Looking to Work in Spain? Better Bring a Watch.

While schedules for internships can differ, it may take a while to acclimate to the typical Spanish work day. With siesta’s still popular but not enjoyed across the board, Spanish businesses are beginning to flex toward a more “American” or “European” schedule. Still, it isn’t odd to see Spaniards working from 9 am to 1:30pm, taking a two or three hour siesta, and then it's back to the grind until 8 or 9 at night.

The most interesting schedule of business occurs with banks and government offices during the summertime. If you need to make a transaction at 3pm don’t be surprised if you find the door locked and the lights off. Many of these offices will set schedules between 9am and 2pm and may not be open in the afternoons, especially in August.

This leaves a lot of time for you to explore the cities before dinner – at 11pm!!!

~ Posted by Marc

Things to Keep in Mind as you Prepare to Start your International Internship

So you’re getting ready to start an international internship, congratulations! You’ve made the decision to make your resume stand out from the crowd by gaining international experience. Maybe you’ve had an internship at home, maybe this is your first internship, either way, as with any new experience, you’ve probably got some questions running around your head. “How should I act?”, “How should I dress?” and other such questions.

Here are a few tips to get you started:

1. Always dress professionally:
* Clothing should be clean, neat, modest, and of good quality. Never wear jeans, sneakers, or dirty/wrinkled clothes to your internship.
* a suit and tie may not be necessary, but dress slacks (for men and women) and a button up shirt/blouse, or skirt/dress and nice shoes (closed toe) are good things to keep in mind while packing
* Good rule of thumb: if you’d wear it to church or to a nice dinner with your 85 year old grandmother it’s probably ok, if you’d wear it to a nightclub, the beach, or the gym, it’s probably not.

2. Make sure you arrive to your internship on time and stay until your work-day is over
* you are there to gain valuable work experience, this includes building good work ethic
* the more seriously you take this internship, the more seriously your supervisor will take you, thus the better chance you have of being given more responsibility

3. Be positive and pro-active
* Have a positive out look and work hard at the tasks given to you
* If you finish the task given to you, ask for another or create one for your self

4. Network!
* Take advantage of the opportunity to make international contacts, they make great references for future job applications and are a wealth of knowledge in your career field – you can learn more from a conversation with someone then you can from your text books
* Take an interest in the company you work for and the people you work with, the more interest you show the more willing people will be to show you things and give you special projects/more responsibility

Most importantly, have fun and take advantage of every opportunity presented to you. This is a once in a lifetime chance and the more you put into it the more you will get out of it.

Post By: kristen@globalexperiences.com

How A "Study Abroad" Bill Becomes Law

Remember that cartoon “How A Bill Becomes Law” from your junior high civics class? Me neither, but that’s ok. The point was that your voice matters.

Did you know that only one percent of all U.S. undergraduates study abroad each year? That amounts to just over 200,000 students a year. Not that impressive when you consider the breadth of international knowledge required in today's global society.

That’s why Global Experiences and other members of NAFSA, the nation's largest association for international educators, recently spent a day on Capitol Hill meeting with Members of Congress and Senators to talk about study abroad.

You can help too! The Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act will be voted on in the next few weeks in the House of Representatives and the Senate. An extremely important bill for anyone interested in study abroad, national security, language learning or international business, the legislation provides that, within 10 years of enactment:

• Not less than one million U.S. undergraduate students will study abroad annually; and


• The demographics of study abroad participation will reflect the demographics of the U.S. undergraduate population; and


• An increasing portion of study abroad will take place in nontraditional study abroad destinations and especially in the developing countries.

Please help us to promote study abroad by writing your Members of Congress and Senators regarding the Simon Study Abroad Act (H.R. 1469 in the House of Representatives and S. 991 in the Senate)!

Click here to learn more about these bills and to submit an online letter of support to your Representatives.

- posted by Mike

Global Experiences provides customized international internships, teaching English abroad certification courses, fashion experiences, high school service learning programs and other unique international experiences.

Advice: Working hard or hardly working?

It doesn't matter what your reasons are for going abroad - an international internship, foreign language training, a vacation, or a crop circle convention in Wiltshire County, England - you're going to have certain expectations going into it.

For those of you interested in interning abroad, my best advice is to expect to work hard. International Internships are designed to give you the career exposure you need to differentiate yourself in the global marketplace. You will enjoy your experience, and there's no question that cities like Rome, Florence, Sydney, Melbourne, Paris and London are an absolute blast, but in order to get the most out of your time abroad, you will have to put in some hard work.

Of course since you'll be interning in a field that you love it won't always feel like work, but you need to remember that just like everyone who starts a new job, you'll have to cover the basics first. Take this time to learn how the company works and how they fit into the marketplace. Eventually, as you prove yourself to your bosses, you will be able to tackle bigger tasks and integrate yourself better into the company.

Posted by ~ Marc

Bring it on home...

You're guaranteed to return home with new skills, new friends, and memories following your time abroad. If your like me, you may also find yourself with a trinket or twelve.

You should know the rules ahead of time if you’re planning on returning to the US with an artifact or expensive souvenirs. For instance, some objects are banned from exiting some countries or may be banned from entering others. To increase your frustrations, these rules can even differ between states (just try shipping wine into Pennsylvania!).

For details on bringing souvenirs and artifacts home with you, or even shipping them, visit www.cbp.gov. Happy purchasing!

~ Posted by Marc

Experience the Local Culture

My, my, last week was a busy week: Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras, Carnival, Ash Wednesday, and the Chinese New Year! That many major cultural events in such a short time period reminds me how important it is to take advantage of being truly involved in the local culture when you are overseas. Don’t just be a passive outsider watching everything that goes on around you, roll your sleeves up and get involved!

Whether you are doing an international internship, teaching abroad, or doing an immersion program to learn a foreign language, it is important to take advantage of every opportunity to learn about, and become a part of, the new culture you are experiencing.

Go to the festivals, religious services, parades, etc, be a part of them if you can. Eat the foods traditionally served on those days (pancakes and doughnuts on Mardi Gras/Shrove Tuesday anyone?) Take the time to talk with your new friends or host family and find out how they celebrate. Remember, you’re overseas to learn, but more often then not, the lessons that stick with you most are the ones you learn simply from experiencing the culture. Take the time to share with your new friends and family how you would celebrate these holidays at home. This is a great opportunity to share cultures and learn from each other.

Go out, explore, share, and learn! That's why you're abroad! You'll learn, make memories, and have a cultural experience you'll never forget!

Love Is In the Air

In honor of Valentine’s Day, I thought I’d post about one of the rarely mentioned benefits of “going global.” Whether you’re interning abroad, teaching English as a foreign language, or learning a foreign language yourself, you may just find that certain someone that you’ve been searching for.

I did, and I wasn’t even looking. I met my wife in Rome while interning at the U.S. Embassy to the Vatican. Our paths crossed for the first time just next to the fabled Spanish Steps. I was holding a gelato, she was pushing a stroller (she was an au pair, people). And the rest is, well…la storia.

(Semi-Legal Disclaimer: Global Experiences can not assist, guarantee, condone or otherwise predict the amorous outcomes that one may experience while abroad on a Global Experiences program.)

Happy Valentine’s Day!

~Posted by Mike

Global Experiences provides customized international internships, teaching English abroad certification courses, fashion experiences, high school service learning programs and other unique international experiences

Show Me the Money

One of the top reasons many students choose not to study, intern or volunteer abroad is due to the cost. Most people don’t realize that companies, the government, non-profits and even their own schools are just itching to send students abroad to see and experience a world outside of their home university and have worked hard to provide funding avenues to make this possible.

Don’t give up on going abroad due to the cost before really taking a look at the options you have available. To go abroad, I myself paid a fourth of what my home institution would have cost me for the year. Not a bad deal for a priceless experience.

You can find funding everywhere from Private Funding and Scholarships to Government Funding, Institutional and University Funding, or even Public Funding. Not to mention Loans which you could pay back from a job you got using connections made on your internship abroad! Both Print Resources and Online Resources can guide you in your search. So, take heart; there is no lack of resources (or money!) available for going abroad.

Posted by Susannah

Getting the Most Out of Your Internship

If you are thinking of participating in an internship program, Global Experiences is here to answer all of your questions about our program locations, accommodations, requirements, even what time of year is best for certain placements. One question that we’re not asked often, but are ready and happy to answer is: “What can I do to get the most out of the experience?”

We have a few pointers to keep in mind for that first day of work:

Keep your Eyes and Ears Open: From day one be aware of the environment you are in. You will surely notice differences between the business culture you know from home and the one of the country you are now in. Pay attention to how things are run, dress code, etc. Remember, the business culture will be unfamiliar to you at first, and you will need time to adjust. Keep in mind that it is different, not wrong.

Be Positive and Proactive: Have a positive outlook on the placement you have obtained. Make the effort to learn about your company. Be proactive in creating projects for yourself. If you have finished a task that was given to you, find a new one to work on or show interest in other on-going projects.

Be Responsible: Arrive to work on-time, complete tasks in a timely manner, and always put 110% into all of the work you do.

Learn the Language: If you are interning in a country where English is not the first language, you should take the initiative to learn as much of the language as you can prior to starting the internship. This will show your new colleagues that you are interested in immersing yourself in the culture, becoming a part of the team and that you are ready to learn.

Get Excited!: You are in a new country, experiencing a new culture! Remind yourself of this everyday. You may never have the opportunity to experience the country in which you are interning in the same way again.

And always remember to have fun!

Posted by Sarah

Bazaar Bargaining

I’m not sure what it is, but the folds in my wallet seem to stiffen when I'm abroad, and the once stingy contraption remains open for the entirety of my trip, ready at the first hint of anything cool to cough up all its possessions on the spot. To combat the problem of overspending, I've written down a few ideas and tactics that help me keep my wallet relatively full, even if I am finding it open more than usual.

1. Don’t buy anything right away! Even it you “just gotta have,” you can most likely “just gotta have it” somewhere else, and it might be cheaper. Take a walk through the entire market to see prices from a few vendors. Chances are that they sell similar things and have different feelings about offering you a lower price.
2. Once you pick out the item and the place to buy it try to engage the owner in a general conversation. Shopping is more a social event than business transaction. If you can speak the same language ask how long he or she has been selling the goods and other questions about his business or the area. If you are unable to have short conversations then ask the price of a few items. Don’t look overly eager to buy any one thing or they will hike the price up.
3. After you ask the price don’t be afraid to shake it off with a laugh or look of disbelief. Make a face like you just ate a batch of sour grapes. Ask the price of something else before returning your interest in the original item. If you’ve gauged the market price and know what you are willing to pay for the item, it’s perfectly fine to let the vendor know that you think he’s boosted his prices.
   
4. Venders will not show you any respect or offer their best price if you respond to his initial offer with a ridiculously low number. Remember, you’re not trying to rip anyone off, just get a fair price. Keep your lowball offers at about 50%, maybe 25% if you're going to buy a few items.
   
5. Lastly, don’t be afraid to walk out. But be sure not to just rush out in a huff. Take it slowly. Gived the vendor a chance to stop you or at least offer a lower price. Even hesitating just before you walk away to briefly inspect a different item works wonders. Always thank the vendor for his time and remember that you can always return if you realize that whatever the price, you “just gotta have it.”

Posted by: Marc

Florence is the new Cancun

I first fell in love with Florence almost ten years ago as a study abroad student. I arrived ready to immerse myself in the culture, language and most importantly the food. I bonded with several other people (you know those first few intense days when you’re all in the same unfamiliar boat) that shared my identical goals for the trip. But then a funny thing happened when we settled in. Suddenly I was being invited to dinners at student apartments, American bar and Irish pub get togethers, Super Bowl parties, American student night at the clubs, and many of my “friends” who I thought shared my desire to understand Italy settled into an American life abroad. It’s nice to meet people with similar interests and have some homesickness prevention fun with compatriots but anyone coming to Italy should not lose sight of the opportunity to get to know Italian culture.

Florence is a study abroad hub with many university programs and thousands of students arriving every semester. With all of those Americans mulling around it’s easy to find yourself feeling as if you never left campus. Doing an internship forces you, in good way, to really get to know Florence. Imagine if you went to Cancun to work in a hotel for spring break instead of party. In no way is Florence comparable to Cancun but some spring nights at the Irish pub it can certainly seem like it. Through their internships, I’ve seen some of the participants I’ve worked with blossom into Italian fluency, make heartfelt friendships and become as attached to the city as I am. An internship is the key to a Florence that escapes many tourists and students, one that allows you to have a deeper understanding of the city, the culture and the language. I often tell people how I wish I had known about Global Experiences when I was a student, as I would have surely participated, but I’m glad that at least I get to spread the word and help others see the real Florence.

Posted by Danielle

An Internship by Any Other Name...

Ever wondered what the difference was between a practicum and a co-op? How about an apprenticeship, field experience or service learning? And what exactly is an externship anyways?

Don’t be overwhelmed. Generally speaking, all of the above can be categorized under the umbrella term of “internship” and aim to provide an ‘out of classroom’ experience that complements or adds to one’s studies.

To help get you on your way, here is a brief description of the different types of internships out there:

Apprenticeship
No, I’m not talking about the Donald, here. Apprenticeship, probably the earliest form of an internship, is a system developed in the Middle Ages where master craftsmen took in young helpers for cheap labor and trained their charges in return. When I think of apprentices, Michelangelo toiling away as a boy in Ghirlandaio’s workshop in Florence always comes to mind. Apprenticeship is still thriving today, most often in “hands-on” trades such as the culinary arts, carpentry, clothing design, etc.

Practicum
Latin for practice (that's 4 years of Latin for ya). Practica are often undertaken by students in consultation with their academic advisors in order to gain real-world experience for an academic project or major.

Cooperative Education (Co-op)
Co-ops usually involve a partnership between a student, an employer and a university and are often taken for academic credit. Many universities are starting to require semester long co-ops with local businesses near campus. Co-ops are great ways for businesses and students alike to ‘test drive’ each other before officially signing on.

Field Experience
No, you won’t necessarily find yourself out in some field on this type of internship, but out of all the categories, it’s the most likely as field experience is primarily associated with practical experience in the world of science and sociology. In most cases, interns undertaking ‘field experience’ are observing and collecting data for research purposes.

Externship
Not ready to commit to a specific career field just yet? Or maybe you don’t have a whole summer or semester to devote to an internship? An externship is ideal for you. Really just a short internship, externships are often taken during summer or winter breaks from school. My externship in college lasted one week (they usually max out at 3 weeks) and was a great way to shadow an office and get a feel for a typical day on the job. But don’t underestimate the value of this abbreviated experience. I still keep in touch with the office where I ‘externed’ years ago. Make a good impression and treat this as a job. While they may not hire you, they might know someone who will.

Service Learning
Just like it sounds, this type of internship involves serving individuals or groups in a local community. For instance, we offer a service learning project in Ecuador where we send groups of high school and college students to work with underprivileged children in Quito, the capital city. Our students also perform service learning projects side-by-side with conservation scientists in the Amazon rainforest – a great way to learn while serving (and preserving!) native plants. This is where service learning and field work meet in the middle. You can learn a lot about yourself while helping others.

No matter what you call it, an internship is an invaluable way to complement your studies, boost your résumé and just plain figure out what you want to do when you grow up.
Most university and college career departments have resources that can help you determine which of the above (and maybe even some not included above) types of internships are best for you. And don’t think you have to just be in school to take part in an internship. In fact, we have helped hundreds of students who have recently graduated and want to get some real world, international experience.

There’s something out there for you and we hope we can help. Be sure to check out “5 Points to Understanding Internships Abroad,” a helpful article published by IIE Passport and written by our very own Marc Cappelletti.

Posted by Mike

Global Experiences provides customized international internships, teaching English abroad certification courses, fashion experiences, high school service learning programs and other unique international experiences.

GE Interns Make the News

Afraid of going abroad and fetching coffee (err, caffe' ) on your internship? See what some Global Experiences interns have been up to this year:

• Fashion Journalism intern, Anna, published her first article in Virtual Haircare Magazine in Sydney, Australia. [Click on What's New Section and article profiling the Joh Bailey launch.] And Anna tells us there's more to come.


• Cassandra, a Public Relations intern in Florence has been published in the Florentine online magazine, Florence For Fun, with her unique take on La Dolce Vita.


• Take a look at what Kristen, a Fashion intern in Florence, Italy has to say about Italian fashion in her article, Runway Rundown.

Are you making the news on your internship? Or maybe you're back home and doing something interesting with what you learned abroad? Drop us a line and let us know what you've been up to.

- Posted by Mike

Global Experiences provides customized international internships, teaching English abroad certification courses, fashion experiences, high school service learning programs and other unique international experiences.