SINGAPORE - After graduating from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) earlier this year with a mathematics and economics degree, Mr Chua Ru Xun struggled to land a permanent job.
The 25-year-old then turned to an SGUnited traineeship offered by IT firm Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). And since July, he has been boosting his knowledge and skills in technology.
Among other things, he attends webinars conducted by TCS and works with fellow trainees on hands-on projects, including developing an app to match donations of meals to the needy.
Mr Chua is among 75 trainees who have hitherto benefited from the TCS programme, said TCS Asia Pacific's president, Mr Girish Ramachandran, on Wednesday (Nov 25).
The company has 100 positions for local polytechnic and university graduates. A new round of hiring will take place next month, he added.
The nine-month traineeship programme allows recent graduates to develop industry-relevant skills and helps to boost their employability in the post-coronavirus economy.
Trainees on the TCS' programme go through foundational and specialised training courses in such areas as cloud adoption, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, as well as get on-the-job training by working on projects with TCS clients.
Those who do well will be considered for available full-time positions at TCS, said Mr Ramachandran.
Also, they will be equipped for such tech jobs as UX (user experience) developers, cloud engineers and tech developers, he added.
Mr Chua, who taught himself coding before becoming a TCS trainee, specialising in cloud computing, hopes to continue in a permanent job at TCS.
"It has provided a very good environment for learning new skills," he said, adding that he had applied for roles in compliance and tutoring after completing his degree.
On Wednesday (Nov 25), TCS also launched a new digital acceleration centre in TCS' Singapore office in Changi Business Park.
Developed with support from the Economic Development Board, the centre will provide training opportunities and new technological solutions for businesses looking to go digital, among other things.
Speaking at the launch event, Minister for Communications and Information S. Iswaran said the Government hopes to intensify efforts in creating opportunities for locals in the technology sector, including partnering companies like TCS.
So far, about 7,000 jobs and training opportunities in the infocomm technology (ICT) sector have been created through platforms like the SGUnited traineeships, he added.
The ICT sector is an important bright spot in the economy, and "we want to continue to ensure that locals are able to benefit from the opportunities that are being created", said the Minister.
Ms Sabrina Hamzah, a fresh diploma graduate in business informatics from Nanyang Polytechnic, said the skills and connections gained from traineeship will help in her pursuit to be a tech entrepreneur .
"This programme taught me how to create applications with a better user experience, and it has guided me in my learning. Previously, I was doing mostly self-study on Google," said the 21-year-old, who is developing an app to make it easier for home-based bakers to sell and process payments.
Ms Sharon Chrishalini, 23, a bioengineering graduate from NTU, hopes the traineeship will pave the way for an IT career.
"Though it was challenging transitioning from bioengineering into the programming field, programming is something I like. I found the trainers very approachable, and I enjoyed the things I learnt here."
