Doing internships not only enables students to accumulate hands-on skills and experience in the workplace, but also facilitates career exploration. Lau Hok Yee, Natalie, a final year Electrical Engineering student, had a fabulous journey under the Sandwich Internship Programme at the CLP Power Hong Kong Limited between August 2022 and August 2023.

As an intern, Natalie was delighted to acquire and apply classroom knowledge to real-life situations.

During her one-year tenure at CLP, Natalie was assigned to the Asset Management Department where she was chiefly responsible for conducting research on smart grid technologies and preparing key performance index reports for the Scheme of Control Agreements with the Government. She also had invaluable opportunities to broaden her exposure to power generation, transmission and distribution, including participation in various conferences to take a glimpse at the cutting-edge technology in electricity supply, and site visits to power stations for a deeper understanding of the operations of Hong Kong’s largest electricity supplier. Apart from corporate duties, Natalie was actively engaged in various social and recreational events of CLP, such as the Ladies’ Lawn Bowling Team and the CLP Volunteering Team to check and repair electrical appliances for elderly households.

Natalie often participated in training sessions and tournaments with the CLP Ladies’ Lawn Bowling Team.

Speaking about her most remarkable experience during her internship, Natalie reiterated that it was her presentation to the Chief Operation Officer on her last day of work. “Approaching the end of my journey at CLP, it was an opportune moment for me to summarize and reflect on what I had learnt throughout my internship in front of the company’s leader. My memory with colleagues whom I had worked with was also recalled while I was liaising with them for information in preparing the presentation slides,” she uttered.

Despite her pleasure in serving CLP, Natalie was confronted with several challenges, particularly in drafting reports. “When I was writing a report about a blackout, I had no clue in structuring the information and explaining the reasons for the power failure at the very beginning. Sometimes my departmental colleagues might not be able to answer my queries as they were not involved in the issues,” she stressed. To overcome the problem, she underscored the significance of reaching relevant units for assistance. “Seeking help from these units had allowed me to get a better overview of the incidents, as well as to deliver more accurate information to my colleagues for justification.”

In retrospect, Natalie’s internship experience at CLP was deemed to be fruitful. “By handling large-scale projects like liaising with different external stakeholders, my presentation and communication skills have been further honed. These are undoubtedly key attributes for being an effective communicator in future workplace,” she claimed. Besides, this internship has boosted Natalie’s desire to pursue her career in the electric power industry. “Being exposed to the electrical sector for 12 months, I have gradually developed interests in electricity generation and supply, especially when I have started to associate my tasks with the academic knowledge grasped from university and deploy them to real-life situations.”

Natalie believed that visiting power stations was crucial for her to have a comprehensive understanding of the electricity supply to households.