As part of its efforts to attract top international talent, Shanghai's Putuo district launched an innovative housing policy in April last year that offers significant support to outstanding domestic and international professionals. A key feature of this policy is the "settle before employment" initiative, which allows individuals to secure accommodation prior to starting their jobs.

Wang Yifan, a senior student at the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, is one of the beneficiaries of this policy. Late last year, she received an internship opportunity in a company in Putuo, but was concerned about accommodation. She was relieved to find that Putuo offers up to three months of free accommodation in talent apartments to interns from top global universities.

Wang was housed in a talent apartment hotel in Putuo, sharing a room with another intern, with amenities including separate wet and dry areas, daily cleaning and breakfast provided free of charge.

"This internship has made me love Shanghai," she said with a smile. "I've already recommended it to many juniors to encourage them to come to Shanghai."

The new policy targets four main groups: global top-tier and national high-level innovation and entrepreneurship talent; graduates with master's degrees or higher from the world's top 100 universities and China's "double first-class" universities; interns from globally recognized universities; and talent from cities along the Shanghai-Nanjing Industrial Innovation Belt needing short-term accommodation. Putuo has initially allocated 500 housing units with tiered rent reductions or exemptions for these groups.

For top global and national talent, Putuo offers up to six months of full rental subsidies. Since the policy's implementation, nearly 300 individuals have applied for the outstanding graduates’ accommodation policy, with over 60 percent of them meeting the criteria. Many beneficiaries have chosen to pursue careers in Shanghai, particularly in Putuo.

Source: Official WeChat account of the Shanghai Putuo Media Center (ID: "shputuo")