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Eager to follow in the footsteps of a college student who interned abroad in Ireland? We recently caught up with AIFS Abroad participant Autumn from the University of North Dakota, who did a summer internship program in Galway.
Discover how Autumn’s summer internship in Ireland with AIFS Abroad helped inspire a new career path.
Choosing a Program Destination & Term
It can be difficult to choose where to intern abroad—after all, AIFS Abroad offers so many amazing program destinations around the world. As someone who wanted to intern abroad in a small city, Galway was an ideal choice for Autumn:
“I chose Galway because I am from North Dakota. I’m not used to big cities, and I wanted a smaller city for my program. Galway was perfect. I would recommend this program to a student who prefers a smaller, community feel.”
AIFS Abroad offers many programs throughout the year, including full semester and short-term programs. Hear why Autumn decided to intern abroad in Galway during the summer:
“I chose the summer because I did not want to miss out on any opportunities during [the] semester… Summer also provided me with many festivals, markets, and other outdoor activities. The tourism level was higher, but I did not mind it.”
Internship Experience
While each experience is unique, AIFS Abroad guarantees you a placement in one of your approved career fields upon acceptance regardless of your internship program location. This ensures you receive relevant professional experience that can help launch your career. Hear Autumn describe her role as a communications intern in Galway, where she focused on social media management for a local company offering boat tours:
“I took over one of [my host company’s] Instagram accounts. They had me gather social media content of the different tours they offered as well as gathering content of the city… They let me have total creative freedom of their social media… I would get to the office around 9 or 10 am and work the full eight hours. Every day was a bit different. Some days I was at the office for the whole day, working on different projects. [Other] days I was going on tours [or] walking around the city and gathering content.”
Professional Development
From strengthening soft skills to gaining hands-on experience in your field, interning abroad is an incredible opportunity for professional growth. Below, Autumn lists the three main skills she learned during her internship abroad in Galway:
“Learning how to gather content is the biggest skill I learned. I had some experiences gathering content before, but I really strengthened this skill during my internship. The second was how to work independently. I was in charge of getting my work done without having my boss always there to see what I worked on. I had to stay on task and get my work completed. The third skill I learned was how to design content and create different posts.”
Choosing a Career Path
Interning abroad is an excellent way for college students and recent graduates to explore potential career paths before jumping headfirst into a full-time position. Autumn’s internship in Galway helped her realize that she should take her professional future in a new direction:
“My experience abroad was my pathway to finding a new career path. When I first started college, I originally planned on working in the sports industry. However, just before I went abroad, I began to discover this wasn’t the career I wanted. [But] I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do. I thought maybe social media could be a career for me. After my internship, I discovered I didn’t [want] social media [to become] my whole career. When I returned home… I [joined] a student organization at my school called Global Ambassadors. Here I was able to tell my story about going abroad and help other students prepare for their journey. Through this organization, I discovered a passion for study abroad advising and found my future career.”
Housing
All AIFS Abroad programs include housing. Hear Autumn describe her experience living in a student residence in Galway with other AIFS Abroad interns:
“I had a bedroom and bathroom to myself. I shared a kitchen and living area with two other interns. I liked having my own bedroom and bathroom. Sharing a kitchen wasn’t too difficult. Everyone cleaned up after themselves and we had no issues.”
Making Friends Abroad
Interning abroad with AIFS Abroad is a great way to make friends (and professional connections!) abroad. Each of our programs includes a welcome orientation, as well as group activities and excursions that provide ample opportunities to bond with other interns. Below, Autumn describes her experience making friends in Galway:
“I built some amazing friendships through my internship… I’m usually a very shy person, so meeting new people can be difficult for me… I forced myself [to interact with the other interns] and I’m so thankful I did. It was a little difficult and awkward at first, but after the first week we really bonded. I did lots of traveling and exploring with the other interns and they really helped make the experience as amazing as it was.”
Activities & Excursions
AIFS Abroad’s inclusive activities and excursions help you learn more about the history and culture of your program destination. As Autumn explains, enjoying these trips and activities with the other interns in her program made these moments even more special:
“I attended all the excursions provided by AIFS. We visited an Irish pub, went Irish dancing, saw Connemara [National Park], visited the Aran Islands, watched professional Irish dancers, and went on a beautiful river cruise. What made them memorable were the activities I got to do and the people I was doing them with. Irish dancing is hard, but I had so much fun dancing with the other interns. I got to hold a little lamb and see a beautiful waterfall in Connemara. We toured Inishmore, one of the Aran Islands, and saw beautiful sights. We got to see professional Irish dancers and hear traditional Irish music. For our final event, we went on a beautiful river cruise to celebrate our amazing program. The beautiful sights, fun activities, and amazing people made these events so memorable.”
Once you’re abroad, you’re welcome to travel as much as you like during the weekends or holidays. During her summer internship abroad in Ireland, Autumn had easy access to the nearby United Kingdom:
“I went to Northern Ireland for a weekend trip with some of the other interns. I really enjoyed traveling with them and seeing a different part of Ireland. I also went to London and Edinburgh for a week, since my bosses were out of town and gave me the week off. I traveled there by myself, which was a really fun experience.”
Why AIFS Abroad?
Two huge advantages of choosing AIFS Abroad are how we make the process easy by taking care of key arrangements (such as finding a suitable internship and coordinating your housing) and provide reliable on-site support:
“I liked the fact that AIFS set up interviews and provided housing. AIFS took a lot of stress off my shoulders… Before my program, it was super helpful to have someone… get an internship [for me]… During my program, it was [also] helpful to have a [Program Director] … someone to ask questions and assist me with anything I needed.”
Are you a college student or recent graduate who’s ready to take the leap and intern abroad with AIFS Abroad like Autumn did in Galway? We’d love to help you start your journey!
Here at AIFS Abroad, we know a thing or two about helping college students and recent graduates intern abroad. Our programs come with many valuable inclusions that are designed to enrich your experience abroad and ease the transition in your host city. From coordinating your housing to providing things like integrated career readiness, comprehensive insurance, 24/7 emergency support, on-site staff, and cultural and social activities and excursions, you’ll take comfort in knowing you’ll have support throughout your entire experience abroad.
