The Singapore Management University’s (SMU) School of Computing and Information Systems (SCIS) has launched a new SMU-KPMG Analytics and Cloud Technology Work Study Programme in partnership with Google. Students enrolled in this programme will acquire a Google Career Certificate via a scholarship before embarking on a six-month extended internship with KPMG.
Google Career Certificates are flexible online training programmes designed to help individuals build job-ready skills in high-growth career fields. It requires no prior experience, and students can study it at their own pace. Twenty students will be accepted for the first intake of the programme, which is planned to start in January 2023.
Digital technologies, such as Analytics and Cloud Computing, have been transforming industries and societies. The partnership with Google and KPMG enables SCIS students to keep abreast of emerging technologies and market demands. Incorporating industry and career certification in the undergraduate study provides opportunities for students to deepen career-based knowledge and gain industry experience.
“As we ramp up our education programmes, what remains unchanged is our emphasis on industry relevance. This is why our faculty consists of many professors with industry experience, and the reason we constantly collaborate with relevant industry partners. Since the school’s inception, our students have been doing their Final Year Projects with requirements set up by industry sponsors. A number of our courses are also co-designed and co-delivered with industry partners. Through these partnerships, students gain hands-on experience and exposure to the industry. The collaboration also serves as an excellent recruitment mechanism for partner companies, as they get the opportunity to work with the students for a semester before making their hiring decision,” said Professor Pang Hwee Hwa, Dean, School of Computing and Information Systems and Lee Kong Chian Chair Professor of Computer Science.
“The work-study programme that we are formalising today is very much aligned with our approach of working with industry to ensure the relevance of our education programmes. I am truly delighted to be partnering Google and KPMG. I look forward to deepening our partnership and developing future-ready talent that will create value for the industry”, added Professor Pang.
About the SMU-KPMG Analytics and Cloud Technology Work-Study Programme:
For the programme, students will be required to complete:
1) Either one of the Google Career Certificates (hosted on Coursera):
a) Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate or
b) Google IT Automation with Python Professional Certificate
2) Analytics and Cloud Technology Work Study Elective: This elective will require the student to complete a six-month internship with KPMG. The student will work full time during vacation and alternate between working four days at KPMG, and studying on campus for one day each week, during term time, for a period of six months.
“People with the skills required to implement cloud technologies at scale, especially in areas like artificial intelligence, machine learning, data analytics, and application development, will play a critical role in helping Singapore to fulfil its full digital economy growth potential. The enterprises that we work with at Google Cloud also tell us that the lack of skilled talent remains a key challenge when they hope to accelerate progress in their digital transformation journeys. As a part of our continuous commitment toward removing digitalisation barriers for businesses and driving career success for individuals, we are building on our existing collaboration with SMU to offer Google Career Certificate scholarships to students under the SMU-KPMG Analytics and Cloud Technology Work-Study Programme,” said Ms Sherie Ng, Country Director, Singapore and Malaysia, Google Cloud.
The programme is open to SCIS students and students of other schools with a second major in SCIS. All students who enroll and complete the programme will be able to connect with hiring companies in high-growth sectors through Google’s Skills Ignition SG Employer Consortium.