of their studies. But why not step out of the norm fventure out to other parts of the world and make your internship a much more memorable one? From the tech giants and startups of Silicon Valley to the media, fashion, and finance conglomerates of New York City, internships in the United States are highly sought after by Singapore students. However, there are many points to consider before you embark on an internship in a brand new place alone.

US Visa
The internship company in the US would require you to be equipped with either a J or F visa before you can legally undertake an internship. If you are currently studying in the US as an international student, you should already have a F visa which allows you to undertake an internship. If you are visiting the US solely for the internship you would probably have to apply for a J visa. There are many visa classifications in the US, so make sure that you apply for the right one before setting off for your internship.

To qualify as an intern, you must be currently enrolled in a foreign university, or have graduated within the past 12 months. You may intern in the U.S. for 12 months, but prior to that you must go through a designated sponsor to obtain your J-1 visa. The sponsors vary widely in costs and benefits of their programs. Sponsors are people that will help you find an internship and maybe even help with logistics when you go to the US. Or if you have already found an internship on your own, the sponsors can help you to complete the necessary paperwork for a visa and save you the hassle.

Workplace Culture

America is a big country and the workplace culture would differ across different states, different industries, and different people. For example the newest tech startup in Silicon Valley would be more laid back, with flexible working hours and casual attire. Whereas working at the biggest banks in New York City could mean long intense hours at work, formal attire, and plenty of workplace formalities.

Getting your visa settled and understanding the workplace culture is just a small part of preparing for your overseas internship experience in the US. Do lots of readings on what to expect and get ready to have your once in a lifetime experience of the American culture

Choosing the right internship

Completing an internship is important, but choosing the right internship is just an important. The internship you have chosen could very likely become your first job after you graduate. How should you choose an internship that suits your future career goals and helps? You may wish to think consider the following:

Industry/Sector

Is there a particular industry or sector that you would like to work in after graduation? Private sector or government agencies? There are hundreds of industries to choose from, Banking, Chemical, Natural Resources, etc. Ideally the internship that you choose should help you gain experience and insight about your future industry/sector. This internship would be able to let you decide whether you are suitable for this industry/sector. Is the banking industry too competitive for you? Would you be more comfortable at a government agency? Is your outspoken personality more suitable for front-end client facing jobs?

Company size

Are you interested in a job that requires you to travel frequently or would you prefer to be based in the same office? Would you like to meet and work with people from different countries? A multi-national company may require you to travel and work with clients or colleagues from across the globe. Whereas working for a small or medium sized company would usually mean that the people you are working with in in the same country or region.

Experience gained

You may want to ask yourself what you hope to get out of the internship. Are you hoping to be working with clients or do you want to hone your technical skills through this internship? Do you want to specialise in your own field or if you want to have a diverse experience with all sorts of tasks would an internship at a startup company be more suitable?

Networking Potential

Last, but definitely not least, how likely would you be able to expand your network at the internship? Meeting and interacting with industry professionals is an extremely valuable opportunity. Through your interactions, you will get the chance to learn professional skills required for the job, gain valuable career advice and maybe even references for your future job. It is common for larger organisations to have structured internship programs that assign each intern with a mentor and also a rotation regime to allow the intern to work in several different departments. There could also be lunch-n-learns for interns to hear from representatives from various departments about their experiences and available career paths.

Weigh the factors and determine what you hope to achieve from your internship to help you make a decision that would benefit your career.

Writing your internship resume

Getting your first internship may seem difficult, how would you convince someone to hire you with no job experience? How do you write a resume with no experience? 

Firstly, internship resumes should be written in the following order: personal particulars, education, relevant skills, experience and co-curricular activities with the most recent first. When you have more work experience in the future, it should move up your resume while education can be moved further down the list. 

Step 1: When writing about your education, be sure to include your expected graduation date. Telling companies that you are in your penultimate year might increase their chances of hiring you as you might be available for a full-time position pretty soon after your internship.

Step 2: You probably do not have any work experience, so feel free to write about any relevant projects you may have done in school in the section on experience. If you have any form of work experience, that would be great. Remember to be concise in explaining your responsibilities and accomplishments as well as whom you have worked with.

Step 3: There is no best way of writing your resume, but make sure that it looks clean and concise to help the hiring manager find the information they need. Bold the sections that are important, use simple fonts, have a consistent format throughout the resume.
Step 4: Always list your education and experiences by most recent first as employers are more interested in your recent experiences than what you have done ages ago. This point may be more relevant to you after you gain more work experience.

Refer below for a simple outline of an internship resume:
Sample Internship Resume Template

Personal particulars:
Name
Address
Email

Education:
University, expected graduation date (month/year)
Degree and major, GPA
Any other academic awards (Dean's list, scholarships, etc.)

Relevant Skills:
Programming languages, Microsoft Office, any software that you are familiar with, languages proficient in

Relevant Experience:
ABC Company, Business intern, January 2016 - June 2016

• Prepare customer reports and presentations to be used by manager in customer meetings
• ......

Co-Curricular Activities
It would be useful to include any co-curricular activities you have taken part in to show that you are a well rounded individual that does not simply focus on academics. It would be great if you have volunteer experience to write about to showcase your contribution towards society.

Internship interview preparation - questions to ask at an interview

Like we mentioned previously, knowing how to answer interview questions is not enough. You should also ask the right questions during your interview to show that you are keen for the position

Questions to ask at the end of the interview:

1. What is the overall structure of the company and how does your department fit within that structure?
You may have done your research on the company and the industry, but every department functions differently. This question will help you understand how your role would fit into the organization.

2. Could you describe a typical day at work? Can you give me an example of a project on which I would be working?
You may know whom the biggest clients are and what the organization provides. But a project could span across many teams and departments, with each team specialising in a different aspect. Once again, you will better understand your role as an intern by asking this question.

3. What do you think is the most challenging aspect of this position?

You get to learn about your employer's expectations about the role. Also, take the chance to show that you are capable of overcoming the challenges that your employer anticipates.

4. Can you describe the work environment/office culture?
Is it casual? More corporate/formal? Is this the type of environment that you would like to be in? Some companies have flexible working hours as long as you complete your tasks on time. Other companies might be stricter if clients are charged depending on the amount of time spent on the project.

5. What is the typical career path for interns or employees in this department?
Through this question you will be be able to see if it aligns to your long term career goals for the future. Are there any employee development initiatives such as training programs for employees to rise up to the management level?

6. What are the next steps in the interview process?
This should be asked at the very end of the interview, to show that you are eager to be selected also a good way to get a hint of whether the interview went well.

Some questions you definitely should NOT ask:
1. What does this company do?
You may ask about the overall structure or the day to day responsibilities of your role. But asking a generic question like this shows that you have not done your research well and would definitely harm your chances.

2. Can I change my schedule? What salary, vacation time and benefits do I get?
Negotiating for better salary or benefits can come later if necessary. Asking about it during the interview portrays you as someone that is more concerned about the benefits than the role itself.

3. Did I get the position?
Be patient and ask about the next steps instead of asking this question directly. Typically you should receive a response in a few weeks time.

Finally, remember to send a follow-up email to thank the interviewer for his or her time and say that you look forward to hearing from them.