My internship experience helped me grow professionally and personally in many ways. Living in Spain gave me the mental focus to become more knowledgeable on a variety of topics. My work experience pushed me to familiarize myself with emerging technologies and fields of science in which I have had no experience in the past. The…
Tag: Madrid IIP
Blog Entry Week 8
The definition of success in my host country varies significantly from that of my home country. Success in the United States is normally defined in monetary terms and or in the amount of power that one holds. The United States is an individualistic culture, individuals are independently motivated and expected to beat out competition and…
Incertidumbre
I am about to start my third week of my internship tomorrow, and I cannot believe how fast time is going by. I have definitely started to become more accustomed to Spanish mannerisms and transportation, especially since we rely on the metro for almost everything. I sincerely lack navigational skills so I get lost sometimes…
Success Is in the Hustle (Kind Of)
In general, I believe it is more difficult to define professional “success” in Spain than in the United States. Besides the existing cultural differences between different industries in every country (a family-run restaurant will obviously have different professional goals than a Private Equity firm), Spanish culture overall tends to emphasize work as a part of…
Lost in (Cultural) Translation
High-context communication and low-context communication are often used to compare and contrast how different countries and cultures approach conversations. High-context communication countries such as Spain derive a lot of their meaning within conversations from the general context, the location of the dialogue, the tone and emotions used, and any underlying knowledge used in the conversation….
A Change of Leadership
In the past, I had always been good at taking charge, but I was not always the best at being a leader. Before this internship experience, I had always felt comfortable taking on a leadership role. Take this common situation for example: you’re stuck in a group project full of people you don’t really know…
¡Hasta Luego!
Hello! Wherever you are, I hope you are enjoying the last few weeks of summer vacation before school is back in session. I am excited to announce that this year I am moving in early to begin training as a Resident Assistant. It is my first year as an RA, and I will be living…
Spanish vs U.S. Communication Styles
My time with La Casita de Inglés has come to a close! Honestly, the past two months have gone by so quickly. It is cliché but completely true. I did not realize this was my final week until last Monday! As far as updates on current work, not much is new. I have just been…
HR Consulting in a Cross-Cultural Setting
Hello again! Sadly, my trip to Madrid has concluded, and I am back in Pennsylvania. I will be continuing my work with La Casita de Inglés from home for the remaining couple of weeks of this International Internship Program. Since my last blog post, my supervisors in the HR department have left the main center…
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