Hi there!

I can’t believe my time here in Sydney is more than half way over! Studying abroad and having an internship has helped me immensely in developing skills. A major skill that I have developed since studying abroad is adaptability. Being in a whole new country that I am unfamiliar with, I have had to constantly adapt to different aspects of the culture here. Australians are extremely sustainable and eco-friendly, so one thing that I have had to adapt to while living here is bringing reusable bags with me everywhere I go, as many places do not provide you with them. I have also had to bring my own cup with me to coffee shops as they are highly against using plastic. As far as my internship goes, I have noticed that Australians, especially my boss in particular, are extremely laid back and will work when it is most convenient for them. There have been many times where my meeting times and locations have changed on the spot, right before they were about to occur, and I have had to adjust my schedule accordingly. 

The main hard skills that I have developed through working at my internship are copywriting, content creation, data research, and an improvement in my excel skills. I have been performing and organizing quite a bit of research as well as writing copy that is to be used in newsletters and blogs for the company’s website. 

One of the major soft skills that I have developed is social media strategy. Since the company that I am working for is a start-up, none of their social media accounts have been launched yet. My supervisor has tasked me with coming up with a 3-month long plan for their marketing. I have been developing an entire social media strategy for their brand and it has been a really great opportunity to grow my social strategy skills. Going along with that, a major skill that I have been able to develop is content creation. Through my work with social media, I have come up with an array of content to be posted on all of the social accounts. I have really been enjoying being able to use all of the skills that I already possess and expanding on them through my work as an intern.

Since being here, I haven’t had much of a hard time navigating cross-cultural situations. Australia is an extremely global and diverse city and there are people of all different cultures that live here. I am always very eager to meet new people and learn about their different cultures. I am very friendly to everyone that I meet and I always try to engage in meaningful conversations with them to learn more about their culture and how it differs from my own.

Overall, having the opportunity to study and intern abroad has allowed me to gain and improve skills that I will be able to use for the rest of my life, both in the workplace and life in general. It has allowed me to meet new people from all different cultural backgrounds and ultimately grow my intercultural competence.

Until next time!

Olivia