A Fruitful Internship Working With the Chief Secretary
A Fruitful Internship Working With the Chief Secretary
Naeem Shahryar’s Story
Faculty of Arts and Faculty of Education
BA&BEd(LangEd)-Eng
“It immediately caught my eye because I felt that it was very rare for ethnic minorities to get inside perspectives of the government and its operations.” Shahryar said, who also wished to explore more and with the aim of initiating greater representation in the domain of public policy.
“I was able to get a better understanding of the various sectors and bureaux, and how they liaise with the Government.”
As his internship embarked on, Shahryar was positioned in the Chief Secretary's Private Office, with an excellent working environment. He had the opportunity to accompany the Chief Secretary to different firms and the Hong Kong Observatory, as well as to work on a project reviewing the foreign talent attraction schemes of Hong Kong. “These were all eye-opening experiences as I was able to get a better understanding of the various sectors and bureaux, and how they liaise with the Government.”
When asked about the difficulties he encountered, he recalled that it was the understanding of some technical terms discussed in the meetings, despite the fact that he is decent in Cantonese.
Fortunately, under the help of his supervisor, who was willing to communicate bilingually with him, Shahryar became more confident. His colleagues were also open-minded – they were eager to learn more about his culture. “I didn't feel like an outsider for a second and fit right in with the others. This was because of how welcoming everyone was.”
At the last part of the interview, Shahryar concluded that he was glad to have the chance to collaborate with different stakeholders and parties, together with the hands-on application in different cases. It was undoubtedly a fruitful and special internship for Shahryar, who was able to gain a deeper insight into the past and future development of the city - the home that he has grown up in.
Written by:
Leung Lok Yan
Year 2, Faculty of Arts
November 2021