Six electronic engineering students from City University of Hong Kong (CityU) will soon be on their way to London to take part in the summer Olympics where they will provide IT management services.

They have been selected as interns by Atos, the company responsible for the collection, consolidation and distribution of information at the London 2012 Olympics, that ensures accurate and timely processing of data. This information includes the particulars of the participating athletes and the results for the sporting fixtures at the Games. Their stint at the Olympics runs from 4 June to 15 August.

The six students Gao Ziqun, Law Chi-hang, Liu Jaiwei, Tang Xiaowu, Yang Yuchen and Zhou Zefeng were the only ones from the Asia-Pacific region selected by Atos for this event.

After a short training programme, they will serve as assistant IT managers and service desk managers at the various venues in the UK, also helping to handle ad-hoc tasks.

“CityU students are preferred candidates in our student internship programme for London’s summer Olympics. We know CityU students are equipped with solid academic knowledge. They also possess key elements for the workplace such as a conscientious work attitude, an active learning style, and a willingness to take up additional work and responsibilities,” said Mr Raymond Lee Chi-ming, Managing Director of Atos Information Technology (HK) Ltd.

“Atos is committed to human resources development and is willing to provide training opportunities for young people. We would like to recruit graduates from universities and help them become the new blood for the IT industry,” he added. Some CityU graduates who joined Atos more than 10 years ago are now key executives at the company.  

Professor Man Kim-fung, Head of CityU’s Department of Electronic Engineering, said he was grateful to Atos for its support. “The Department of Electronic Engineering works closely with industry to arrange internships for students. We aim to broaden students’ horizons, encourage them to apply their knowledge and skills to the actual work, and get ready to meet future challenges in the workplace,” he said.

Liu Jiawei, one of the students going to London for the internship, said he was happy to have the chance to work for the Olympics as it is a major international event held only once every four years. “I will try my best to learn from the internship and work hard for my job,” he said.

Gao Ziqun, another of the successful students said he would use this opportunity to learn how to interact with colleagues as he pursues a career in IT. “The experience will definitely boost my future career,” he said.

CityU provides various internship opportunities for students, including the Industrial Attachment Scheme, Co-operative Education Scheme and Overseas Internship Scheme with the support of over 200 local and multinational companies. Students gain practical work experience from these schemes before graduation, thus deepening their understanding of industry.

Atos is the official worldwide IT partner of the International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee, delivering the entire IT services for the London Olympics and Paralympics, including designing, integrating and managing multiple IT systems to process various information about the Games, such as results distribution and the security and risk management.