Why go abroad to do an internship?

Experiencing a foreign culture and having to organise oneself in a foreign country are very good ways to broaden your horizon. When applying for a job it is often a great benefit to have work experience in another country.

It goes without saying that the majority of personnel departments expect applicants to have a good working knowledge of English. Having a good knowledge of a second foreign language (for example Spanish) makes you stand out against competitors and in many cases can open the door for an interview.

Through talks with various personnel departments we were able to ascertain that having work experience abroad can be more important than good university grades.

The manager of a large German automobile company informed us that applicants with a few months work experience abroad and lower university grades have a better chance than a university graduate with higher grades and no experience in working abroad.

The manager of a leading textile retailer advised us that they would not employ any applicant that didn’t have experience in working in another country. The content of the internship was secondary in importance to the soft skills gained through working abroad. Such applicants can also be involved in plans for international expansion.