Anne Sofie Christensen: Independently arranged internship

My goal for studying abroad: I wanted to develop my technical language skills, increase my knowledge of the industry and strengthen my international profile.

My experience thus far: It’s been a stellar experience, both professionally and personally. Swapping studying for working has been exciting in itself, but so has working in a completely different culture with a different work ethic. It’s also made me stronger personally. Standing on your own two feet in a foreign country with a different culture makes you tougher. I work with energy systems and climate calculations and because the climate in Malaysia is completely different to the one in Denmark, I also had to make use of the theory I had learned at home in a completely different way. That was both instructive and tedious. 

My best piece of advice: Make use of all the resources you can find at AU. Look for all the help you can get – and ask! I didn’t get much help finding accommodation before I left – neither from the company or AU. But when I arrived my boss helped me when I was in a very stressful situation. I imagine that a larger company or a company which often has foreign interns might have a fixed procedure to help with finding housing. It was also difficult to get scholarships, so start applying in plenty of time.

What’s been difficult: It’s hard when you run into problems and don’t know the legislation or the culture.

What’s been great: You meet a lot of fantastic people, and we had the opportunity to take small trips and experience other parts of Asia. You get to experience a lot, both as a person and purely academically.

Translated by Peter Lambourne