Joseph Lau Non-local Internship Awards (Winter 2024)

The Joseph Lau Non-local Internship Awards (劉鑾雄境外實習獎) provide support to full-time undergraduates with financial needs to participate in non-local (Mainland and overseas) internship programs. This round of application is open for winter 2024 internship participants.

• The purpose of the Awards is to help students:
  - gain valuable work experience;
  - improve interpersonal and communication skills in real work environments; and
  - enhance student competitiveness and employability in the global job market.
• Awards will be granted on reimbursement basis, subject to satisfactory completion of the internship and evaluations, including positive employer feedback, reflective journals and the required documents (boarding passes, accommodation receipt, and fees associated with the non-local internships).

Financial Support

The value for each award depends on students’ financial needs (with/without Government Grant/Loan**), internship destinations and duration:

A. With Government Grant/Loan**

B. Without Government Grant/Loan**

*The Approving Committee has discretion to approve an Award in partial or in full amount, depending on the programme fee and whether the internship is paid/unpaid.

**Applicants with Government Grant/Loan are the successful applicants of Tertiary Student Finance Scheme (TSFS) or Financial Assistance Scheme for Post-secondary Students (FASP); successful applicants of Non-means-tested Loan Scheme (NLS) are NOT included.

Eligibility

The Awards are only offered to outbound internship students who are full-time undergraduate students, irrespective of their place of origin and nationality. Students may at most obtain the Awards twice during their course of study; this includes a maximum of 1 overseas internship. Students who are eligible to receive the award must:

1. attain a cGPA of 2.0 or above (for winter internship: cGPA as at the last Semester B);
2. prove their financial needs and meet the assessment criteria set by the University;
3. not receive other monetary sponsorship/subsidy/award from the University (including but not limited to subsidy or allowance from the applicants’ College/School/Department) for the same internship;
4. demonstrate that they have been accepted by a host organization or a recognized internship organizer as an intern with period of work;
5. participate in an internship program of not less than 4 weeks or 150 hours in duration, with internship period ending before their graduation date;
6. be offered with an internship which they need to pay for the major costs, i.e. internship with fully refundable program fee or the major costs including flight and accommodation offered freely will not be eligible;
7. attend the pre-internship training workshop* organized by the University or internship organizer;
8. show satisfactory performance according to host organization and/or internship organizer (if any) evaluation by the end of the internship; and
9. submit all the required application, pre-departure and reimbursement documents with the requirement specified as below.

*Please refer to the “Mandatory Requirements for All Successful Applicants (before departure)”section below.

Application and Selection Procedures

Application Procedures

Complete the Application Form with below documents:

1. Document(s) issued by the internship company regarding confirmation of internship offer, e.g. an internship offer letter/notification email with:
   • Name of hosting company
   • Stated period of internship
   • Signature and company stamp (for internship offer letter only)
2. Recommendations from Departments (click here for template)
3. Government grant/loan application result notification (click here for sample). 
4. Copy of acknowledgement email from Finance Office stating students have provided their bank account information in AIMS (click here for the screen captures showing the procedures to input their bank account information in AIMS and sample of the acknowledgement email) 
5. Addition information (if any)

‘Checklist for application documents’ is available

(click here) for a quick check.

1. Late applications will not be considered. Full set of application documents must be submitted before the application deadline or 2 weeks before departure for the internship, whichever is earlier.
2. Students who fail to submit the required documents within the time frame will be considered withdrawing their application automatically.

Application Deadline: 5 pm, 15 Dec 2024 OR 2 weeks before departure for the internship, whichever is earlier.

Selection Process

Declared financial needs of applicants will be vetted by the College / School / Department. In case the number of eligible applicants exceeds the number of awards, or if there are other constraining circumstances, the Approving Committee will make the final decision in determining the successful applicants.

The Approving Committee has discretion to approve an Award in partial or in full amount, and priority will be given to those who have not been granted with the Awards before.  It is the responsibility of the applicants to provide all the supporting documents and information. Successful applicants should inform the Approving Committee immediately and before their departure for the internship if there are any changes in the internship, including the change of internship location and duration. The Approving Committee will not accept result appeal after the application result is announced.

Mandatory Requirements for All Successful Applicants (before departure)

1. Pre-internship Training
   Successful applicants are required to attend a pre-internship training workshop to be organized through their home college / department, Career and Leadership Centre and/or the internship organizer BEFORE departure of internship.
   
   Pre-internship training workshop can be any subjects in relation to preparing the students for (non-local) internship, including but not limited to attitude training, briefing on logistics and safety measures, trainings on business etiquette, expectation management, communication and problem-solving skills etc.
   
   Workshops conducted both face-to-face and on digital platforms (e.g. LinkedIn Learning or Zoom) would be accepted, and written proof of workshop attendance is required before the internship to confirm the preliminary approval of the Award.
    
2. Upon the approval of application, participating students are required to provide scanned copies of the following documents at least one week before departure:
   • Scanned copy of the FULL set of signed student agreement with ALL pages (click here to download the form); and
   • Scanned copy of the personal travel insurance coverage purchased by students for the entire internship period (i.e. guarantee slip showing students’ name and insurance policy number); and
   • Supporting document (if any).
      
3. ‘Checklist for pre-departure documents’ is available (click here) for a quick check.
    
4. Host organization evaluation
   To facilitate students’ host organization to evaluate their performance at the end of the internship, ask them to use the following forms. Please download the form before departure:
    

• English version for Overseas Internship (Click here to download)
• Chinese version for Mainland Internship (Click here to download)

***Please note that preliminary approval on the award will be automatically withdrawn and no reimbursement claim will be considered should any of the required documents are NOT provided before the commencement of the internship.

Reimbursement Procedure

Participating students are required to submit scanned copies of the following documents within 4 weeks upon the completion of the internship:
 

1. Employer Feedback Form (overall performance rated “satisfactory” or above) to be completed by students’ direct supervisor at the host organization.
   English version for Overseas Internship (Click here to download)
   Chinese version for Mainland Internship (Click here to download)
    
2. A signed thank you letter (in English) to the donor of this Award Mr. Joseph Lau (劉鑾雄)
   • Addressed to Mr. Joseph Lau
   • Full name of the student recipient (both English & Chinese, if any) name of programme (major) and year of study in CityU
   • Name of the destination country, organization for the internship
   • A brief description of the internship, e.g. industry, position held, job profile and duties, knowledge and skills acquired, interesting stories, personal insights, etc.
   • At least 2 photos on the internship experiences (Work-related photos, such as photos taken in company’s events, are suggested)
   • Appreciation and thankful message to Mr. Lau
   • Students’ full name and signature
      
3. A Student Feedback Form (click here to complete) upon completion of the internship
    
4. A Self-Reflection Report in English on internship learning with the following framework (soft copy in Word format):
   • Brief reasons for joining the internship
   • Brief information on internship placements including organization name, job position, chief assignment and supervisor(s) and organization structure of the host company
   • What are my contributions and accomplishments?
   • What is my learning from the workplace/supervision?
   • How does the internship affect my future career plan/study?
   • Do I understand my strengths and weaknesses more? Please elaborate.
   • 500-800 words in length. Embed at least 2 photos.

    

5. Supporting Documents for overseas activities, e.g. boarding passes, accommodation receipt, and fees associated with the non-local internships
    
6. Other Supporting Documents (if any)
    
7. ‘Checklist for reimbursement documents’ is available (click here) for a quick check.

For enquiries and reimbursement document submission of the Awards, please contact the internship coordinator of respective College / School / Department for further details.

***Please note that no reimbursement claim will be considered should any of the required documents are NOT provided. The Approving Committee reserves the final discretion on reimbursement of funding for student internship.

Crisis Management Plan for Students Undertaking Overseas Internship

For students’ safety, a Crisis Management Plan is developed by the Critical Incident Management Team (CIMAT) of the University to provide guidelines and procedures to student participants in the event of an emergency while studying and travelling outside of Hong Kong.

In this regard, all CityU enrolled students who participate in an internship programme outside of Hong Kong (i.e. outbound students) are required to observe the following guidelines issued in the Plan:

Guidelines for students

Outbound students should:

1. Consider your health and other personal circumstances when applying for or accepting a place in an overseas programme;
2. Read and get familiar with all materials issued by the programme organizer/sponsor relating to safety, health, legal, environmental, political, cultural, and religious conditions in the host country/city;
3. Provide programme organizer/sponsor with accurate and complete physical and mental health information or any medical emergency. Such information will be treated with the strictest confidentiality and will be shared by the programme organizer on a “need-to-know” basis only;
4. Provide 2 emergency contact numbers of your family, guardian or next of kin to programme organizer/sponsor. By providing the emergency contact numbers, you agree and authorize the CityU programme organizer/sponsor to release your personal and academic information to a third party within or external to CityU on a “need-to-know” basis;
5. Assume responsibility for taking care of your personal preparation for the programme and participate in pre-departure orientation;
6. Understand and comply with the terms of participation, codes of conduct, rules and regulations of the host institution, as well as laws and customs of the host country/city. While in a foreign country or sovereignty, you are subject to the local laws;
7. Accept responsibility for your own decisions and actions. Ignorance or negligence is never an excuse for violating the laws;
8. Stay vigilant at all times as crime exists in all countries and all cities. Avoid becoming a crime victim;
9. Obtain and maintain appropriate insurance coverage that will cover medical service and medical evacuation;
10. Know how to use the insurance information. Keep a copy of the insurance policy with you at all times and leave the original policy with your family;
11. Make 2 copies of your passport/travel document. Leave one with your family and bring one with you on the trip and keep it separately from your passport/travel document. Whilst you are travelling, protect your passport/travel document;
12. Learn as much as you can about your country/city before you go. Behave in a manner that is reasonable and respectful of the rights and well-being of others, and encourage others to treat you in a similar manner;
13. Develop with your family a plan for telephone or e-mail contact, so that in case of emergency you will be able to communicate with your parents directly about your safety and well-being;
14. Take a credit card or make sure you will have access to additional funds in case of an emergency;
15. Keep the following emergency numbers with you at all times:
    • Emergency contact numbers of on-site coordinator and/or your host institution;
    • Emergency numbers in the host city/country for police and ambulance;
    • Emergency contact numbers of the programme organizer/sponsor in CityU;
    • 24-hour CityU Campus Security Hotline (collect calls acceptable): + 852 2788 8888; + 852 3442 8888
    • Contact number of the insurance company including the 24/7 SOS hotline;
    • 24-hour hotline of Hong Kong Immigration Department: +852 1868;
    • Contact number of the nearest Chinese embassy in your host country (if applicable).
16. Please understand that integration into a new culture and learning environment could place particular challenges, both mental and physical, on an individual, if you are currently receiving treatment for any chronic illness it is strongly recommended that you talk with the programme director/leader, counsellor or your doctor about plans to manage your health condition overseas.