I am studying communication design in the fifth semester. In the course of my studies so far, in addition to graphic art and writing (journalism, marketing copy and fiction), I've been particularly interested in two fields of design: film and society. At first glance, a broad spectrum.
When I was invited to visit two short film festivals in Sydney, Australia, in the summer of 2016, it was clear to me that the right time had come for an internship semester. After all, in order to travel and study in Australia in January and February 2017, I would need to complete the workload of a semester in less time. The only way - an internship in the months leading up to that!
This sounded to me so not like a price I would have to pay to travel and study the world, but much more like a double invitation. First it's about real work every day outside of the "university", which is helpful for the time being in terms of learning. And after that, elsewhere, a little further away, it is also daily about real work... fantastic!
Thanks to the advice of the responsible Prof. Dr. Beucker at the competence centre Social Design of the Faculty of Design, I came across the global network of Impact Hubs. These hubs function like development cocoons for young, socially and environmentally responsible companies. Most of these companies experience their birth and initial development in Impact Hubs.
Because I liked people there since a previous visit, found the Spanish language exciting, and a stay abroad seemed financially feasible thanks to Erasmus+, I decided to go to Impact Hub Barcelona.
An urgent note to all students planning an Erasmus+ internship semester abroad: apply early, get an overview of the necessary paperwork early, fill everything out early and send it off. Communicating via email with four parties involved (student, supervising professor, coordination of the university in Germany and the company abroad) can lead to small and large delays and misunderstandings without much intervention.
Living in Barcelona was both wonderful and challenging at the beginning.
My (already paid for) centrally located shared room turned out to be a thoroughly executed scam. Communication with my new supervisors was also impersonal and confusing at first. I felt placed in different areas than originally intended and was given orders rather than tasks. The on-site team seemed pressured. It made me unhappy to see my positive ideas so unanswered.
I decided to continue for the time being, because the disadvantages would have been greater than the advantages for me in quitting. If I quit early, I would have to pay back the grant, plus departure, airfare, logistics, an early farewell to all pleasant acquaintances, and a half-begun, half-abandoned semester. This decision was the right one especially for me. Just two weeks later, big changes took place, some people left, others showed up and became very involved. Within a short time I was working under completely different conditions. A reshaping of the local structures began and I became an integral part of it.
To spare others a situation like my initial one, I point out the importance of finding out as much as possible about the destination. At most, that can be found between the lines on their website. It goes beyond "doing your homework" and knowing all the surnames and titles. This is the kind of research no teacher gives us to do; it should be done as intensively as possible in one's own interest. If you can ask questions after the interview, by all means do so - and perhaps even ask back in more detail than you were asked and researched. The atmosphere on site, the communication, the quality of the results in relation to the work are important. Skyping with the coordinator at the internship site several times beforehand and thoroughly asking all questions can help.
"What is my semester good enough for?" is the wrong question, or at least should not be the only one. Finding the right place should be taken seriously. Sometimes it's better to say, "what's good enough for my semester?" Or can I even make it myself? If true do-it-yourself is not to be expected, whether in a reincarnation or in the usual internship day, then it cannot become either an optimal learning experience or effective work.
They exist, the good internships. I had one and learned a lot about the world, about the entrepreneurs who want to save it, and about myself.
