Graduates will be able to apply for traineeships under the SGUnited Traineeships Programme from today, Manpower Minister Josephine Teo said on Facebook yesterday.
And to make it easier for students to search for the traineeships that suit them, a Virtual Career Fair for traineeships will be held later this month.
"To ensure that our graduates have a meaningful traineeship experience, we work closely with interested host organisations to put in place traineeships with clear development plans, before these traineeships get approved by Singapore Business Federation (SBF), our programme partner," said Mrs Teo.
There has been very encouraging interest, she said, with over 1,000 organisations stepping forward so far to offer over 11,000 traineeships.
The vast majority are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), such as Carousell, Yang Kee Logistics, Spic & Span and SGAG Media. There are also large companies like United Overseas Bank, Singtel, DBS and Baxter Healthcare.
"Our graduates can look forward to traineeships across familiar roles in the areas of marketing, finance, sales support, supply chain and quality assurance and also more niche ones such as sports nutrition, social work, venture capital and 3D printing," said Mrs Teo.
"A good number of traineeships are in areas such as security penetration testing and operational risk analysis, which are aligned to our plans in the various sectors' ITMs (industry transformation maps), giving these trainees a good head start for the future economy," she added.
Mrs Teo said the public service would also offer traineeship opportunities, together with institutes of higher learning such as the Nanyang Technological University, National University of Singapore, Singapore Institute of Technology, Singapore Management University and Singapore University of Social Sciences.
The Manpower Minister said that close attention was being paid to recent graduates, as the Covid-19 situation had brought about uncertainty in their search for jobs.
"It is not the easiest of times to be entering the job market. As a mother of three, I recognise their worries, as well as those of their parents," she said. "We want to help these young Singaporeans start their careers on a good footing and not let Covid-19 derail their plans and aspirations."
She also encouraged graduating students to make full use of the developmental opportunities to build their networks, skills and resumes.
"It is not the same as landing a permanent job, but this traineeship - like a sturdy umbrella amidst the downpour - will help sustain you till you reach the next step in your career."
The traineeships initiative was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat in his third supplementary budget speech, dubbed the Fortitude Budget, last Tuesday.
Mrs Teo said the SGUnited Traineeships Programme will provide up to 21,000 traineeship opportunities for the graduates which aim to let them acquire valuable industry-relevant experience, develop skills and expand their professional networks. This will, in turn, give them a firmer foothold in the job market once the economy recovers from the pandemic.
There will also be traineeships for mid-career workers under the programme and more details about these will be provided at a later date.
- Those interested can apply online at this website.
