It was an overall enjoyable experience having my internship done through ABROADER Vietnam. The host company that they connected me with has been welcoming, friendly, I have been able to experience a lot of different elements of the company’s culture, helping different people and learning new things about not only the company but also working in general. I felt that I contributed to the host company and my particular help with the MWRP (checking English) was of great importance to them as the deadline approached. They have given me feedback and said that some of my research into potential donors and other youth initiatives in climate change adaptation has been of use to them too. Regarding ABROADER Vietnam intern service was my placement and the amazing support from local staff and volunteer in Hanoi. Would I recommend the internship to anyone interested, definitely!

Words cannot describe how much I gain from this internship. The time here have been productive, meaningful and of course an unforgettable one! When I first came to Ho Chi Minh City for the internship, I was overwhelmed by the culture difference. To the roads packed with motorcycles to the food, everything was different for me. Honestly, I thought it would be very hard for me to adapt to the culture in Vietnam, however, ABROADER Vietnam provide us with a lot of support! They have local buddies that bought us around Ho Chi Minh City, teach us their culture and are very open and happy going! They even bought us to grocery shopping which we needed desperately! :) What’s more they gave me an internship in one of Vietnam’s top IT outsourcing company! The team was professional, always looking for ways to improve and welcoming! They always try their best that i am doing great! Thank You ABROADER Vietnam!

Prior to arriving in Vietnam, I had never had a so-called “life-changing” experience. There is no guidebook on how to achieve one, nor was I able to grasp such a concept, moments so strong as to change the path for your life. That is until I went to Vietnam. There is so much more than meets the eye in the beautiful country of Vietnam. A tourist or temporary visitor may only be granted with picturesque views of rice fields and the women in their hats, the mountains of the north, or a steaming bowl of Pho placed on their plastic red table. And while these experiences are all incredible in their own right, there is so much more to discover, whether it be the story of the people under the hats, the sellers on the streets, or the history of the land that you have the opportunity to travel. ABROADER Vietnam granted me the opportunity to uncover such stories, and an internship with memories that has left me longing to go back since the moment I returned home. Vietnam has become my second home. Granted, I had gotten the opportunity to travel and become accustomed to Vietnam for about four months prior to starting the internship. My University had allowed me to study abroad during which time I adjusted to the food and language, learning about almost every aspect of Vietnam culture. But this was only a preview of what was to come. My time with the internship let me interact with the people, practice my Vietnamese, take trips with my coworkers, and uncover passions for things I didn’t know existed. I have too many incredible stories to be able to write them all throughout this review, and so I’ll pick a few of the mostly little interactions that really meant the most. ABROADER Vietnam set me up in a homestay, perhaps one of the highlights of my journey, and I can say with complete honesty that I felt like part of the family. There was a cook by the name of “Vui”, meaning happy in Vietnamese, and how appropriate as she radiated happiness onto me throughout my entire stay. She did not speak any English, but somehow I was able to coordinate trips to the market, request my favorite food for dinners, and convey to her how much I loved her country. She bought me 21 roses on my 21st birthday, only proving her kindness. The mother of the household, unlike Vui, spoke some English. She often taught me Vietnamese when I had free time, as well as took me to the market, and made me feel extremely welcome when I felt the slightest bit homesick. But as for the internship itself, I was placed in two hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City, one directly in the center, and one located more on the outskirts. I’m not going to lie and say that there were no challenges. Originally people were confused to why I was there, I got lost several times, and some days I had no one to teach me, but those were a minuscule few days as most, out of a ten week internship. I made friends with the doctors who taught me about topics from infectious diseases in Vietnam, to the catheder lab, and even more in the surgical urology department.. We frequently went out to eat, where we exchanged stories, and I answered curious questions about my time in Vietnam thus far. Other friends I made were medical students, originally too shy to approach me, but through my time in the hospital gathered up the courage to speak to me. I served to help them practice their English and was happy about it as I know how many opportunities it can open up for them. They invited me for bubble tea, food, and even once to a Vietnamese fruit farm, two hours by train. I was gifted the opportunity to dress up in the MOST attractive brown cloth attire, and proceed to pick and eat as much fruit as humanly possible on perhaps one of the most humid days. While I felt almost at home, eating to my hearts desire, I most certainly looked out of place with the brown pants acting more like a short capri on my long legs. It was days like this that I got to thinking of how grateful I was for the opportunity to stay in Vietnam for a little bit longer. I learned lots about my friends, and one of my favorite aspects of their culture is how open they are to strangers; how they just immediately let them in to their personal lives, and are completely honest. It is something that I miss the most. And lastly, as I don’t want to write a novel here, I have to talk about my experiences with the nurses at the second hospital that I worked in. The first week as usual was slightly stressful with not much sense of direction, but I quickly made friends, and their generosity was incredible. My days consisted of learning from doctors for a few hours, walking from room to room, checking patients vitals, or just practicing Vietnamese. But as soon as I took a break in the nurses “lounge”, I was bombarded with different Vietnamese foods coming my way. Each nurse wanted to share with me a piece of their dish, and talk to me as much as they could. Each morning from there on I would be asked in Vietnamese “Ali an sang chua?”, a phrase meaning “have you eaten breakfast yet?” Per usual I had not, and my answer encouraged them to start making me a coffee, and once again piling different foods in my bowls and encouraging me to eat mysterious shaped foods. My response that the food was delicious, or “ngon”, only encouraged them more. This routine continued until the end of my internship. The goodbyes were not easy, and there were many I had to make. Each attempted goodbye always ended with another attempt by them to try and meet up once more, at which I sullenly had to refuse. There are only a few things I will say to end this review that went much too long. These moments that I experienced were granted to me due to my opportunity to take up an internship with ABROADER, who set me up in the select hospitals, with my host family, and opened the doors for me to make connections. And of course when you take on an internship you have to do your part. You must be open, able to laugh when things don’t go your way, and not let any roadblock deter you. Looking back I know that I have changed. While I couldn’t see it in the moment, the internship boosted my confidence and improved my relationship with failure. It also made my more open with myself and those that I met. I wished my internship could go longer, and perhaps I will find a job in Vietnam one day, so for now all I can do is reminisce through reviews about the most life-changing time I had with my internship and with ABROADER.

The most satisfying aspect about my internship in Vietnam was my local buddy and my host family. They have always been very nice and inviting during my stay there. My host organization in Vietnam was a local school that provides courses and after-school activities to children with special needs. My co-workers were very generous with inviting me to after work activities or even a couple of days in Sa Pa. My supervisor cared about me both professionally and as a person. I hope that my work at the host organization helped the teachers with my insights working with children with special needs. I also hope to have opened the eyes of the students I worked with that there are people out there who understand their needs and can help them overcome their difficulties in their lives.

The whole experience of doing internship in Vietnam, living and meeting the people in this beautiful country will be a memory I’ll always remember. My host organization was ABROADER Vietnam. For the most part, I was clear about the responsibilities & rules expected to accomplish & follow during my filming and photography internship at the company. My supervisor and the program coordinator cared a lot about me, even when they didn’t pay attention to me, the only downfall was my skills on graphic design which I still need to improve to support my work in the company. My work was crucial at a marketing and branding level, which is the image of the company itself. If there is anything I wish to do that would make the internship in Vietnam perfect was that I could stay in Halong Bay one more day.

I was very impressed with how organized ABROADER Vietnam was in preparing my internship in Vietnam. The Skype meetings before coming to Vietnam made me feel confident about my safety and expectations during my internship. The Program Coordinator met me at the airport, even though my flight arrived at 1 a.m. The orientation was very thorough and outlined expectations from both myself and the University of Economics HCMC – where I would be working as an intern. During the summer ABROADER checked in with me often to see how I was doing. They even came down to Ho Chi Minh City a few times to visit the other interns and me. Whenever I had a problem, they were always available on Facebook and did their best to resolve it. It is clear that ABROADER Vietnam is a reliable organization that cares about its participants.