Programme Overview
The Advanced Technology Attachment Programme (ATAP), course CP3880, is a unit-bearing full-time internship programme that is offered twice a year. The programme will give students the opportunity to apply their academic knowledge to industry skills.
Programme Structure
Internship periods are a minimum 24 consecutive weeks* from January to June and May to November. In order to count an internship under ATAP, your internship job scope has to be computing related and able to add value to your degree programme. The internship period has to correspond with the School’s internship periods (please refer to the Internship Timelines for the official dates of internship). Breaking the internship into separate periods will not be permitted.
Assessment
Students’ progress on projects will be monitored during attachment and an assessment of their performance will be made (on Completed Satisfactory/ Completed Unsatisfactory (CS/CU) basis).
Students will be awarded 12 units upon successful completion of the six months attachment programme. Students will be awarded a Completed Unsatisfactory (CU) grade if they:
- Do not fully complete the attachment programme.
- Do not submit their monthly and/or final reports without valid reasons.
- Withdraw from the internship mid-way without valid reasons and/or without consulting the School.
- Withdraw their acceptance from the host organisation without valid reason.
Pre-requisites and Eligibility
In order to be eligible to apply for ATAP, students should have completed/are currently registered for ONE of the following courses from Table A and ONE of the following courses from Table B:
Table A
1 | IS2101 – Business & Technical Communication |
2 | CS2101 – Effective Communication for Computing Professionals |
3 | ES2631 – Critique and Communication of Thinking and Design |
Table B
1 | CS2103T/CS2103 – Software Engineering |
2 | CS2113/CS2113T – Software Engineering & Object-Oriented Programming |
3 | IS3106 – Enterprise Systems Interface Design and Development |
4 | BT3103 – Application Systems Development for Business Analytics |
Students who are pursuing the following are NOT allowed to register for ATAP:
- Students taking other courses during special term
- Students taking Undergraduate Research Project in Computing (UROP – CP3209)
- Students taking Computing Project (CP4106)
- Students taking B. Comp. Dissertation (CP4101) / B.Sc. (Business Analytics) Dissertation (BT4101) [Also known as Final Year Project (FYP)]. Students are not allowed to do FYP concurrently with ATAP and conversion of ATAP-related work to FYP is NOT permitted.
Application
Eligible students need to apply via TalentConnect. Please note that if a formal offer/acceptance of an approved position is not completed on TalentConnect, the internship will NOT be recognized as unit-bearing.
Internship Timelines
January to June
Internship Period: 6 Jan 2025 – 20 Jun 2025
Processing of Internship Submissions is done on a fortnightly basis
| ATAP | Dates | Notes |
|---|---|---|
|
Students viewing and application on TalentConnect |
4 Sep 2024 – 15 Nov 2024 |
Non-self-sourced Internships |
|
6 Dec 2024 |
|
|
|
Deadline to accept an offer |
5 working days from date of offer |
|
May to November
Internship Period: 13 May 2024 – 25 Oct 2024
Processing of Internship Submissions is done on a fortnightly basis
*Internships starting before 11 May 2024 will require confirmation that exams would be completed first.
| ATAP | Dates | Notes |
|---|---|---|
|
Students viewing and application on TalentConnect |
5 Feb 2024 – 24 Apr 2024 |
Non-self-sourced Internships |
|
24 Apr 2024 |
|
|
|
Deadline to accept an offer |
5 working days from date of offer |
|
Assessment Criteria and Deliverables
Students will have 2 supervisors for the duration of their internship who will assess their progress.
- Work Supervisor
- Academic Supervisor (Students will be notified by email when their Academic Supervisor is assigned)
Please refer to the following PDF file for details on the assessment and deliverables.
Internship during Final Semester
Students in their graduating semester who require ATAP during their final academic term/semester need to submit an appeal. Grades will only be awarded in the Special Term which means your degree will be only be conferred on 31st August and students will only join the Commencement ceremony in the following year.
Please use http://www.nus.edu.sg/registrar/academic-activities/graduation as a reference for more details.
The table below reflects the course arrangements for ATAP:
ATAP (CP3880) Period | Course Arrangement | Remarks | |||
Semester II | *Special Term I | *Special Term II | Semester I | ||
Jan – June | CP3880 | CP3880 | – | – | Grades will be backdated to Special Term I |
May – Nov | – | CP3880 | CP3880 | CP3880 (Graded) | Grades will be awarded at the end of Semester I of the next Academic Year |
*Note: You do not need to pay the NUS Special Term Fees for having ATAP registered during the Special Terms.
Additional Courses
ATAP is a full-time attachment programme so students on attachment should, in principle, not take other courses offered by the University. Students may be granted permission to take courses on a part time basis if they have the explicit written approval of their employer as well as the respective course coordinator (In the form of an email) before they proceed with course registration on CourseReg. (CP3880 is 12 units. Students may only read up to an additional 8 units worth of courses. This is inclusive of DYOM/GEN courses).
Students from Cohorts 2021-22 and after who are required to fulfil the Communities and Engagement pillar under the University Level Requirement (such as GEN% or related courses offered by UTCP, NUSC) will be allowed to co-read these courses alongside ATAP if their service hours are carried out during evenings and weekends during the internship period.
Students may be allowed to carry out service work during the day (3-4 hours a week) on weekdays whilst on internship, subject to the employer’s approval.
Kindly note that:
- Students are expected to manage their internship and school workload. The School will not be held responsible if you are unable to cope.
- Students will be responsible for dropping any additional courses (aside from CP3880). If you are found to have any additional courses without the relevant approvals, the School reserves the right to remove these courses.
- The internship company and course coordinator are under no obligation to provide their approval for students to take courses.
- Students are not permitted to read courses during Special Term with the exception of courses under the Communities and Engagement pillar.
- Instructions on how to appeal to take additional courses will be disseminated via email prior to the start of the internship.
Administrative Matters
Please refer to the following PDF for extra information on subjects such as leave, insurance, medical leave, etc.
All students should direct their enquiries to AskIR@comp.nus.edu.sg
FAQ (ATAP)
Q: Will I be allowed to break up my internship?
A: No, you will need to complete a single internship with a minimum duration of 24 consecutive weeks.
Q: Can I do a few months with one company and then another few months with a different company and count it under ATAP?
A: No, you are not allowed to break up the attachment period. Your attachment should be with a single employer for the entire duration of the internship.
Q: I am currently on ATAP, but I wish to pursue a different offer. Can I shorten my ATAP (24 weeks) to SIP (12 weeks)?
A: No, you are not allowed to shorten your internship.
Q: I have secured an internship but it does not fall within the stipulated internship periods, can I count it under ATAP?
A: No, all unit-bearing internships have to fall within our recognized timelines. (We do allow some variance up to 1-2 weeks for the start date, please write in to AskIR@comp.nus.edu.sg to check) Off-cycle internships will not be recognized by the School. Internships should not interrupt the academic semesters before and after the stipulated internship periods.
Q: What does computing-related mean?
A: All unit-bearing internships must have components that relevant to your degree programme. If the job is largely non-technical in nature (whereby a student from a different faculty could just as easily perform the role), then it will not be suitable.
Q: Can I apply for ATAP if I have not fulfilled the pre-requisites?
A: No, you may not. You must complete the required pre-requisites before embarking on your internship. You may apply for internships whilst completing the pre-requisites, but must have cleared them before starting the internship.
Q: Can I co-read pre-requisites while on internship?
A: No, you may not.
Q: How do I read additional courses during internship?
A: You will need to secure written approvals from your (1) company supervisors and (2) academic coordinator / academic faculty teaching the course. You will need to ensure that your written approval explicitly states the course code and the time commitment. Further instructions will be sent via email before the start of your internship.
Q: Does an approved enrolment for course request mean I am confirmed enrolment for the course?
A: No, the Industry Relations Office does not facilitate your enrolment. You will still need to bid for the course via CourseReg as per normal. The approval here refers to approval to co-read the course while on internship, NOT confirmation of enrolment.
Q: How many units can I read in my internship semester?
A: During your internship, you can read up to a maximum of 20 units. (CP3880 is 12 units, so you can only read up to 8 more units worth of courses. This is inclusive of DYOM/GEN modules). There are no exceptions to this.
Q: Is there any template I should follow to seek approval to read additional courses?
A: There is no set template, but ideally, your document should inform your academic coordinator that you will be on internship in that semester and request for permission to co-read the requested module while on internship. Your support document from the employer should clearly state the (1) course code and (2) time commitment and that they approve.
Q: Do I need an official letter from the company to read additional course?
A: No, an email with explicit approval for the course and time commitment will suffice.
Q: Can I take an internship in my final semester?
A: Yes, but you will need to submit an appeal to do so. Please note that you will need to provide a reasonable justification when making an appeal.
Q: I have already taken ATAP, can I take it again?
A: No, you can only take ATAP once.
Q: I have secured an internship position but the company has not posted on TalentConnect, can it count as ATAP?
A: No, the position will need to be reviewed and approved on TalentConnect and a formal offer/acceptance must also be completed in order for the position to be registered as unit-bearing.
Q: Does submitting the Self-sourced Internship Form mean my internship is approved?
A: No, the School will still need to review and approve the posting on TalentConnect, and a formal offer (from the company)/acceptance (by the student) MUST be completed on TalentConnect within the stipulated timelines in order for the internship to be recognized as unit-bearing.
Q: Why do I need to submit the Self-sourced Internship Form?
A: The School batch processes internship submissions fortnightly. Submitting the form will accelerate this process by bringing it to our attention so that we can review it more quickly.
Q: I have already secured an internship and completed the formal offer/acceptance on TalentConnect. Do I still have to fill in the Self-sourced Internship Form?
A: No, it is not required.
Q: I have accepted an internship offer but it is past the deadline, can I still count it under ATAP?
A: No, you are required to adhere to the specified deadlines.
Q: I started an internship last semester and have since completed it. Can I count it under ATAP?
A: No, the School does not allow any retroactive conversion of internships.
Q: I was given an offer, but I did not respond within 5 working days and my offer is now expired, what can I do?
A: Please ask the company to write in to us at internship@comp.nus.edu.sg to reset the offer for you.
Q: How do I get an internship support letter for CPF exemption?
A: Do note that we will only be able to issue internship support letters for unit-bearing internships under School of Computing. Please submit your request here. (Please note that only requests for unit-bearing internships under the School will be entertained.)
For off-cycle or non unit-bearing internships, please contact CFG (hire@nus.edu.sg) directly. Note that NUS does not issue internship support letters for non-unit-bearing internships during the academic semester. Do also note that letter requests will only be processed AFTER a formal offer/acceptance on TalentConnect is completed.
Q: As an international student do I need to apply for a work permit?
A: International students on unit bearing internships are allowed to work full-time during the semester. No additional work permit/visa is required.
