Internships abroad: A valuable experience

Make sure you find out everything about the country, the language, the culture and customs

Pascalle Manderveld Internship Coordinator Oriental Languages and Communication

Internships abroad

Doing an internship abroad is a unique way to learn a new language or culture. So it’s no surprise that more and more students are choosing to do this. However, the coronavirus pandemic means you can’t assume you can arrange such an internship. So, how do you approach this? And what kinds of things do you need to take into account? Pascalle Manderveld, coordinator at the Oriental Languages and Communications (OTC), study programme, ensures you are completely up-to-date.

Text: Students from the Journalism and Commercial Writing minor at Zuyd University of Applied Sciences Every year Pascalle guides students in their search for their graduation internship at companies both at home and abroad. This search actually starts from the third academic year. During this internship students put the knowledge and experience gained during their study into practice.

Go for an international experience

During the orientation phase, students decide for themselves whether they want to stay in the Netherlands, or go abroad. But where to exactly? Pascalle responded: ‘Where you can and are permitted to do your internship depends on the study programme requirements. OTC is an internationally-oriented communications programme with the focus on Chinese, Japanese or Arabic language and culture. But that doesn’t mean that you can only gain international experience by doing an internship abroad. There are so many opportunities. For instance, a number of students following a language specialism in Chinese have chosen to do an internship at a large logistics company in Venlo. They did, however, go on a business trip to China.’

Nevertheless, Pascalle does recommend choosing an internship abroad if you get the chance. ‘Such an international internship really offers added value and can help you stand out from the rest, both on your CV and on the labour market.

Internships during a pandemic

The pandemic and the constant changes in legislation and regulations, mean that internship arrangements are different from usual. ‘Before the coronavirus crisis, our students mostly did internships in Japan, China, Dubai, Jordan, or Egypt, for instance. Currently the number of students that can and want to go abroad varies per study programme and school. If you’re still looking for an international internship, it’s no longer a certainty that you can actually go abroad for it. ‘Fortunately however, the number of opportunities is increasing, including hybrid. Many students are working partly at home and partly at the internship provider’s location. Unfortunately, as the coronavirus regulations keep changing students also need to be really flexible.’

Important to know

If you want to do your internship abroad, in addition to the current pandemic restrictions, you’ll need to take certain things into account. Pascalle stated: ‘Read up, make sure you find out everything about the country, the language, the culture, and customs. Each country has its own customs, norms, and values. You’re plunged into a culture that’s not your own so you need to be well-prepared for this. Also consider your financial situation because you can’t always rely on getting an internship allowance. Are any scholarships available? Do you need a visa? Is it achievable? Do they have a student community? What can you arrange in terms of accommodation?’