Internships
International Internships
International internships certainly add polish to your resume, but be
prepared to do a lot of planning and research to obtain such an internship.
Lining up an international internship requires considerable strategic and
long-range planning. You should give yourself at least five months to research
internships, work out internship details, get your papers in order, arrange your
finances, and book a flight. Add to this a safety margin for bureaucratic
goof-ups, and you may quickly get closer to six months as a realistic time-line.
There are various options available to you for locating international
internships. Both the Study Abroad Office and the Career Development Office
offer information and resources that may be helpful in your search. If you would
like to learn more about international opportunities, begin by picking up a free
copy of the International Internships & Other Opportunities Abroad Resource
Guide available in the CDO.
The following websites, which are also included in the resource guide, may be
a helpful starting ground:
CampusNet Study Abroad
Contains information on Semester at Sea, Semester in Spain, Study in
Australia, and other international opportunities.
Escape Artist
Information on living, working, investing, and traveling abroad, with links
to magazines featuring articles about the overseas experience. Country
destination profiles and international reference pages are also available.
International Study and
Travel Center
Information on working abroad as well as an on-line database for researching
hundreds of work abroad websites.
Living Abroad
Offers help with relocation, international school listings, 81 country
profiles, and valuable links for international business travelers and expats in
general.
Studyabroad.com
Study abroad listings and worldwide experiential learning programs including
internships, volunteer work, and au pair work.
Teaching Internships
A short description of an internship program for teaching in overseas,
American schools, including contact information.
UCI International
Opportunities Program
A list of internship opportunities abroad and links to several other
abroad-program-related sites.
Volunteer Work and Internships
Provides information on internships and volunteer work in Africa.
Note: None of these sites charge fees for the use of their search
engines or databases. Please see our disclaimer at the bottom of the
CDOnline Resources page with regard to web links.
A Final Word About International Experiences...
Whether you decide on an internship, volunteer opportunity, or simply a paid
job that will allow you to spend time in your country of choice, keep in mind
that international experiences are very rewarding, yet challenging adventures.
When you go abroad to work or volunteer, you will encounter not only your work
experience but also an entirely new and different culture. This means people may
be-and most likely will be-living in very different ways from that to which you
are accustomed. Everything from food to housing arrangements to attitudes
regarding work, time, and inter-personal relations will be different. It is
important to consider these differences and how you will deal with them in the
course of researching and planning your international internship. Learning
something about the culture in which you will be spending time and keeping an
open mind will make your experience that much more successful.
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