The Value of an Internship Abroad

Any experience you embark upon is a raindrop in the ocean of your personal and professional growth.

It might be part-time cashier work at a local grocery store or a summerlong internship at an investment bank. It all goes into the resume. 

It’s even sweeter when work experience involves travel and exploration. 

And contrary to what it looks like externally, working abroad isn’t merely fitting in a part-time job around a holiday!

Our receding borders, overall bubbly hospitality, and rapidly globalizing world has given millions the chance to bring their talents to other countries. Tens of millions of people from China, Russia, the UK and all over, traverse the globe in pursuit of a dream career and a different lifestyle. 

Of course, there’s more to it than a dream career and financial gain. 

According to the Harvard Business Review, those fortunate enough to work abroad experience higher levels of confidence and a better sense of self. 

Although there’s nothing like the warmth and palpable coziness of your own living room, the decision to depart from it has many positives in the long run. 

It’s easy to come up with archaic clichés like ‘travel broadens the mind’. But Harvard Business Review actually did this platitude justice in their research on the benefits of working abroad. 

In a survey of 1,874 participants, those who had lived abroad for more than three months exhibited a greater sense of self. As well as higher levels of critical awareness in comparison to non-expats.

The main cause for this stems from the lack of social variety and fewer cultural interactions that non-expats encounter daily. 

As it turns out, the homogeneity of your hometown hazes your perception of the world around you. Since everybody in your environment, to a certain degree, acts and behaves like you. As a result, you begin to lose touch with people of different airs and cultures.

It’s easy to be caught in the trap of your small town and remain parochial ‘til the end of your days. The streets, the people, the dust on every deserted corner have all imprinted on your consciousness.

Unfortunately for hometown lovers, your stay has been long overdue. Harvard’s research shows that living/working abroad amplifies one’s ‘sense of self’ that ‘elucidates which types of career options best match one’s strengths and fulfil one’s values.’ 

Most would dare to call our present-day world ‘vocational’. And they wouldn’t be wrong if by that they mean career-oriented.

So having a good sense of self that would point you to a good career path and allow you to deeply self-reflect is crucial for finding your place in our ever-expanding market economy. 

So, you’ve figured out your rural hometown is no good for large-scale ambition. What’s next? Well it’s time to think about the permanent bonds you will likely make during your placement. 

Networking unfolds a plethora of career opportunities regardless of your professional milieu. You can use networking to open new avenues for business opportunities and gain leverage for publicity. Or you can use it as an endless source of ideas. 

By no means is networking a novel concept, yet it still intimidates even the most confident people. And while it’s associated with business, anyone can benefit from it.

Most commonly, networking is a pageant of success and ambition. It’s about making yourself visible. 

Over the course of your international internship, you’ll be receiving lots of attention from around the globe. Some will be impressed by your character and others by your skills. Making yourself visible, even without necessarily entering a specific circle during the internship, opens irresistible future opportunities. 

Think of your internship as a demo version of the real thing. It’s a test minefield with decoys for actual mines, and it lays out everything you will typically encounter in a workplace. 

A mine but also a gold nugget at the same time, competition is a good gateway to enter the race to career success. 

On one hand, conventional wisdom considers competition as a positive thing. It is because of competition that businesses perpetually update and improve their goods and services. 

On the flip side, becoming overly competitive can create a vicious cycle of unceasing ambition. Or worse, an addictive lust for power. 

However, competition will never truly satisfy your thirst for success. If, by any chance, you get on a roll and enjoy consistent success, this is more likely to narrow your vision on the possible outcomes down the line. 

Inside the international talent pool, you’ll be able to assess your strengths and weaknesses. By putting yourself next to equally ambitious self-starters, you’ll spot where other nationalities outperform you. This will prompt you to further investigate their methods. 

The competition of an internship might slightly differ from that of your future workplace. But it’s a neat testing field nonetheless. It’s not as fierce as one might expect and offers an opportunity to test your limits and desire for ambition.

Beyond’s team of trained career coaches will help you clearly analyse your own ambitions and career goals. 

Even if that means reconsidering your original plans, Beyond’s team is up and ready to give out a hand and review your options before entering your internship abroad. Crash courses, private sessions, public talks hosted by leaders in your field! Beyond guides you with each step of your career journey and can help you plan a roadmap to success. 

Although at the beginning of this article I told you that working abroad isn’t an excuse for a holiday… the fact is, travel is an essential part of any internship. Well, except for a remote internship, but that’s a whole other thing with its own unique benefits!

But don’t limit yourself to pretty sights and carefree strolls. Each city tells us a story of its emergence and evolution. 

Some, like Seoul, envelope a river and sprawl along its shores. Others were simply a convenient point of anchorage for incoming settlers. Which is actually where New York’s humble beginnings lie. 

A city reveals how people organize their society. Whether around natural landmarks or mercantile hubs. While chewing on local cuisine, try to think like a local and imagine how you would implement urban ideas in your hometown. 

Nobody’s here to tell you what you should and shouldn’t do during an internship abroad. 

Whether you enjoy the company of fellow interns or prefer to experience the city on your own, it’s entirely up to you. 

However, the one thing you must know is that a bit of help never hurt anyone. And that’s why Beyond Academy supports all new interns over the course of their entire internship. From admissions support at the start to a 1-to-1 career coaching session during your internship to help you determine your future.

Beyond Academy is here to assist you with all the minutiae of your career journey abroad. From visa documentation help, through arranging accommodation. And even picking you up from the airport. We take the stress off your shoulders so you can focus on your internship and get the most out of it. 

Thinking of embarking on a life-changing immersive internship? Then let Beyond guide you and check out the 18 internship industries in 14 worldwide locations we offer!