In tougher job market, aspiring bankers skip class to ‘stack’ internships

In Singapore, it’s common to do multiple internships before leaving university. “Graduate recruitment is so competitive that internships are where you can get the foot in the door.”

Bernadette Toh

Jul 30, 2024 – 1.42pm

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When BNP Paribas offered Aloysius Kang a six-month internship, he withdrew from his Singapore university classes in the middle of the semester to take the “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

Kang, who started his stint at the bank in March, has spent two semesters away from school to gain more direct exposure to the finance sector. The 24-year-old accountancy undergraduate, who will likely graduate later than many of his classmates at Singapore Management University, is part of a growing trend of students in the city-state reshaping their tertiary education to accumulate coveted work experience. It even has a name: internship stacking.

Bloomberg Wealth