COSCO offers interns opportunities

In about two years, Malaysian graduate Charles Chan Chow Khong has grown from an intern at the Kuala Lumpur branch of COSCO Shipping Lines to a mentor.

His internship at the company started in 2017. Today, the 25-year-old sociology graduate works in the business processes department and takes it on himself to tutor new interns.

After graduation, Chan began to look for job opportunities back home when a Zhejiang University alumna, who was then working for the Chinese company, recommended the internship program.

COSCO Shipping Lines is a fully owned subsidiary of COSCO Shipping Holding Co. The Shanghai-headquartered shipping and logistics giant has the largest shipping capacity in the world and the third-largest number of container vessels.

Chan spent a few months training in different departments. Due to his good performance in the internship, he was then hired by the company.

"I get to be exposed to a wide range of things relating to the company," said Chan.

Henry Tian, managing director of COSCO Shipping Lines (Malaysia), said the company began internship programs for Malaysian students in 2015 to fulfill its corporate social responsibility.

"Malaysian students in China sometimes feel the pain of looking for internships back home due to lack of local contacts. The program provides them a chance to complete an internship while spending time with their families during school holidays," said Tian.

"When students leave universities to find jobs, many of them may not know what they really want to do. But working in a logistics company, which deals with businesses in almost all kinds of industries, they can figure out what (kind of jobs) they are interested in," he said.

Tian noted the company does not nurture talent only for itself, but encourages students to choose their desired industry or position based on their firsthand experience.

"We welcome every Malaysian student to join the internship program, whether they are ethnic Chinese, Indian or Malay," said Tian. COSCO Shipping Lines has more than 200 employees in Malaysia, of which only three are from China.

During the internships, which last between two and six months, students can learn practical working skills, while conducting research on the company's business to deepen their understanding of the industry.

Around 30 Malaysian students have joined the internship program in recent years.