This abroad internship program has taught me so much. I have learned how to work full-time in an office setting with the classic professional hierarchy of supervisor, employee, intern, and I have learned what is expected of me and what it takes to earn the trust of your superiors. While this opportunity has provided me with the chance to immerse myself in Korean work culture, I have also learned many transferable skills as far as professional communication via email and Zoom, as well as work with spreadsheets, internet research, and more. Through this experience, I have become a more well-rounded professional and person, more adept at dealing with cultural differences and universal aspects of office work like the balance of social life and professional tasks.
I would like to thank my scholarship donors for allowing me the opportunity to participate in this internship program in Seoul. This unforgettable experience has given me the chance to successfully expand my professional skills as well as my knowledge of Korean culture, and I will cherish the memories I have made and the skills I have acquired for the rest of my life. I am truly grateful for the gracious scholarships I received, and I am more than ready to contribute what I have learned abroad in Korea to the Pittsburgh and Pitt communities.
In this internship, I worked directly with Korean students with aspirations to go abroad. I conducted English evaluation calls, small talks, mock interviews, and situation talks in English to help students work on and improve their English skills in terms of listening, speaking, grammar, vocabulary, and slang as well as cultural knowledge and more. This experience of being a mentor and tutor has strengthened my leadership abilities and made me much more comfortable engaging in professional small talk as well as creating a comfortable environment for nervous students to open up in. The other primary task I took part in was researching volunteer and internship opportunities for the students. They each came into our program with a set of sort of requirements or expectations: they had an ideal location, field of interest, time frame, start and end dates, visa or no visa, all within the limits of their English language skills. I took this information and found placements for students, contacted hundreds of companies via email or job application sites, helped students write motivation letters, cover letters, and resumes, and set up interviews. This was rewarding work because, as a student who has had lovely educational and professional experiences abroad myself, I was able to help other students achieve similar goals of gaining international cultural experiences and becoming bilingual.
This international internship experience has introduced me to so many people across South Korea who are soon to be across the world! I have gained skills of personal and professional communication, leadership, and online research, and I have had the opportunity to grow my interpersonal skills, something that matters greatly in the field of Social Work which I study. In this position, I have taken on the role of a guide for people; so, despite the fact that our clients are a different nationality from me, speak a different language than me, and are mostly older than me, I have learned how to communicate with different personalities and create spaces that allow people to learn, ask questions, and voice their opinions. This ability will greatly contribute to my career as a social worker, as I need to be great at working with a diverse group of clients, making them feel comfortable and supported despite any and all of our differences. I got to practice this with nervous Korean students via Zoom and in person, and moving forward I will build on this ability in my senior year social work practicum.
My experience abroad has made me someone who is comfortable being uncomfortable, and this, I believe, is my greatest strength. I grew up as someone with big aspirations but equally as big fears, so I stayed in my comfort zone as much as I could. When I got to college, I knew it was time to change that and balance my big aspirations with big actions. Now, I can proudly say that I have both studied and worked in Seoul, South Korea for a total of six months, and my big fears have been– for the most part because I am human after all– left with high school me. I am now someone who enjoys a challenge, who is okay with making mistakes in front of others, and who has the skills to thrive in diverse and unfamiliar environments.
Now, I will bring my skills of cultural humility and leadership to Pitt in my social work research course next semester, as I learn how to conduct and lead formal research and interact with various populations. I will also bring my skills into my social work practicum this Fall at UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital. At this placement I will undoubtedly interact with many different people from the Pittsburgh community, and I can use my cross-cultural skills to form meaningful connections and trusting relationships with clients, as well as my leadership skills to guide patients through difficult decisions or other related issues. As mentioned previously, this internship has primarily provided me with the opportunity to expand on my interpersonal skills and grow as a leader, mentor, and professional, which will contribute greatly to the excellence I aspire to have as a student at Pitt and a professional in Pittsburgh and beyond.
Below, I have included a picture of my work space, gukbap from a restaurant behind my building, a Joseon Dynasty era school building in Jeonju, Namsan tower, and the outside of Deoksugung which was close to my hotel in central Seoul:
