About
JC YUP
What is JC YUP
A pioneering five-year initiative supporting youth through three critical developmental interventions.
Early
Secondary
Intervention
01
YLA
Youth-Led Accomplishment
Creates proud moments through agency and identity formation, building confidence and self-discovery.
Upper Secondary
Intervention
02
SLASH
Meaningful Workplace Planning
Helps students understand their options
and plan for meaningful careers through
exposure to diverse pathways.
Progress after DSE
Intervention
03
PT
Professional Traineeship
Offers eye-opening diverse pathways,
building up resilience to progress.
Supported by industry partners including
HKIHRM.
PT
Intervention 03
Professional Traineeship
What is Professional Traineeship?
The PT programme is a structured 2-year traineeship with work study mode including qualifications attainment, to prepare youth for future development and mobility whilst injecting right fit entry level talent into high-growth sectors with strong manpower needs, creating a win-win-win solution for society, employers and youth.
Programme Highlights of PT
Trainees gain practical work experience while receiving workplace skills training, with ongoing coaching support from career consultants and fellow trainees. They will also pursue recognised qualifications and micro-credentials while working, laying a strong foundation for their long-term career trajectory.
Broadening access
Expands DSE graduates' access to diverse career pathways beyond conventional academic routes.
Structured traineeship
Work-study mode with qualification
attainment, preparing youth for future development.
Career readiness
Enhances employability, equipping youth
with real-world skills and resilience.
High-growth sectors
Connects entry-level talent to
industries with strong manpower needs.
A Win-Win-Win Solution
Society
Stronger workforce
and social mobility
Employers
Loyal talent pipelines
and reduced hiring costs
Youth
Meaningful career
pathways and growth
Who Can Join
JC YUP PT
For employers, JC YUP is a new solution to an old challenge — build a reliable, loyal talent pipeline while making a tangible social impact.
The JC YUP Professional Traineeship is open to most private sector employers in Hong Kong. If you can offer a genuine entry-level role with meaningful on-the-job learning, you qualify regardless of company size.
Priority High-Growth Sectors
01
Creative
e.g.
Digital marketing assistant
Graphic design trainee
Content creator
Video editing assistant
02
Healthcare
e.g.
Clinic assistant
Patient services trainee
Rehabilitation support
Medical records clerk
03
Technology
e.g.
Junior technical support
Helpdesk assistant
Software testing trainee
IT operations assistant
04
Sports Marketing &
Event Management
e.g.
Event operations trainee
Sports programme assistant
Venue support
Logistics coordinator
Not in these four sectors?
You may still be eligible — roles are reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
Speak with your HKIHRM Relationship Manager, who will assess whether your role offers sufficient structured learning and supports the trainee's pathway to a recognised qualification.
What You Need to Provide
Hold a valid Hong Kong business registration
​
Offer a paid traineeship at market rate for entry-level roles
Allow the trainee to attend study days
(typically 1 day per week)
Provide a safe working environment
​
Assign a dedicated supervisor or mentor to the trainee
Not use a JC YUP trainee to replace an existing employee
Who Are the Trainees
Meet the young talent JC YUP brings to your workplace — motivated, pre-screened, and ready to contribute.
DSE Graduates
(Aged 18–29)
Young people who have completed the DSE curriculum. They are motivated, eager to work, and academically underprivileged — but screened for strong values and attitudes using the CV360® and VASK framework.
Work-Study Arrangement
Paid Employment
Trainees are paid employees covered by the Employment Ordinance and Youth Employment and Training Programme (YETP) framework. The on-the-job training allowance is 50% of the trainee's monthly salary during training, capped at HK$5,000 per trainee per month.
Study Days
Trainees attend study days (typically 1 day per week) for fully funded classoom training at partner universities.
6–12 Month Traineeship
Trainees to be engaged in on-the-job training as paid employees for 6 to 12 months (depending on the nature of work, type of industry and training content).
What Training Do Trainees Receive?
Pre-Employment Bootcamp
Builds essential workplace attitudes, communication, and interpersonal skills before the trainee starts.
On-the-Job Training
Trainees will receive on-the-job training provided by employers to build real-world experience.
Role-Specific Technical Skills
Tailored to the four focus sectors:
Creative, Healthcare, Technology, and Sports Marketing & Event Management.
QF Level 3/4 Qualification
Fully funded recognised qualification delivered by The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong, Saint Francis University and the Caritas Institute of Community Education.
What You Can Expect as an Employer
Precise Talent Matching
Receive support in using strength-based job matching tool VASK (Values, Attitudes, Skills, Knowledge) and CV360® to identify high-potential entry-level talent, going beyond academic grades to uncover youths' unique strengths and build a sustainable talent pipeline
Comprehensive Development Support
End-to-end support is provided throughout the process, from employer onboarding and submitting on-the-job training vacancy applications to the Youth Employment and Training Programme (YETP) Office, to applying on-the-job training allowance, along with ongoing guidance in talent nurturing
Structured Capacity Building
Receive professional training to strengthen the team's capabilities in managing internships and mentoring young talent, helping to build a more supportive workplace environment and enhance retention
Cross-organization Collaboration
Join the Employer Advocate Network to share best practices among employers
Motivated & Committed Trainees
Trainees value the opportunity — they are not graduates who will leave at the first chance. They are invested in learning and growing with your
company.
Trainees who are Ready to Contribute
With pre-employment bootcamp and ongoing support, trainees arrive with the right attitude and basic skills — so you can focus on developing their role-specific capabilities.
CV360 / VASK:
A Better Way To Assess Talent
Most employers screen candidates based on academic qualifications – DSE scores, degrees, and certificates. But for entry-level roles, grades alone do not predict success. Attitude, values, and soft skills often matter more.
​
JC YUP! uses a different approach – CV360 and the VASK framework.
What is VASK?
Unlike traditional CVs that focus almost exclusively on Knowledge (and sometimes Skills), VASK places equal weight on Values and Attitudes – which research shows are the strongest predictors of workplace success, especially for entry-level roles.
​
​​VASK serves as the programme’s core talent identification and matching framework, representing Values, Attitudes, Skills, and Knowledge. It shifts away from traditional hiring practices that prioritise academic qualifications, enabling employers to assess young people’s potential from multiple dimensions for more effective talent matching. By using VASK to redefine job descriptions, employers can focus on candidates who demonstrate the right values and a growth mindset, resulting in more precise talent-to-role alignment.
V
Values
Does the trainee show respect, integrity, and a strong work ethic?
A
Attitudes
Is the trainee punctual, resilient, coachable, and willing to learn?
S
Skills
Does the trainee have basic communication, teamwork, and problem-solving abilities?
K
Knowledge
What technical or industry knowledge does the trainee already have?
What is CV360?
CV360® is a comprehensive, holistic profiling tool that goes beyond the standard CV format. It gives an all-round view of personal capabilities, showcasing young people’s VASK developed through a wide range of life, learning, paid and unpaid experiences. Instead of focusing only on academic qualifications, CV360® highlights the unique strengths and empowers youth who are still exploring their pathways to better understand and express themselves, while giving employers a more comprehensive view for better-informed and more meaningful talent matching.
​
CV360® was developed with the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority (HKEAA) and is officially endorsed for use within the JC YUP programme. Instead of just listing academic background and examination results, a CV360® includes:
-
Values and Attitudes demonstrated, for example: volunteering experience, family caregiving responsibilities, and persistence shown through part-time work
-
Skills developed, for example: customer service, teamwork, and basic digital literacy
-
Knowledge acquired, for example: industry-relevant courses completed and foundational understanding of a specific field
-
Personal story: who the candidate is, and the experiences that shaped them
Why This Matters for Employers
With JC YUP, you do not just get a CV. You get a complete picture of the trainee: their values, their attitude, their potential. That is a far more reliable predictor of success than any examination results.
Traditional CV
Focuses on academic grades
Tells you what the candidate studied
Hard to predict workplace success
Screens out motivated candidates with poor grades
