OVERVIEW

The Compulsory Internship Programme (CIP) is a capstone of the Department of Communications and New Media. All student majoring in CNM will undertake a period of industry placement to induct and orientate themselves to their future careers, with the support and guidance of the CNM CIP Team.

Currently, pre-CHS students will enrol under NM3550Y for a total of 20 weeks of internship. CHS students will enrol under NM3550C for 16 weeks.

Internships serve to extend students' learning to provide exposure to industrial settings that will allow students to test out their interests, careers and enhance their immersive learning experience. While students are encourage to undertake some internships of their own initiative, it is also important to consider their study/work-life balance, and maintain an optimum degree of self care. Students who need more information about this can speak to their CFG career counsellors or CNM CIP Team.

Upon completion, students will receive:

• 12 Units for Cohorts 2020 and before
• 8 Units for Cohorts 2021 (CHS) onwards

Since its inception, more than 340 students have completed their internships across 240 Partner Organisations (POs) with diverse internship positions in Public Relations, digital marketing, corporate communication, video production and UI/UX design. Key POs that students have interned at include NBC Universal, Our Grandfather Story, Henkel Singapore, Wilhelmsen Ships (S) Service, and Prime Minister's Office.

The programme seeks to provide students with the link between academic theories and practical applications so that students are better prepared for transitioning to the workplace upon graduation. Students are given the chance to observe industry practitioners in action, gain relevant industry knowledge, and develop professionalism such as soft skills, self-presentation and career planning as they interact and network with colleagues in their organisation.

ELIGIBILITY

For cohorts 2016 and onwards, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences' (FASS) students pursuing Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Arts and Social Sciences, NM major will need to complete CIP.

The Compulsory Internship Programme is not applicable for:

• students who pursue Double Degree programmes
• students with a minor in NM
• students reading NM as Second Major for cohorts 2019 and onwards

NM Majors will need to consider and plan ahead for CIP in their study plans to account for overloading courses and/or any student exchanges. Students should complete CIP in either Year 3 Semester 1 or Year 3 Semester 2. Students from polytechnic track will need to complete CIP in either Year 2 Sem 2 or Year 3 Sem 1 due to the extra units already accumulated.

For College of Humanities and Sciences (CHS) students (cohort 2021 onwards), NM first majors are required to read NM3550C as a 16-week internship that is worth 8 Units under the UE space. NM second major students do not need to complete CIP.

PRE-REQUISITES

To be eligible for the Compulsory Internship Programme, students must:

• be an NM Major student who has been promoted to ARS3
• have read and passed a minimum of 80 Units (of which 24 Units are NM courses)

DURATION

CIP runs for a minimum of 20 weeks (NM3550Y) or 16 weeks (NM3550C), twice yearly: Semester 1 (Jul-Nov/Jul-Oct) or Semester 2 (Jan-May/Jan-Apr). The upcoming cycles will run as follows:

• Semester 1's internship tentative start date falls on the 1^st week of July
• Semester 2's internship tentative start date falls on the 2^nd week of January

Please note that:

• Internships may start no later than one week from the official start date. E.g., if CIP starts on 3 Jul, students should not start later than 10 Jul
• Organisations may ask students to start earlier or later, e.g. Jul-Dec, or Jan-Jun. This is considered a private arrangement between the student and the organisation, and does not require the CIP Team's approval
• An internship read during the summer (May-Aug) may not be used for CIP, unless the student extends the internship to fit the CIP timeline (Jul-Nov)
• All CIP assessments (quiz, reports, supervisor’s evaluation) and meetups will only be handled during the official internship duration
• Only full-time internships may be accepted for CIP

TIMELINE

APPLICATION PROCESS

1. Eligible students may search under the 'FASS CNM Compulsory Internship' programme tag on NUS TalentConnect. Please refer to the 'TalentConnect' section for more information.
2. Students may also search for an internship on other job platforms, such as LinkedIn, Internsg, and other websites. These are Self-Sourced Internships. Please refer to the section below for more information.
3. Upon confirmation of placement, students must ensure that the internship offer is captured on TalentConnect, even for self-sourced internships.

ALLOWANCE

The department recommends a minimum monthly allowance of S$1000/-. No CPF contributions are required. Students are not allowed to take on unpaid internships for the programme.

LEAVE AND TIME-OFF

Interns are entitled to pro-rated leave after a period of 3 months, and this term of employment is something employers agreed to when they contracted with NUS. Students are to ensure they have these in their contracts.* 

If you don't, and your employers disagree with these conditions, please contact the CIP Team at cnminternship@nus.edu.sg.

MEDICAL LEAVE

Students should inform their workplace supervisors if they are unwell. Students should not take leave without their supervisor's consent or knowledge. Supervisors may require students to submit a Medical Certificate.

TUITION FEES

During the course of internship, regular semester fees remain applicable, as students receive course units for their participation in the internship programme. This also means that students will maintain their status as a matriculated NUS student during their internship and thus enjoy continued access to NUS medical and insurance benefits.

For more information on matriculated students' insurance coverage, please refer here.

Students are not to apply for a Leave of Absence to complete CIP.

THINGS TO NOTE

• Students should read through CFG's internship guidelines for students before signing a contract.
• It is mandatory for students preparing to embark on CIP to attend the CIP Orientation Programme and the CIP Pre-Departure Briefing so that they are updated on all components of the programme including any changes due to COVID-19 or otherwise.
• Internships should run a minimum of 20 weeks (NM3550Y) or 16 Weeks (NM3550C), according to the stipulated CIP dates