Businesses nowadays can take on different approaches when it comes to the division of labour by tapping onto the internship grant to hire interns. Interns are temporary workforce brought into the organization to assist in the day-to-day running of the business, provide a solution to organizational problems, and participate in other activities while enjoying several benefits and remuneration that comes with being a member of the workforce.

Hiring Interns in Singapore is an everyday activity for businesses as Interns provide a flexible and relatively inexpensive solution to several business challenges. Also, enterprises hire interns to fulfil some particular governmental schemes designed by the country’s government to provide new job opportunities for the younger population in Singapore, specifically students and recent graduates.

Hiring interns by businesses in the country will help the organization fulfil their staffing needs and grant the interns a platform to develop themselves and grow in relevant experience in the labour market in Singapore.

Seasons for Hiring of Interns in Singapore

A business looking to hire interns must be familiar with all the required steps taken to get the process of hiring an intern done smoothly. This process starts with understanding what we call the hiring season, which is the time of the year when the hiring of interns is done in Singapore.

These periods are not particularly flexible as they are more inclined with the calendar being followed by students and recent graduates in the country. For instance, recent graduates who just finished their JC education and are looking to go for the National Service year alongside those who just finished their National Service years will most likely be available between February and August every year. Students in the polytechnic seeking internships during their mid-session holiday will be available from around the tail end of February to mid-April or, in some cases, between August and October, depending on the session. At the same time, Local Universities whose students will be seeking internships during the summer breaks will most likely be available from around May till August every year. These periods are known as the Hiring season for Interns in Singapore.

Internship Grant Duration

One other essential factor for a business to consider when hiring interns is the internship duration. This varies accordingly based on the individual being hired. The duration for a polytechnic student will differ from that of a University student, likewise that of a recent graduate. For instance, in Singapore, Internships that are a part of a student’s academic curriculum and will be graded could last for as long as between 36 to 42 weeks, depending on the school and the course being offered. ITE students mostly engage in internships lasting between 10 to 20 weeks, which kicks off mostly in January or July of every year. However, there could be some form of flexibility with internship duration at times, in cases where the students can combine both academics and the internship and is willing to take on the internship as a part-time role which could be remote, onsite, or hybrid as the case may be.

Sources for Hiring Interns in Singapore

Another critical factor for businesses in Singapore looking out to hire interns to take a critical look at is where we get suitable interns to fill the available internship roles in the organization. There are several ways a business could hire interns, most of which are conventional approaches. Even though the traditional approach of reaching out to colleagues, business partners, acquaintances, and friends to check if any interested individuals are looking to fill such roles is still very much in vogue as some internship roles are mostly not advertised in any form, conventional means of hiring interns have proven to be much more reliable over time as the business can go through a non-partisan method of selecting the best candidate that best suits the role. Some of these conventional approaches include:

1. Use of Job Platforms: The internet has been a major means of connecting prospective employers and job seekers ever since its advent. Platforms such as MyCareersFuture SG, Indeed, and JobCentral that the Government of Singapore fully supports have proven useful for hiring interns within the country. These platforms provide areas for internships and graduate training under their job listings.
2. Use of Institutional Career Portals: The various career portals put in place by the IT department of the Universities and Polytechnics within the country could serve as another means of getting interns for businesses. These portals could have varying differences based on the institution. Still, they do have a lot in common as they all aim at bringing students closer to their prospective employers for internship opportunities. This approach is straightforward as the various faculties will have their different needs and requirements outlined on their respective portals. For instance, the Singapore Polytechnic demands basic registration on their portal, while the Ngee Ann Polytechnic requires candidates to log on via CorpPass. The National University of Singapore, on the other hand, requires having to go through their websites and particularly the faculty of interest’s portal because Internships are credit-bearing.
3. Use of Social Media: Hiring interns could be easily done by simply making a social media post. Put up a write-up on your official business LinkedIn page, tweet about the opening using the business official Twitter handle, and interested applicants put in their applications as demanded.

Available Grants to Hire Interns Singapore

On a final note, businesses in Singapore need to be aware of the Global Ready Talent Program (GRT), an innovative idea by Enterprise Singapore to help enterprises to gain and engage local talents a

(GRT), an innovative idea by Enterprise Singapore to help businesses gain and engage local
talents across the country from ITE, Universities, and Polytechnics.

This initiative serves as a grant given to businesses in the country for hiring interns. This grant for hiring interns covers

SMEs as well, and it provides up to 70% support for the businesses in compensating the interns
for their monthly stipend. For businesses to be eligible for this grant for hiring interns, certain
criteria must be met.

Some of which are: a minimum of 30% local ownership, willingness to
participate in the Enterprise Singapore’s Human Resource Maturity Diagnostics (HRMD), and a
group work fore of not more than 200 staff.