Benjamin Tam, a 2008 graduate of Higher Diploma Programme in Business and Corporate Administration, joined HLB Hodgson Impey Cheng, a well-known accounting firm in Hong Kong, as an intern from June to August last year. The experience laid a good foundation for him to pursue his aspiration to be a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).

Although Benjamin was a non-accounting major student, he had determined to be an accountant in his career. To help him pursue his goal, SCS had arranged an accounting internship for him. He was thrilled with the internship opportunity in an established accounting firm. "To work towards the goal to be an accountant, I paid close attention to the accounting news and information in my leisure time. Through this, I hoped to enrich my accounting knowledge and to keep abreast of the developments in the field," he said. Although Benjamin did not have the advantage in basic accounting knowledge like his accounting major counterparts, with his thorough understanding and devotion in the accounting industry, he finally won the internship opportunity at HLB.

During the internship, Benjamin was responsible for assisting the preparation of annual financial statements, organising materials for the reference library and identifying suitable case examples in the Risk Management Department. He saw everyone in his department as excellent model to learn from. "They all had extensive work experience in accounting and were always willing to give me guidance. In addition to learning professional accounting knowledge and practical techniques, I realized the work attitude of meticulousness and diligence as well as business ethics and integrity are equally important," he said.

Benjamin believed that in a world of keen competition, the difference between a winner and a loser may be subtle. Therefore he was always making a little more effort than others so as to win. For example, during his years in SCS, he actively participated in a range of career planning activities, such as visits to business corporations, mock interview training and talks on image building. All these helped to improve his soft skills in interpersonal relationship, communications and leadership and enhanced his confidence.

A 2008 graduate of Higher Diploma Programme in Commercial Design of SCS, Yuen Siu Ting Vanessa, beat 6,000 contestants in Hong Kong and was crowned Hong Kong champion in the "Design Your Dream Baguette" online design competition held by FENDI, an international designer label, in August 2008. She represented Hong Kong to go on an exchange tour on 24 ¡V 29 September in Italy, where she visited FENDI's headquarters, "Palazzo FENDI", in Rome, attended the Milan fashion show and met with the world-class designers of FENDI and winners from other regions.

The competition was open to five Asia-Pacific countries and regions ¡V Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Korea and Thailand. The finalists in each region were chosen by Ms Silvia Venturini FENDI, who is the granddaughter of FENDI's founder and the creator of Baguette. Vanessa incorporated a lot of traditional Chinese elements in the bag she designed. She said that the design concept came from her school project "We Love West Kowloon", which was shown in the Graduation Exhibition of SCS's HD Programme in Commercial Design.

Vanessa said that the trip was a valuable learning experience. "In the six days in Italy, I gave a presentation on my design concept to FENDI's top management and leading designers, including the renowned Ms Silvia Venturini FENDI. I also attended FENDI Spring/Summer 09 fashion show, where I had the opportunity to exchange ideas with design lovers around the world. I also visited Palazzo FENDI in Rome, where I learned the design and production processes of FENDI products."

Vanessa was enrolled on the HD Programme in Commercial Design of SCS in 2006. "The HD Programme in Commercial Design is comprehensive and it covers many areas, so I am able to acquire professional knowledge in various fields, including fashion, jewellery, advertising and interior design. It helps me to find out more about my own interest and enhances the opportunities open to me in further studying and career development."

Wong Siu Yin, a second year student of Higher Diploma Programme in Human Services, joined Breakthrough's "Telephone Polling Project" as an intern from March to May 2008. His performance was so remarkable that he was offered a job with a promotion to continue working in Breakthrough after his internship ended.

During his 2-month internship, Siu Yin was responsible for conducting telephone surveys in the Ministry Research & Development Unit. He said that his communication skills had improved and he had also become more confident. "Through telephone survey, I get in touch with people from all walks of life. People's response on the phone is always unpredictable, now I can deal with unexpected situations more skillfully and handle emotions more tactfully." In times of difficulty at work, Siu Yin would try harder to improve himself instead of giving up. "I always believe that if others can do it, I can do it too," he said.

Siu Yin's positive working attitude earned much praise from Mr Pang Hing Tung, Researcher of Breakthrough. "Siu Yin was responsible and very dedicated to his job. Hetreasured each learning opportunity and he was always ready to learn more," Mr Pang said.

Last April, Siu Yin was determined to seize the promotion opportunity offered by Breakthrough because he knew that opportunities did not come easily. "Last year when I applied for the internship programme, I was initially on the waiting list. I was only admitted later and that was why I treasured this opportunity so much. In addition, the people at Breakthrough were all great teachers. They always took extra time to share their work experience with me and other students on this internship programme. I would like to follow their example and share with the newcomers what I have learnt."

After becoming an intern supervisor, Siu Yin was responsible for managing telephone survey conducted by other interns, offering guidelines and providing emotional support to them. He found greater job satisfaction in his new role as he said "no matter what role I am in, I believe I can always learn more and do it better every day."

Wong Yan Yan, a second year student of Higher Diploma Programme in Business and Human Resource Management, worked as an intern in the Hong Kong Housing Society Academy from June to August last year. The valuable opportunity enhanced her understanding of the day-to-day operation in a large organisation and helped her career development.

During the internship, Yan Yan was responsible for assisting the preparation of large-scale professional and academic exchange programmes, which gave her the chance to get in touch with different people from the corporate hierarchy and from other places. "I had learnt business communications of a large organisation and also social etiquette. My English and Putonghua had also improved," she said.

Besides, Yan Yan acquired specialised knowledge in event management. "When I started arranging the large-scale events, I was not sure if I could do well because those events required thorough and detailed preparation. But in the end, I was able to complete them successfully and now I am more confident of my ability." She added that, as the events took place, unpredictable situations would happen. Those situations provided her opportunities to improve her crisis management skills and they also acted as a reminder for her to be more detail-minded with preparation work in future.

Yan Yan was grateful to her colleagues in the Hong Kong Housing Society for what they have taught her. With their care and support, she was able to adapt to the working environment quickly. "Even though they were busy, they were always willing to offer guidance to me and give me ample opportunities to learn." Yan Yan's performance in the internship had been so outstanding that she was able to continue working in the Hong Kong Housing Society Academy after the internship ended last August.

Yan Yan treasured the friendship she developed with other interns from different institutes. She joined "Hong Kong Housing Society Interns Alumnus Society" last October and has been the president since then. She wished that she would help all the intern alumnus stay in touch even after their internship ended.

[Last Update in June, 2009]

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Jane Choi is in her third year studying the Higher Diploma Programme in Tourism and Hospitality Management. Last summer, she had the experience of working as an intern in Island Shangri-La Hotel. "I worked in the Food and Beverage Division, which enabled me to know more about the catering industry. Besides, the training sessions also helped to broaden my knowledge about the operations of a hotel and the hotel industry as a whole. I had applied what I learnt in class, such as business communications, customer services and customer relations during the internship so that I could adapt to the working environment more easily."

Jane found her experience as an intern gratifying, for she had been complimented by many of her seniors on her working attitude and performance. "Through the internship experience, I come to realize my strengths and weaknesses. Most importantly, I understand which direction I should be heading after my graduation."

Sally Wong, a second year student of the Higher Diploma Programme in Financial Services, joined HSBC as an intern last summer to widen her scope of knowledge in the financial world. She started with little notion of the operation of credit cards, but ended up knowing a great deal about the banking industry. "I worked as a customer service staff during the summer internship. The experience enhances my communication skills and also my knowledge about the business culture. The banking industry seems to be a miniature of the business world at large."

Sally's most memorable episodes in HSBC came from her friendly colleagues and supervisor. "It was a pleasant working environment with proper training and warm encouragement. I am grateful that SCS provides students with the opportunity to work in this international bank to show that we also have the potential to be one of the best."

[Last Update in July, 2008]

Wu Wei came all the way from Jiangxi province to Hong Kong to undertake the Higher Diploma Programme in Business and Corporate Administration. She faces the enormous challenges of fitting into a new living environment and learning English and Cantonese. Despite the difficulties, she remains dedicated to her goals and will not give up.

She said: "I have to try many things for the first time, but I am not afraid of encountering failure. Experiences are a form of wealth."

"Teachers, classmates and student counsellors care about me, giving me a warm welcome. I am having difficulties with my academic work, but I am not giving up. I would cherish every day learning and growing up in the School. I will continually empower myself."

"I am very happy to be a student ambassador and take part in social activities. I have a lot of responsibilities as an ambassador. I should make contributions to the School and society."

"My participation in school activities has changed my perception about life. Choosing to study at the SCS in Hong Kong was definitely not a mistake."

[Last Update in April, 2008]

Claire Lam studied the Higher Diploma Programme in Applied Translation Studies at SCS. Working as an Assistant Translator at the Translation and Interpretation Division of the Legislative Council Secretariat during her internship last August, she had an opportunity to take part in the production of Hansard (the official record of proceedings of the Legislative Council). "The translation skills taught by the Higher Diploma Programme are practical, which allowed me to adapt to the working environment quite easily," said Claire.

"The translators at the Secretariat were willing to coach me and teach me translation skills with patience. This internship experience made me realise the importance of research in translation. To do a flawless translation, translators must have thorough understanding about the topics concerned."

Yorkie Fung, a student of the Higher Diploma Programme in Fashion Design and Product Development, had a three-month internship at Co-wear International Limited as a Fashion Designer Trainee. Under the guidance of the famous local fashion designer, Miss Hidy Ng, Yorkie made her first attempt at the fashion industry.

Participating in the design of the spring and summer collection 2008 gave Yorkie better understanding of how the fashion design industry worked. "In Co-wear, I have involved in different aspects of the work, from design to marketing. My supervisor, Hidy, and other colleagues were very friendly and willing to coach me. They allow me to develop my own ideas in design, selection of material, and convincing other people to accept my design. This internship has made my goal more clearly defined. I am now more determined than ever to choose fashion design as my career."

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[Last Update in February, 2008]

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[Last Update in April, 2007]