The Programme is the world’s first training course in SAP industry best practices for tertiary students. It has been introduced amid an expected boom in the worldwide job market for SAP professionals as more firms, particularly small and midsize enterprises, adopt SAP solutions. Both sides entered into an agreement in March 2007, to help provide future IT professionals with hands-on experience with SAP solutions. The tie-up was made with the support of the Infocomm Authority of Singapore (IDA), which is offering up to S$200 reimbursement of the S$428 certification fee that a trainee pays.

Reflecting the demand in the job market for SAP professionals, SoC has received a number of queries from companies about hiring the freshly SAP-certified students as interns or regular employees. The situation echoes recent news about the rising demand for SAP professionals globally. According to a report in the 6 March 2007 edition of Computer Weekly, vacancies for SAP professionals worldwide have increased 16 percent this year over last year’s figures.

Interesting, the SAP workshop may well be serving a greater goal than simply producing more SAP professionals. Yang Jun, a fourth year Computer Engineering student who has recently gained his SAP certification commented: “I think it was a valuable opportunity to learn not just about SAP products, but also Enterprise Resource Planning and business processes in general. I am sure the knowledge will continue to benefit workshop participants well after they graduate from SoC.”

Another fourth year student Andy Lim Cheng Yee concurred: “The SAP workshop has given me more exposure to the business processes of the real world. The course has focused on best practices, which makes the knowledge applicable anywhere, not only to SAP products.”

Eugene Yap Choon Hoe, who has just received his Bachelor’s degree, views the benefit of the SAP workshop in terms of additional job choices: “The workshop was definitely enriching… It is valuable to students who wish to add tangible market skills to their resume and expand their job options.”

Another newly minted SoC graduate Ted Goh Kheng Kok sees more product-specific benefits from the workshop: “The SAP BPERP course has provided me with a good introduction in the integrated business processes in SAP ERP.” Ted also appreciates the human angle of his experience at the workshop: “The instructors were very helpful throughout the course, and towards certification. I sincerely thank them for making my course a pleasant experience.”

The formality in Ted’s words of appreciation belies the fact that trainers and trainees in the programme have more in common than the training being given and received. The two workshop trainers of the 10 trainees from SoC are in fact also part of the SoC community: Teh Hsin Yee and Jackie Chua Chuen Loy are both on the School’s technical staff. Under the University Alliance Programme, each IHL sends two staff to be trained at SAP, and they then return to train students at their respective IHLs. Hsin Yee and Jackie attended a 10-day trainers’ training in May 2007. It was on their feedback about the high intensity of the programme, that the course for students, originally planned for 10 days, was extended to 15.

The 10 students in SoC’s pioneer batch of SAP BPERP training are: Chan Wai Xin, Ben Choi Chun Fung, Ted Goh Kheng Kok, Lau Wei Chong, Andy Lim Cheng Yee, Perry Tan Chin Hui, Yang Jun, Eugene Yap Choon Hoe, Htun Ye Min and Yu Ningjing.

The SAP BPERP workshop is one of several co-curricular courses that SoC organises to equip students with product-specific knowledge that is in demand in industry. The School is planning more in the coming months.

Students interested in the SAP BPERP workshop may contact the workshop co-ordinator at comlmf@nus.edu.sg