Sally's Internship In Australia

Two months ago I packed my bag, flew 13 hours across the equator and started my first AIESEC adventure in Melbourne, Australia. The 2009 summer has been the shortest for me, nevertheless the “hottest”!

What kind of work did you do?

I volunteered for a NGO called Health Australia & Tanzania (HAT), an incorporated association that aims at improving the health of local communities in Tanzania. Being a charity, policies are important for HAT’s orderly operation, risk management and becoming a DGR (Deductible Gift Recipient). So, my first responsibility was to draft a Policies and Procedures manual. In order to accomplish this task, I read through all related materials, looked up information on the internet and interviewed each HAT committee member. My second job was to plan and execute one or more on-campus events to raise funds. I worked closely with Binti, HAT’s Events Coordinator, to brainstorm fundraising ideas and prepared for the event.

Challenging as it is, the work turned out to be romantic. We met at different places such as cafés, and restaurants. Once I was invited to Binti’s house, where I had a delicious Indian meal cooked by her husband.

How did your AIESEC experience help with your internship?

I joined AIESEC in April 2009, but I had known about the organisation since I was a college student. As an member I attended an AIESEC conference, where I learned what AIESEC is and the essential qualities needed to be a successful Exchange Participant. For instance, I was taught to be open-minded, and to push my comfort zone. As a result, I took every difficulty as an opportunity and I gained myself a lot of interesting experiences: I was offered a free lift to the train station by an old man in my neighborhood and I had nice conversations with the locals and tourists. Moreover, when I did something embarrassing or was about to do something embarrassing, the thought of “Hey, I’m an AIESECer!” sufficed and I regained courage.

What were the biggest challenges?

The biggest challenge was to quickly adapt to the new environment. Without knowing to what extent I could or should get involved, I found it difficult to communicate efficiently with all parties. The inability of holding a fundraising event during my internship can be partly attributed to my misunderstanding of my role as both an AIESECer and HAT’s intern. Fortunately, the friendliness and generosity of the people around encouraged me to bravely ask questions. They threw parties for me, invited me to their meetings and took me to explore Melbourne, which greatly helped me to integrate into the Australian culture.

What were the benefits after completing / or during internship?

What I benefited from the internship was beyond all expectations. Two months ago, I was an ordinary student learning business from textbooks. The AIESEC experience exposed me to a brand new world and pushed me to think about making a positive impact in our society. I learnt the application of business management procedures to not-for-profit organization; I developed an appreciation of Australian culture and lifestyle; and my network of friends expanded throughout Australia as well as Hong Kong, Malaysia, Korea, Singapore, Pakistan and India. Above all, I discovered and developed my potential from every progress I made, progress from saying “Thank you” to the bus driver before getting off to talking directly to store managers about sponsorship.