An internship abroad will put you on a bright professional path. With international professional experience on your resume, you’ll launch yourself a step ahead of your peers as you apply for jobs. The adventure, networking possibilities and professional opportunities are just a few of the benefits of interning abroad. Check out the top 11 reasons why an internship abroad is the kind of investment that will pay off in both your professional and personal future.
During an internship abroad, you’ll make personal and professional connections with young, high-achieving people from all over the world. These international friendships will help you stay better connected to the world beyond your borders. They’ll also allow you to travel to other exciting parts of the globe to visit friends from all over – win!
International professional experience makes hiring managers take a second look at your resume. The unique experience shows courage and an open mind. Investing in an internship abroad makes you a more interesting and qualified candidate for jobs. That “something extra” on your CV will likely snag you a job interview.
Internship experience is great preparation for your career. Once you have pragmatic, real-world experience in your field, you’ll be a more established professional when you enter the job market, so you’ll be more likely to get your dream job!
The “intern abroad” experience is unique and paradigm-shifting. It makes you think differently about the culture you come from, the possibilities available to you and just how big the world is. The many life lessons you learn during an extended period interning abroad don’t disappear quickly like the dates you had to memorize from history class. These lessons stick with you and become part of who you are.
Entering the professional world with an open and global perspective sets you up for more professional opportunities down the line. Having interned in an international office makes you better equipped to interact with clients and partners with diverse backgrounds, adding to your professional value.
If you speak more than one language, you are automatically a more qualified job candidate in any number of career fields. Bilingual professionals often earn higher wages and are more valuable and qualified employees. Speaking a foreign language can also lead to opportunities helping a company expand internationally.
Investing in an international experience of this caliber while you are young and trying new things will make you more open to travel in the future. Travel can enrich your life in so many ways at many different points of your life. The key is starting while you’re young so that you are a pro once you have more life responsibilities.
Doing a study abroad program is no longer enough to stay competitive in the current job market. International internships combine the foreign experience with real-world professional experience. This prepares a young person for the workplace and allows them to boost their career and learn about a different culture through immersion.
Rubbing elbows at The Intern Group events with up-and-coming professionals like yourself will work your professional interpersonal skills, which will come in handy for your professional future.
Provided that you worked hard and maintained a positive attitude during your internship, after the experience is over you will have an international professional supervisor to write you a glowing recommendation when you apply for your next job.
It’s hard to make life-changing decisions without knowing exactly what the professional world is really like. That’s why having real-world professional experience in the career field of your choice before or right after you graduate can be an extremely valuable opportunity that will help you find the right professional path for you.
Sources: http://www.lingholic.com/5-reasons-languages-can-boost-career-prospects/
Photo 1. based on Numbers And Finance, by Ken Teegardin, CC-by-SA 2.0
Photo 2. by The Intern Group
Photo 3. based on Investment, by GotCredit, CC-by-2.0