By Phoon Sze Yu (Comms & New Media + NUSC [USP] ’25)
As the new semester unfolds, planning for a summer internship becomes a focus for many students. Sourcing, applying, interviewing, and securing an internship is often daunting. With countless options from different industries, it is challenging to narrow one’s choices down to a field of interest or a specialised role.
The Growth Mentoring (GM) team curates exclusive internship opportunities with a vision in mind: – to provide students opportunities that are Interdisciplinary, Bespoke and Mentored in nature. The GM team hopes to encourage students to design their dream lives though the process of actively seeking and co-creating it. By using the principles of Life Design, students can navigate boundless possibilities by being curious, taking action, narrowing down options through consolidation and experiencing life’s possibilities.
In partnership with selected companies/organisations, the GM team also curates internships that can provide cross-functional work exposure for students. “Students may notice that the [NUSC’s] requirements for potential internship partners are quite unique and stringent,” says Christopher Go from Growth Mentoring. “We focus on curating quality partnerships that match our vision for internships.”
Interdisciplinary: Beyond codes and algorithms
Leonidas Raghav (Computer Science + NUSC [USP] ‘25] embarked on a NUSC internship last winter break at Growthbeans, a social enterprise focused on growth and well-being through coaching and related programmes.
As a software developer intern, he worked on Growthbeans’ web applications, ideating new features and making improvements to current ones. Leonidas shared, “I chose to pursue this internship as I found Growthbeans’ mission highly relevant and impactful. More importantly, as a Computer Science student, I have always wanted to work in a role where I can apply my technical skills for the net benefit of humanity, so I found this to be the perfect match between my desire for technical growth and service.”
During his six-week stint, Leonidas collaborated frequently with his colleagues from the development, product, user interface, and design teams. This required him to pay close attention to the company’s products, mission and its objectives cross-functionally, beyond the technicalities of software development. “My interdisciplinary education from NUSC has helped tremendously for the role, as I have to consider the broader impact of my work with respect to stakeholders and not just the technical aspects of the product,” Leonidas elaborated.
Bespoke: Beyond the job scope
For Ang Teng Min (PPE + NUSC [USP] ’25), her journey began when she discovered a range of opportunities via the NUSC Internship Portal*. Interested in developing a deeper understanding of Singapore’s social issues, she was drawn to apply for the Programme Coordinator role at OnePeople.sg, a non-governmental organisation that champions racial harmony initiatives in Singapore.
Following her initial application, the GM team arranged for an informal chat to understand Teng Min’s motivation for applying. At this stage, prospective interns can request to seek exposure beyond the stated job descriptions based on prior experience or interest, subject to the employers’ approval. The GM team believes that internships are not just about preparing students for the working world. Rather, the team looks forward to partnering with students through their journey of actively seeking and co-creating a dream life. The GM team then endorsed Teng Min’s application and forwarded her resume to OnePeople.sg.
The next stage of Teng Min’s application involved her meeting the team from OnePeople.sg. Reflecting on the process, she said, “In hindsight, without the NUSC GM team, the process of securing this internship position would not have been as smooth.”
With the goal of further developing OnePeople.sg’s advocacy efforts through reaching out to youths, religious groups, and community partners, Teng Min was exposed to a wide range of opportunities, and these included event conceptualisation and management, research, social media, and even data mining. After her fruitful and eventful three months at OnePeople.sg, Teng Min found that she could navigate time-sensitive and challenging tasks more confidently.
At the end of her internship, Teng Min organised our College’s first ever inter-faith conversation last semester, where religious leaders and NUSC students came together to share their lived experiences as people of different faiths and dialogue on the rich tapestry of religions in Singapore.
Mentored: Growth Beyond Supervision
For GM internships, the role of mentors are emphasised. Christopher notes that the GM team specifically requests that partner companies/organisations, appoint mentors for interns, extending support beyond traditional supervision to guide interns in their development. He said, “We are thankful that partner companies are willing to assign and devote resources for mentoring our interns. This creates a safe space for interns to approach their mentors for conversations on personal or career growth.”
A particularly impactful moment during Leonidas’ internship was a lunch session with the co-founders of Growthbeans, Shane Yan and Shamantha Yan, who are also alums of NUSC’s predecessor programme, the University Scholars’ Programme (USP). He said, “Our conversation made me realise that being a leader isn’t just about having a commanding presence; it boils down to being a good listener and taking a genuine interest in other people, whether customers, co-workers, or any other stakeholders.”
Beyond contributing to the meaningful work that OnePeople.sg does, Teng Min found that the greatest reward of her internship lay in the opportunity to broaden her perspectives through meeting youths of different religious and racial backgrounds, ranging from religious leaders to passionate individuals who volunteer with OnePeople.sg.
Exciting Opportunities Ahead
With the summer break coming up, NUSC Growth Mentoring has curated a list of opportunities exclusive to the NUSC student community. Check out the range of internships GM has, classified according to the various industries.
