College of Business - City University of Hong Kong AACSB International EQUIS - European Quality Improvement System

ITC-STEM Internship Scheme

STEM Internship Scheme

Launched in 2020, funded by Innovation and Technology Commission, the STEM Internship Scheme (the "Scheme") aims to encourage STEM students to gain innovation and technology (I&T)-related work experience during their studies and to foster their interest in pursuing a career in I&T after graduation, so as to enlarge the local I&T talent pool. Under the Scheme, allowance will be provided for undergraduates and postgraduates taking university full-time STEM programmes funded by the University Grants Committee (UGC) to enroll in short-term internships.

Allowance funded by Innovation and Technology Fund (ITC)

At CityU, STEM allowance will be payable to students directly by CityU after the internship is completed.

Eligible student interns who have completed a STEM-related internship with a satisfactory performance review with academic department's endorsement will receive an allowance of HK$11,190 per month or prorated ($373 / Day), capped at 3 months (90 Days) in total as a maximum period in each academic year (i.e. September to August).

Eligibility of STEM Students

Undergraduates and research postgraduates, including both local and non-local students, who are enrolled in one of the following eligible full-time UGC-funded STEM programmes offered by College of Business:

  • BSc in Computational Finance
  • BSc in Computational Finance and Financial Technology
  • BBA in Information Management
  • BBA in Global Business Systems Management
  • BBA in Business Analysis
  • BBA in Business Decision Analytics
  • BBA in Business Operations Management
  • BBA in Global Operations Management
  • BBA in Marketing (only for students in Marketing Analytics Stream)
  • Research Postgraduate (Information Systems)
  • Research Postgraduate (Management Sciences)

Eligibility of STEM Internship

  • Full-time internship placements in Hong Kong, Mainland China or overseas with a duration of at least 28 consecutive calendar days. Part-time internship will not be eligible.
    • For local students, STEM internship can be taken locally in Hong Kong, Mainland China or overseas
    • For non-local students with a valid No Objection Letter issued by Immigration Department, you may participate in the Scheme if the STEM internship is conducted physically in Hong Kong subject to the conditions of stay of the visa/entry permit issued by the Immigration Department.
  • The Scheme has adopted a broad definition of I&T under which an internship place will be regarded as I&T-related as long as its actual work contains I&T elements (e.g. technology-related intellectual property work, digital marketing, data analysis, business/process analysis, search engine marketing, research, Technology, etc.) subject to CB's endorsement.
  • The internship funded by the Scheme should not be arranged to meet the compulsory requirement for graduation of a degree programme.

STEM Jobs for CB Students

CB STEM Job Postings

  • Eligible STEM internships will be posted on CB's job portal on a rolling basis. Please refer to job postings with a caption of [STEM] for the approved STEM positions.
  • Students may apply directly to the companies. Shortlisting will be conducted on a rolling basis until the job is filled so you are encouraged to apply as early as possible.
  • Self-sourced STEM internship will only be accepted if the company has registered for the Scheme under Career and Leadership Centre (CLC).

How to enroll to the Scheme via CB?

Important Note:  Registration after internship commencement will NOT BE accepted, and there is no exceptional case. 

Before STEM internship begins:

  1. Once you have accepted an offer, please complete the STEM Offer Acceptance Form to report your STEM internship acceptance to CB for approval prior to your internship commencement.
    Supporting Documents Required:
    • Job Description (The job advertisement with job duties listed.);
    • Employment Contract with your name, position title, internship start and end dates, and any additional salary on top of STEM allowance (if provided) clearly indicated; and
    • Declaration from Applicant Student Intern form in PDF format.
  2. Once your STEM internship is approved by CB, a Minimum Wage Exemption Form will be issued to students along with a confirmation email.  In compliance to the Labour Ordinance, Minimum Wage Exemption Form can only be issued to students once per calendar year. 
  3. For "Work Experience Students" under minimum wage exemption waiver, you will be required to submit the following required documents to the closest Home Affairs Department Offices in person during office hours to declare your acceptance to the minimum wage exemption arrangements:
    1. A completed Statutory Declaration Form;
    2. Minimum Wage Exemption Form issued by CityU; 
    3. Employment contract (start date indicated on contract must be at least 1 business day after the date of declaration to Home Affairs Department office); 
    4. Student Idenfication Card; 
    5. Student Visa and No Objection Letter (for non-local students only).
  4. A copy of the statutory declaration form acknowledged by Home Affairs Department should be shared with your employer as record.

"Work Experience Students" should not be reporting duty until the statutory declaration process (#3) is completed.

After STEM internship is completed:

  • Please submit the completed ITC-STEM Assessment Form (v.2024-04) to CB in PDF format with signature and company stamp for approval.
  • Approved internship will then be submitted to CLC for vetting and disbursement arrangements according to CLC's disbursement timeline.

Disbursement Cycle

Timeline

Assessment Form Submission

Disbursement by FO
Fall / Winter Internship End of January May
Spring Internship First week of May July
Summer Internship First week of September December
  • Back date and late submission will not be accepted.
  • Disbursement timeline may be adjusted subject to the vetting progress by ITC, CLC and FO.
  • Important Notes on Allowance and Financial Arrangements (v.2024-04).

Employer Registration

For employers who are interested in joining the Scheme, please complete the Employer Registration Form to register for the Scheme under Career and Leadership Centre (CLC). For enquiries, please contact CLC at stem.internship@cityu.edu.hk. 

  1. Business registration license
  2. Job description with company website and application method

Obligations of Employers

  1. At CityU, the ITC-STEM allowance will be payable to students directly by CityU after the internship is completed subject to the students' performance evaluation report and the actual internship period. It is not reimbursable to the employers so please DO NOT pre-pay STEM allowance to students.
  2. Employers may pay the student interns a monthly honorarium on top of the STEM allowance under the Scheme with reference to their internal policies, industry benchmarks or market rates.
  3. MPF contributions bearable by employer is applicable starting from the 60th day of employment. The MPF contribution amount is according to wages payable by employers on top of the the ITC-STEM Allowance. (Minimum Wage and MPF Contribution Requirements)
  4. To participate in the Scheme, the employer should not receive other subsidies from the Hong Kong SAR Government for the same hire simultaneously.
  5. Employers should have adequate capacity to supervise, manage, and provide Information & Technology (I&T) related training and work learning experiences to student intern(s) throughout the internship period.
  6. Interested students will submit their applications directly to the employer.
  7. Once you have a CityU business student identified, kindly provide the students' name/student number/internship period to cbcareer@cityu.edu.hk for eligibility check prior to offer.
  8. After the student has accepted your job offer, please advise the students to report their STEM internship details to College of Business for approval via the STEM Offer Acceptance online form.
  9. Please prepare an employment contract for students to submit to College for reference.
  10. Please remind 'Work Experience Students' to complete the statutory declaration process at the Home Affairs Department Office prior to commencement.
  11. At the end of the internship, supervisors are required to complete the employer sections of the ITC-STEM Assessment Form (v.2024-04) for each intern for STEM allowance disbursement by CityU. Please have the students to submit the completed, signed and stamped form to cbcareer@cityu.edu.hk after the internship is completed; and
  12. Any other terms as stated in the CityU ITC-STEM Internship Guideline.

CityU ITC-STEM Internship Scheme Guidelines for Students and Employers

Please refer to the CLC website for the latest updates and FAQ. All terms and conditions are subject to the CLC guidelines as final.  For details of minimum wage exemption, please visit Labour Ordinance for guidelines.  

Enquiries

Please contact Business Career Development from CB via cbcareer@cityu.edu.hk for assistance.

Last revised by CB: 22 April 2024