Posted on March 29, 2010
Make Google your BFF
Spring break is over, April is upon us and summer is around the corner. That means it’s summer internship time! The great news is that because summer internships have become so popular, there is an overabundance of positions out there. The downside, though, is that sifting through all the postings can be an information overload nightmare. Thankfully, there are tools out there that help to organize and essentially automate your search to find your ‘dream internship’ sooner.
Over the next week, make Google your BFF as you kick off your summer internship. We have outlined a 4-day plan for this week to set up your ‘international internship system’ search.
Day 1 (Approximate time: 1 hr) Scope out your international internship
Start your search by deciding on the three most important areas for a successful internship abroad: prospective countries, industries relevant to your major and companies that you enjoy and would like to work with. Spend about an hour and do some research to narrow down those three areas. As you are doing this research, keep track of the key words that resonate with the experience that you want…be they company names, job titles or cities that you would want to live in. This is a building block for Day 2.
Day 2 (Approximate time: 1hr) Start a Google document
Create a Google spreadsheet building on the scope of your international internship that you identified the day before. Utilize this spreadsheet as your internship road map where you document: the key words that interest you (to be used later for your Google Alerts); the type of internship relevant to the work experience you are seeking; whether it is paid or unpaid; the company; the location (city and country); the URL and the status of your application.
Day 3 (Approximate time: 30 min) Set up Google Alerts
Set up Google Alerts for your international internship search based on the key words that you picked (e.g. London, Journalism). You can receive daily, weekly, or as it happens updates. Monitor internship listings from both websites and blogs – sent directly in your e-mail.
Day 4 (Approximate time: 30 min) Learn to use Google advanced search
Here is a breakdown on how to use Google advanced search from Intern Alerts (a great resource to find internships within the US).
“Before typing a search term on Google, you can set-up the advanced search settings to tweak results based on your needs. On this page, you can also include or exclude terms you want/don’t want to appear on the results. For instance, if you’re targeting paid internships, you can list down the words “unpaid,” “non-paid,” “credit only” words to NOT show on the results. Alternatively, you can also list down exact words or phrases you want to appear on the results – such as “paid internships,” “fashion internships” or “internships in New York.”
Related search – Sometimes, if you’ve been visiting a favorite internship-related website for a while now, but you want to look at all your options, you can simply search for their website on the Google search results page and click on “similar.”
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Posted by: Olga at Going Global
Posted on March 25, 2010
Photo Attribution to Cayusa on Flickr
According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), only 0.3 percent of U.S. college students study abroad. “How can I possibly afford to go study abroad? I don’t have enough money.” That complaint is synonymous with students and young people who don’t take the opportunity to study abroad in college. In their minds, it boils down to money.
The interesting thing is that an increasing number of universities, international companies and the government encourage students to study abroad and have implemented scholarships to help fund their experience. There is the Fulbright Program, the Institute of International Education and the IES Abroad programs that are filled with opportunities and scholarships for students who have the ambition to study abroad.
The government in particular is a huge advocate of cultural and educational exchanges. In 2009, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin and Roger Wicker introduced the Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act and unanimously won the House of Representative vote. The Foundation will act as a study abroad program hub for undergraduate students would otherwise not have the financial ability pursue an international opportunity. Their aim is to build global leaders, foster international understanding and fund study abroad programs in non-traditional locations. According to Senator Wicker, we need to cultivate “the future leaders of our nation [and enable them to] have a higher level of foreign language proficiency and international and cultural knowledge.”
The money from these programs, agencies and foundations is out there for the taking. So how do you as a student take these scholarship opportunities into your own hands? The only solution is to start applying now. Below is just a sample of the financial resources that are available. Remember that the more high profile a scholarship is, the more competition there will be for those awards. Always think local as a strategy for scholarships. Your chances will always be higher.
Here are some examples of scholarships available:
IES Abroad Merit-Based Scholarship for International Relations, Cross-Cultural & Comparative Studies, and Leadership & Community Involvement.
Hispanic Study Abroad Scholars (HSAS) – Scholarships specifically geared for Hispanics study abroad.
National Flagship Language Program – Encouraging the development of specialists in languages critical to U.S. security interests.
Do you know of any scholarships that should be included in this list? Let us know and we will add them to our list.
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Posted by: Olga at Going Global
Posted on March 19, 2010
Shannon Kelly - International volunteer extraordinaire
When we make the decision to go abroad, it is often for selfish reasons. We associate traveling and living internationally as a personal experience, one that is shared with our closest friends and family. What about when we decide that the international experience itself is more about the people we meet along the way?
That is the story of our guest this week Shannon Kelly, the Job & Internship Coordinator for the Career Services at University of Pennsylvania. Last year, Shannon traveled to the United Kingdom to volunteer with a holistic festival in the small town of Avon. She combined her love for traveling with her passion for volunteering. Her experience took her beyond the realms of traveling into a place of serving.
Learn about her adventures in international volunteering and how you can do it too. Shoot your questions about international volunteering to shakelly@upenn.edu. Keep up with her on LinkedIn or on Twitter: @shannonckelly.
Goinglobal: Would you tell us how you became an international volunteer?
Shannon Kelly: In August 2009 I traveled to the UK to volunteer at a holistic living festival in a small village in Avon, called Monkton Combe (15 minutes from Bath). I found the festival through an international volunteer exchange organization called Volunteers for Peace which I discovered through my work, Penn Career Services’ annual International Opportunities Fair. The festival lasted for 10 days – I planned my arrival so that I could tour Bath before I had to report to the festival and I added a day on to my trip to see London, which is where I flew in and out from.
The festival was the One World Festival which is an annual gathering of families, individuals and professionals who practice a macrobiotic lifestyle. It was hosted at a boarding school in the English countryside. The festival features workshops on yoga, healthy eating habits, different types of exercises and dance, arts and crafts, learning ways to deal with stress and other things of that nature. Now, I do not practice nor did I know of this lifestyle prior to the festival however when I selected this program I thought it looked like a beautiful setting and I knew I would be one of 50 volunteers. In addition, I felt I could learn about this lifestyle and perhaps it could improve my own.
During my stay, volunteers camped in tents alongside patrons. There were a total of 100 volunteers (50 international and 50 from the UK) and about 500 attendees at the festival; though the majority of patrons stayed in the boarding school’s dormitories. The volunteers were divided into groups for various functions that would run the festival. I was part of the Site crew. Our work involved keeping the camp grounds and school clean, moving furniture around for workshops, setting up and breaking down marquees and any other duties as needed. I ended up becoming the Site supervisor’s assistant, who was one of the 10 paid staff, because I was one of the international volunteers who spoke English and had a leadership quality about me. I helped the supervisor organize the other volunteers on the site crew, I did some administrative duties in the office such as typing up lists, making announcements and our biggest job was marshalling patrons the day they arrived and the day they left. Other work that volunteers did was work in the kitchen either preparing or serving food, watching children while their parents went to workshops, security for the event or running the bar/café where bands played and alcohol was served. All volunteers were required to work six hours a day, which depended on your specific task and when you had free time you could travel to Bath or participate in the workshops. Our agreement with the festival promoter was that you work your hours, participate in workshops during your free time and got free room and board. In addition, at night time there was a new band each night and staff got a discount at the bar, which was a lot of fun.
When I formed a group of friends among the volunteers, we went to different workshops together, like yoga or Brazilian Forro (a type of dance), and we also went to the café together and saw the bands. It was a lot of fun and it was all free. I now have friends in 10 different countries, I learned some techniques to cope with stress, learned a new style of dance and practice yoga too. In addition, I got international experience in event management which I will certainly list on my resume.
GG: Why did you choose to do an international volunteer program?
SK: I volunteered abroad for several personal and professional reasons. First of all, I turned 25 and I wanted to mark the occasion with an adventure overseas because I had never been and it was a goal of mine for as long as I could remember. I was also traveling by myself and have a passion for volunteering, so I decided to volunteering could provide me with a social life while overseas and give back simultaneously – a win-win. Professionally, I have been interested in pursuing a career overseas and realized that I could also gain experience through a volunteer program.
GG: What was the tipping point that helped to make the decision?
SK: I chose to volunteer through Volunteers for Peace primarily because their fee was extremely affordable – $300 at the time. In addition, they are a non-profit and had a broad range of program types and locations. I knew I could find something that fit my goal to travel to the UK in an area I was interested in.
GG: How did you find the opportunity to volunteer internationally?
SK: I work at the University of Pennsylvania Career Services office in Philadelphia and we host an annual international opportunities fair for our students. My first year of managing the event I researched each organization that registered and Volunteers for Peace was one of them.
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Posted by: Olga at Going Global
Posted on March 9, 2010
Photo attribution to hchen1 on Flickr
An international career is not something that happens overnight. It is built by making strides to incorporate international skills and experiences into your professional resume. The great thing is that you can start building those skills and having those experiences today.
One of the best ways to look at your international career is like a business. You are your biggest asset. Your goal is to optimize and distinguish yourself in each category of your professional career like Education, Skills, Professional Experience and Community Involvement (Bonus: these are also categories of your resume). Make it a priority to have at least one international skill or experience that you can add to each of your categories.
We have included 5 ways for you to add an international flair to your career. Some require more planning and a monetary investment, while others simply require time. Regardless of the barriers to entry, each of these activities will distinguish you. Ultimately, that is the goal of anyone looking to have an international career; to not only consider himself or herself an asset, but for the companies to value them as an asset as well.
1. Learn a language (Category advantage: Skills)
In a global marketplace, multilingualism is an essential element of an international career. Having basic comprehension and conversational abilities in one language is the beginning step. Take a class. Join a language club. Teach yourself online. Make your goal to add a minimum amount of fluency in one language. As you build your fluency in one language, start adding more languages to your skill sets. “Valerie Koreman, a senior executive with an employment agency in The Hague” recommends knowing at least three European languages for a career in Europe.
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Posted by: Olga at Going Global
Posted on March 3, 2010
Photo attribution to LivingOS on Flickr
Aspiring international professionals have the advantage of kicking off their international career even before moving abroad. The nature of the global marketplace opens an arena of opportunities for individuals who can communicate in more than one language. Language competency adds to your marketability and positions you as an internationally savvy professional.
Learning languages is often associated with formal classes at universities or language schools. What if I told you, that you could start today for free? We included 5 top ways that you can begin your language training by making small adjustments to your everyday life.
1. Join an International Club
Meetup is one of the easiest ways to start building your language skills. Find a club that brings together people who are interested in speaking your language of choice. The more you surround yourself with people speaking this language, the quicker you will learn to dominate it.
2. Relax and Listen to the Music
Find music in your target language that you like. It does not matter if at first you do not understand the lyrics. You may start singing along without even knowing what you are singing. You are not only learning the rhythm of the language, you are learning new vocabulary.
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Posted by: Olga at Going Global
