Industrial Collaborations

Industrial Collaborations

We actively engage the industry to keep our curriculum relevant and aligned with industry demands. By bridging academia and the industry, our partnerships enhance our students’ learning and equip them with the vital skills needed to thrive in the rapidly evolving food industry.

Collaborate With Our Students

Undergraduate

Postgraduate

Food Innovation Project

Work with a team of Year 4 students to develop a marketable food product

Professional Placement

Offer a 10 to 22 week internship to our undergraduate students

Honours Project

Work with our Honours students on a 2 semester long research project

UROPS in Science

Work with our Year 2 or 3 students to complete a research project over one or two semesters

Postgraduate Project

Collaborate on a research project with our postgraduate students

Undergraduate

Food Innovation Project

FST4104 Food Product Innovation is an essential course for Year 4 undergraduates, where they will work with industry partners to create innovative, market-ready food products. Throughout the course, students will experience the comprehensive product development process which includes brainstorming of concepts and ideas, conducting market research, prototype development and testing, packaging, and shelf-life studies. By working closely with the partner company, our students gain a deeper understanding of the food industry while our industry partners gain fresh ideas from our young talents.

Students in the project group will follow the guidelines given to them to develop a new product for the company. This will normally cover to some extend the concept of the new product, kitchen processing trials, sensory evaluation, shelf-life study and packaging of the food product. While a full trial cannot be conducted due to time limitations, experimental methods and design will be proposed by the group in the form of a report to the company.

The project would be conducted in the second semester of the academic year (January to April) and must be completed within this period. Any aspect that cannot be covered during this period due to the time and resource limitations can be extended to another project under another research programme such as UROPS, honours or graduate project, depending on the level of difficulty. A new agreement will be drawn for the new project.

The company shall provide all related information pertinent to the project, supply all raw materials and consumables (i.e. items that will be used for the project) if required for the development of the product, and provide a petty cash of $500 to the students. Students will also be expected to keep track of the finances of the project and return all unused amount. In some cases, top up may be required depending on the nature of the project.

An administration and maintenance fee of S$1,500 (subjected to prevailing 9% GST) shall be paid by the company. The payment should be made by cheque and payable to “National University of Singapore”.

FST is responsible for expertise and space pertinent to the project. FST will source for the equipment that is required for this project. However, if the equipment required is not available, the company will have to make a decision whether or not to continue the project in this direction or supply the equipment required. A teaching staff member and a teaching assistant will be assigned to supervise the students.

Registration of Interest and Enquiries

Please indicate your interest for subsequent runs for the Food Innovation Project in Jan 2025 (AY24/25). We are only able to work with limited number of companies each academic year. Companies or projects will be selected based on experiential learning it can provide to the students and selected companies will be notified 1 month before the start of the semester.

For enquiries on the Food Innovation Project, please contact Ms Lee Chooi Lan at chooilan@nus.edu.sg.

Indicate Your Interest
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Undergraduate

Professional Placement

As part of the curriculum, FST students are given the opportunity to experience life working as a food scientist in a variety of different settings depending on their interest while serving the manpower needs of the food sector in Singapore and the region. Students may also be given the opportunity to experience their internship outside of Singapore including Australia, Switzerland, China, New Zealand, Canada, the Netherlands, United Kingdom, USA, etc.

FST internship programmes are offered to students who are admitted into the B.Sc. (Honours) degree programme, majoring in Food Science and Technology. Students may embark on

· Final Year Internship of at least 22 weeks during the semester; and/or

· FST Professional Placement of at least 10 weeks during the summer vacation (Special Term)

Internship Timeline

FST Professional Placement Final Year Internship
Internship Period Special Term
May to July (At least 10 weeks)		 Semester 1
Duration At least 10 weeks At least 22 weeks
Deadline to secure internship position By Friday of Week 12 of Semester 2 At least 1 week before the start date of the internship

FST internship programmes are designed to:

· Provide students with practical working experience to complement course activity

· Enable students to develop interpersonal skills, individual maturity and confidence in addition to their technical competence

· Enable employers to identify students for formal employment in future

· Bridge the gap between the academic and industrial sectors, and to better equip students with the necessary skills for future workplace employment

· Provide structured supervision for the students during the attachment

· Plan a training program that gives the student a realistic view of the working life

· Develop skills through on-the-job training, and keep a proper training record

· Pay the students the minimum recommended allowance

· Develop presentation and communication skills

· Introduce the students to teamwork and interdependent learning

· Create awareness of the importance of workplace safety, good manufacturing practices and responsible care in the organisation

All full-time matriculated students of NUS subscribe to a compulsory Insurance Scheme as part of the student’s miscellaneous fees.

Employers are recommended to cover the students under your organisation’s insurance schemes such as medical or workmen’s compensation (WICA), especially if they are required to work in high risk environments (i.e. laboratories, shipyards, heavy industry environments with machinery/equipment).

NSmen who are called up for In-camp Training (ICT) during their reservist periods will not be granted deferment on the grounds of academic commitments. Students are to submit the ICT notice to the company as soon as they receive the notice issued by MINDEF. The Department does not require students to make up for the time away at ICT.

  • The academic staff member who is appointed as the Liaison Officer will assist the company to develop or formulate a training programme as well as look after and monitor the progress of the student throughout the attachment
  • Companies intending to send the students overseas during the attachement, i.e. if part of the training is to be conducted overseas, should inform the Liaison Officer(s)
  • Our students are not allowed to take leave without compelling reasons and must have prior approval from both the employer and NUS FST before applying leave
  • Companies are to review the student’s final reports for any confidential information before release

Supervisors in the company should:

  • Guide, advice, discuss and review with the students their accomplishments and progress
  • Document and sign the student’s log sheet (only applicable for FST Professional Placement)
  • Review the student’s report for any confidential information
  • Meet with the Liaison Officer(s) from the department to formulate a suitable training programme before the Professional Placement Programme commences
  • Perform an evaluation of the students’ work
  • Provide a meaningful work experience

Our Past Collaborators

Enquiries

For companies who would like to offer internship to our students, please contact Ms Lee Si Min at simin.nus.edu.sg.

Contact Us

Undergraduate

Honours Project

FST4288 Honours Project in Food Science & Technology is a 2-semester research course taken by Honours students as part of the requirements for the Specialisation in Food Science and Technology Research and Innovation. Similar to the UROPS project, the Honours project allows the student to engage actively in research, discussions, intellectual communications and other creative activities but at higher level. The level of difficulty of an Honours project is normally much higher than that of a UROPS project.

An Honours project can also be tied to an industrial project. In such instances, the participating company with an agreement with a faculty will state the aim and objectives of the project. The project must be co-supervised by a faculty member and a member from the company. The participating company will have to pay an administration fee of S$10,000 subject to prevailing GST, and provide most of the consumables pertaining to the project agreed between the principal investigator and the company. Publications result from such collaborations will be co-authored by all who are involved. 

Our Past Collaborators

Enquiries

External parties interested in collaborating with NUS on such a project should speak to any faculty members in FST to initialise the project. A title and abstract must be submitted through the faculty member by end of June for the project to begin in August in the same calendar year and ends approximately in March/April in the next calendar year. 

Our Faculty Members

Undergraduate

UROPS in Science

The Undergraduate Research Opportunities Programme in Science (UROPS) offers undergraduate students a chance to engage in independent research before their Honours year. The programme, which can be completed in one or two semesters, allows students to collaborate with the Faculty staff, gaining hands-on experience and insight into the research process.

UROPS students are given the opportunity to actively engage in research and scientific activities, giving them additional laboratory experience and enhancing their classroom learning. UROPS helps students deepen their understanding of current scientific developments, improve their scientific communication and presentation skills, foster creative thinking, and build connections with established scientists and their research teams.

UROPS can be read at either Level-2000 or Level-3000

  • Level-2000: Students must have completed at least one semester of study at point of application and attained a GPA of 3.00 or higher
  • Level-3000: Students must have completed at least three semesters of study at point of application and attained a GPA of 3.00 or higher

Students can also choose to undertake either a 4 Units or 8 Units UROPS

  • Project duration: One semester (4 Units)
  • Project duration: Two semesters (8 Units)

We are open to collaborating with industry partners to establish a UROPS project. The partner company must specify the aims and objectives of the project, which will then be co-supervised by a Faculty Member and a company representative. The partner company is also required to pay an administration fee of $1,500 (subject to prevailing GST) and provide the majority of the consumables needed for the research, as agreed upon between the principal investigator and the company.

KWOK Jing Lin demonstrates some of the research work she conducted as part of the UROPS she took in Year 2 of her undergraduate studies (AY2022/23).

More information regarding registration and project timeline can be found via the link below.

More On UROPS

Postgraduate

Postgraduate Project

In the last decade, the Department of Food Science & Technology at NUS has built up laboratories which constitute a fertile ground for collaborative work in fundamental and applied aspect of food related ventures with the local and international companies. The FST staff draws from their expertise in academic research and industrial collaboration to increasingly engage and develop strong ties with the food industry sector in the region. The following sets out some of the work currently being undertaken at NUS which has application in the food sector and also highlights the expertise that is available to assist companies with their R&D needs.

  • Advanced process control: multivariable control, robust control, non-linear model-based control, generic model control, passivity systems, L2 gain, time-delay compensation, constraint handling
  • Antioxidation or oxidation and its role in Yin and Yang balance in traditional Chinese medicine, and in food and cosmetic emulsion systems
  • Coordination chemistry and catalysis
  • Development of analytical techniques for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of important chemical compounds
  • Fundamental and applied aspects of polysaccharide and protein structure in relation to functionality from low to high-solid materials in food and pharmaceuticals
  • Modelling and optimisation: neural network modelling, hybrid neural modelling, CFD modelling, mechanistic modelling, RSM, application of fractals to food property characterisation, multi-objective optimisation
  • Modelling of chemical reactions especially those involving antioxidant and Maillard reaction
  • Research and development of novel food products based on the formulation of new textures and their sensory evaluation
  • Shelf life analysis of foods and improvement of shelf life
  • Adipocytes and hepatocytes cellular model for evaluation of potential alteration of adipocytokines, and cellular energy related to diabetes, obesity and cholesterol metabolism
  • Dietary components that are cytotoxic and induce apoptosis or necrosis

Enquiries

External parties interested in collaborating on a Postgraduate project can approach our Faculty Members for discussion.

Our Faculty Members
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