Alumni

"Since September 2010 I’ve been given the opportunity to intern within the marketing department in one of the largest trading firms in Shanghai. We never know how small we are unless we take the extra step needed to “walk out of the box” and truly expose ourselves to social, educational and professional knowledge. I wish to thank Absolute Internship for offering me this opportunity, for the shared enthusiasm and moral support; it’s a very comforting thing to know there is a group of internationally experienced professionals that can be relied on and that can make the whole adjusting process a lot easier. Where am I now and what am I up to? I’m carrying out my internship, while discovering Shanghai step by step. I can honestly say that nothing compares to this, everything is so different from anything I’ve experienced so far. And work… well… I’ve been given the responsibilities that I was looking for and my career got a big boost."

- George Buhai, ESC Dijon, France

"The internship experience in Shanghai mimics your typical startup venture. You must have the patience to endure all the details, cultural differences, the different means of communication (not just language), and lastly figure out what brought you to China in the first place. Just as most startups need local consultants to help lay the initial groundwork and help with any situations that may arise; you will need a personal consultant as well, Absolute Internship. I am a stubborn person who hates to spend money; therefore I tried to find internships on my own for several months. This showed my ignorance, for this only lead to frustration, many false promises, meeting many distant relatives who know somebody who has a friend in China. Since I finally gave in to asking for Absolute’s help, the process became less chaotic and more concrete on the details, jobs offered, and the visa/living situation. Once you arrive in Shanghai, the rest is up to you. I have had a great experience with my company. We do TV programming for a major broadcasting network, a radio program, and print media. The internship has been a learning experience for me as well as a learning experience for the company, since I am their first Western who does not speak Chinese.

My internship tests the cultural differences and different means of communication, for upon arriving they had little trust in my ability to work. This changes over time as you slowly build trust and build crucial relationships within the company. I have also learned the difference in the working culture. You cannot come with an unwillingness to change. If you do, then you will realize that maybe you should have stayed in the comfortable Western world.I have studied in China with other Westerners, but until you work with, live with, and learn with another culture I do not feel you can say: “I have experienced China”. I hope you will make the first and largest step, deciding to take the chance to work in China. You will find it worth the time, a great learning experience, and a great resume boost, not saying you need that or anything."

-Andrew Tichenor, Loyola University Chicago

"After I made my final decision to go abroad and take on an internship in Shanghai, I was first overwhelmed by the number of choices out in the market and then felt uncomfortable due to the little transparency I had. There were many criteria to be taken into consideration too, such industry, function, company culture, compensation, duration, living accommodation and more! Given that I kept an open mind about what exactly I wanted to do, soon I figured it would be best to delegate the search to a program provider that specialized in this process.

Getting involved with Absolute Internship turned out to be an indispensable step to the success of my internship experience here. They are: well-connected with many of the fortune 500 multinational companies; very knowledgeable of the local job market; and most importantly personable in the services they provide. Jennifer had promptly and thoroughly answered all my specific questions, and Aurelie had walked me through every step all the way to making the final decision on which internship to commit to.

After I arrived in Shanghai, I finally had the chance to meet Fredrik and Aurelie in person. We stayed in touch throughout my stay, and they also brought all interns working in the Shanghai expatriate community together. It was nice knowing I could always speak with Aurelie or Fredrik if any issue were to surface with the internship. Absolute Internship definitely lessened the uncertainty factor associated with going abroad and settling down somewhere completely new, and helped me smooth my transition."

Yumu Zhao, University of Washington, Michael G. Foster School of Business, Seattle, USA

"I got to know Absolute Internship through my school in France. I applied and they got me an internship as Finance assistant in Sydney in one of the largest banks in the world. Moving to Sydney was tough but the Absolute Team helped me concerning the visa procedure. The team found me a nice flat over there. I got work with companies for their corporate bank account which allowed me to make a lot of contacts. The experience was interesting and enriching on both working and social aspects. As Absolute Internship was not yet so developed in Sydney, we were only 4 enrolled students. As we were not working in the same companies, we met often and got to know each other as well as other people. I would for sure reiterate the experience if I were still a student."

- Sonia Zaame, ESC Toulouse, France

"I always wanted to live and work in London. I was recommended by a good friend of mine to contact Absolute Internship. They provided me with different internship offers in my required field which was Marketing and I finally chose one Fortune 500 company. An amazing experience! As a Spanish speaker from Spain it was a great chance for me to improve my English as well as gain working experience in of the biggest companies in the world. Absolute Internship helped me with finding a flat that matched my budget and set me up with a personal customer service person that spoke Spanish. This was a fantastic added value in my opinion because I could contact them anytime in my own native language! Thank you guys!"

-Victor Zurdo, Spain, Team Absolute Internship London 2008.