Students Kickstart their Career with Kaplan in Singapore

SINGAPORE -�Media
OutReach - 3 October 2019 - Students from Kaplan in Singapore had the opportunity to intern with
some of Singapore’s most interesting start-ups. Five shortlisted students and
start-up companies, part of a community at the co-working establishment The
Working Capitol, jointly worked on ideas over three months and convinced a
panel of judges, which included Kaplan management as well as a representative from
its Industry Advisory Board, and The Working Capitol. iWonder Pte Ltd (winner)
and LOPELAB (runner-up), brought home prize money of S$40,000 and S$20,000
respectively at the Kaplan Kickstart Challenge Finale, a pitch session which
took place last Friday at The Working Capitol.

 

The Kaplan
Kickstart Challenge is Kaplan’s latest initiative to equip students with
employment-ready skillsets through real-life experiences. The inaugural edition
saw an exclusive partnership with The Working Capitol to match shortlisted
Kaplan students with their start-ups to develop and pitch business ideas.

 

The programme,
held from 8 July to 27 September 2019, offered students an internship
opportunity for three months at start-up companies from various industries,
from healthcare to digital content and recruitment. In addition to learning and
assisting with day-to-day work with the start-ups, the students had the
opportunities to contribute to the implementation of a business idea. They were
required to be a part of the presentation team to pitch the idea at the Kaplan
Kickstart Challenge Finale.

 

“The Kickstart
Challenge is designed to help Kaplan students become more employable when they
graduate. We are pleased to see that our students have gone the extra mile and
enjoyed the journey — from stepping up to the challenge of trying something
beyond their programmes, to doing their best to not just learn on the job, but
also contributing back with knowledge learnt from school. The Working Capitol’s
generosity in providing access for Kaplan students to its vibrant and diverse
community has been key to bringing this initiative to life,” said Khoo Yu Hung,
Director, Marketing and Communications of Kaplan in Singapore.

 

“Having an
internship programme within The Working Capitol is an initiative we’ve always
set our sights on; our startups will always require creative and ambitious
talent, and we get to share our vision of a sustainable urban future with the
youths of Singapore. Kaplan’s range of programmes are geared towards flexible
learning, which we believe is the future of education. We are honoured to come
onboard and hope this collaboration provided Kaplan students the experience and
environment to springboard their careers,” added Saranta Gattie, CEO and
Co-Founder of The Working Capitol.

 

The winner,
iWonder, is a streaming video service that allows subscribers to watch a large
variety of award-winning documentaries and current affairs programmes. LOPELAB,
the runner-up, is an innovative design studio that designs different kinds of
events or temporary structures for public spaces that stimulate social
interaction and create collective experiences.

 

Beyond the prize
money, students who took part in the Challenge took back valuable insights and
opportunities towards their dream careers.

 

Shaun Tan, 23,
who is currently studying a Bachelor in Business Studies in Management with
University College Dublin at Kaplan, received a certificate for being the
Kickstart Challenge’s Best Intern. He has secured the opportunity to extend his
internship at Cavago. “I was excited to be matched with a start-up that is in a
disruptive industry that has yet to be fully explored. I had to cope with time
management when I started. However, through the internship, I am glad to have
made good friends with the team, received critical and constructive feedback,
and overcame the challenges along the way,” he said.

 

Taking the challenge to try an industry out of her existing course
was an opportunity that Shiyamielah Kesavan Pillai, 28, a student pursuing a
Kaplan Diploma in Hospitality Services and Events Operations, was excited to
grab. Her academic and work background in events management proved to be useful
even as she interned in Vista Health. “The journey was unexpected but great —
even though I was an intern, my colleagues and managers valued my opinions and
I was able to give back to the company,” she said. Her stint in a start-up
environment has made her consider her options more carefully after graduating.
“The learning opportunities in taking up different internships, instead of
starting a new job immediately, is one of my considerations now,” Shiya added.

 

With over 300 degree
and 25 diploma programmes, Kaplan in Singapore is focused on equipping students
with the skillsets for employment and to meet evolving industry needs. One of
its initiatives was to set up six Kaplan Industry Advisory Boards in 2016,
involving over 40 senior executives and entrepreneurs from Multinational
Companies, Small & Medium Enterprises and Start-ups. Collectively, they
provide perspectives on the latest industry trends to align programmes offered
at Kaplan to meet Singapore’s labour needs, to prepare graduates to be relevant
to industry and career-ready.

 

“The job market
today has gotten a lot harder to get a foothold in. Initiatives like The Kaplan
Kickstart Challenge really fit into what we have been trying to do. We are
focusing so much more on, other than giving students the education, equipping
them with employable skills and having them apply what they learnt in the
classroom to a real-world scenario. I’m glad that the Challenge is off on a
good start and I hope more companies and our students will benefit from future
editions of this programme,” said Associate Professor Rhys Johnson, Chief
Operating Officer and Provost of Kaplan in Singapore.

 

For more information on the
programmes delivered by Kaplan in Singapore, check out the official website kaplan.com.sg
or contact info.sg@kaplan.com. Join in the conversations at www.linkedin/kaplansingapore and www.facebook.com/kaplansingapore.

About Kaplan in Singapore

Kaplan in
Singapore is part of Kaplan Inc., one of the world’s most diverse education
providers and is the largest subsidiary of Graham Holdings, formerly The Washington
Post Company. To date, Kaplan in Singapore has students from over 35
countries worldwide, and has served over 65,000 graduates. With over 480
academic programmes for higher learning and professional certification courses
available for skills development, Kaplan provides opportunities for individuals
to pursue lifelong learning.

To find out more about Kaplan Singapore, visit www.kaplan.com.sg.