Internships in Western Europe

I had a great experience with the program. From the beginning, they were always attentive and available whenever I had any questions or problems. My advisor, Nisha, was especially helpful and always made sure I had the information and support I needed throughout the process. Overall, the program was well organized and I felt supported throughout my experience. I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for an internship abroad.

Studying abroad in Florence gave me the opportunity to experience everyday life in a completely different environment instead of just visiting as a tourist. One of my favorite parts was how much I learned simply by walking around the city, traveling to new places, and experiencing different cultures firsthand. I became much more independent and comfortable figuring things out on my own, especially when it came to traveling and adapting to situations that didn't always go as planned. I also met people I probably would have never crossed paths with otherwise and made so many memories with them. CEA CAPA gave me the opportunity to have a semester that felt completely different from my normal college experience, and I came home feeling more confident, independent, and open to trying new things.

My experience with Atlantis in Athens, Greece was amazing and gave me an experience I couldn't replace. I was able to observe healthcare professionals in a different country and get a better understanding of how healthcare can be different in other countries. I would recommend Atlantis to students interested in healthcare who want to study abroad but also get this experience.

Hello, my name is Allison. I am from Scottsdale, Arizona, I am twenty years old, and I am in my third year of undergraduate studies in California. I chose a medical internship because I am interested in pursuing a career in medicine in the future. I really wanted to get a taste of medicine and be involved in that environment. I was offered this opportunity through my school, and it seemed like a great way to go abroad and see a part of the world I had never seen before. Some of the most exciting things I’ve seen specifically in the hospital include patient interaction, which was super cool, as well as some incredible surgeries. My favorite experience was seeing an open-heart surgery, which was one of the craziest things I’ve ever witnessed. The doctors were amazing—they really explained everything. Coordination was smooth. I think, as much as it is well-coordinated, you also have to take initiative to see what you want to see. Athens is beautiful. The people are super nice and helpful if you need anything. The food was amazing—I had so much gyros! I also got to visit some of the islands and learn about the history of the region, which was very enriching.

I have had such an amazing journey with beyond academy. The staff were wonderful and accommodating, my placement program could not have gone better, and overall I had the best two months of my life. If I had to complain it would be about some aspects of my accomodations, which were not through beyond academy. They helped me find a place and booked it for me, but were not the owners of the building and thus were also confused by some of the occurrences that happened there. Beyond academy helped me to resolve those issues and even brought bedding when the accomodations forgot to provide any. This team is very good at what they do.

Hi, my name is Harika, I am twenty years old and I go to the University of Middlesex in London. So, the reason I chose this internship is because I am looking to become a cardiologist and I just wanted to get some insight and some internal experience of how it would be like to get a taste of the future. The coordination with Intern Abroad/Cerca Abroad was ten out of ten. Everything has worked perfectly for me from my apartment, communication, and assistance, I couldn’t have had any other way.

I had a great experience with the AIP Asian Internship Program. The team was very helpful throughout the process, and the internship gave me a great opportunity to gain international work experience and learn about a new culture. I would definitely recommend AIP to anyone looking for an internship abroad.

Amazing program! You feel really immersed in the country's culture, and it was an amazing use of time between sophomore and freshman year! The workplace environment helped my spanish immensely. It is fantastic!

Hi, my name is Chloe and I am from California. I go to San Diego State University. I chose this program because I eventually want to become a doctor or a surgeon. My experience with Cerca Abroad was very good. I got to experience lots of surgeries I had never seen before, which is something we can’t really see in America—so it was definitely a good experience. Athens was very fun. We also got to visit some of the islands. Overall, it was a great experience and I gained a lot of clinical experience as well.

Hi, my name is Katie. I am from Columbus, Ohio, USA and I will be a junior this year at Harvard. I chose to do this internship because I wanted to explore the research industry and I am a bioengineer, so I thought that this was the best opportunity to do that. Some interesting things that I saw during my internship were that I was able to work with PCR tests, DNA extraction, which was super cool. I am very happy with the internship’s coordination by Cerca, the team was very attentive to any needs. I enjoyed my stay in Greece, the people are very welcoming and I love the Mediterranean diet, so the food was also great.

Hi, I am Jenny, I am from California, I go to San Diego State University. I chose this internship because I really wanted to immerse myself in another culture and get that new experience especially in the healthcare and medical field. It was very interesting to get a new perspective on how other countries work with patients and their techniques in medicine. I chose Greece specifically because I love the culture and the food. My first job was at a Greek restaurant and they’ve always made me feel like family and I really liked that. So I think coming here I wanted to experience more of that. Everyone here is so friendly. And the food, of course. And Cerca has been very helpful. They’ve been very good at communicating. If I’ve had a problem they would answer very quickly, so they’re responsive. I think everything was planned out very well. I didn’t have any issues with getting to work or anything like that. Everything was super smooth, especially picking me up from the airport was very helpful too. I think everything was really good.

My name is Katerina and I am a student from Ontario, Canada. I chose the medical internship simply because I wanted to learn more about all the different parts and workings of the hospital as well as different positions in healthcare. I’ve really loved my time at the hospital, especially shadowing a surgery. I got to see a lot of very interesting procedures and I got to learn a lot. The doctors were excellent teachers. So, it’s very interesting and informative. Coordination-wise it was very clear, communicated amazingly. They were awesome at accommodating me and my needs, which was also very nice. Athens overall was awesome. It’s such a cool city. The people are so sweet and so nice. They love to see people from abroad. It was a great time.

Hi, my name is Luke, I am from New York, USA. I currently attend New York Institute of Technology. I chose to intern abroad in Athens because I wanted to spend some time away from home, see what it’s like to intern abroad, and because I don’t have the roommate experience back at college. I assumed it would be nice to live with people who are around my age who have the same interests as me and also to get to travel, which I haven’t done much in my life. So, my overall experience throughout my internship was very positive. I got to spend two weeks in surgery, which was very cool. I got to see tons of orthopedic surgeries, which is where my interests lie, and I am currently finishing my rotations which has been very cool. I got to see tons of things. I saw the blood lab yesterday, I saw dialysis today. Athens is very cool. Tons of food I got to try. So much history to be learned. Many places I got to see, like the Acropolis. I’ve seen Santorini—that was a cool island. I got to see the Olympic Stadium, that was very cool. I still have yet to visit the Acropolis Museum, which I plan to visit tomorrow. My favorite food to try here was the gyros. It was very good. The souvlaki was also very good. The coordination with Cerca Abroad was also very well put together. Everyone was on top of everything. Whenever I have had any concerns, they addressed them; they were right on top of them and made sure to take care of them. Nothing bad to say about it.

Hi, I am Olivia, I am from Georgia in the United States and I study at the University of Georgia. I chose the medical internship because I am pre-nursing and I wanted to get an idea of the specialty and what I am going to get into. This internship has done an amazing job in exposing me to all the different kinds of medicine. I feel that the team has done a really good job at giving me all the information that I needed to know about getting around Athens, getting to work, and how to enjoy the city, which is really amazing. I enjoyed my time here. The culture and the people are very welcoming.

Being a part of the Sage Corps cohort on and after the trip has been such a valuable part of my personal and professional growth. With a diverse group of students from all around North America, you learn to navigate the challenges and successes of your job and develop cultural awareness. So grateful for my experience with Sage Corps.

Hi, my name is Tyler, I am from London and I go to the University of Bristol. I study English and Philosophy for my BA and I chose to do this program because I really enjoy arts and cultural heritage. Being in Athens is very fun for me because I am very interested in ancient philosophy. So, seeing all the different sites has been really fun for me.

Hi, my name is Scott, I am from Zanesville, Ohio, in the U.S. I am currently twenty years old and in my second year at Ohio University studying Mechanical Engineering. I chose Cerca because through my university I am required to gain some international experience during my time in college, so I went online and found it, and the engineering program through Cerca seemed very appealing to me. It seemed relevant and practical to me and it just seemed—honestly—kind of scary to live somewhere new compared to where I am familiar, which was exactly why I wanted to do it. Through Cerca I was put in the Automotive Lane at the International Hellenic University here in Sindos in Thessaloniki, Greece. I’ve been mostly working with an aerial drone here; I’ve done three different projects. Firstly, we tried to make the drone fly in an exact pathway; we attached a temperature sensor to it to measure the temperatures in its path. After that we used a proximity sensor to make the drone navigate through obstacles using built-in WIFI, which we struggled with unfortunately, and we haven’t been able to complete yet. As a final project we tried measuring the sound of the drone using noise-cancelling technology to try and set up a future intern with the resources to develop some technology to make the drone quieter as it operates. Here in Thessaloniki you will never run out of things to do. I really like it because everyone is friendly here. It seems unfamiliar at first, but it won’t stay that way for long. Even the coffee shop that I got to know better—there’s something for everyone. Like I’ve said, I mean there are beaches, museums, it’s a great place to go running, there are nightclubs—anything you want is here. We even went bowling. The food is fantastic. It’s almost never super processed so it always tastes very good compared to American food in a lot of cases. Not to mention it’s really cheap. The people are great. I am getting to know even people at the university. Some of the workers in the dining hall are always very friendly. They play music and there’s always a smile on their face. Even in our department we’ve had a couple of events like a barbeque; we got together, it was a lot of fun and we got a lot closer than some groups in America do. So, it’s really friendly here. It’s a great place to be.

I stayed two months at the Excellence Center between June and July, which was perfect timing between large cohorts. Everybody who works at the center is lovely. Rafat is welcoming, friendly, and diplomatic, and does everything to help volunteers enjoy their experience and for refugees and migrants to settle safely. Doushan handles background operations, and is a hilarious, cheerful person. It's truly a pleasure when he joins everyone for lunch or subs in for Rafat. Muaz was my Arabic teacher and helps to run just about everything in the Center. He's a well-known figure in the local community thanks to providing free translation help for refugees and migrants between German, Arabic, and English, and supports legislative change for anti-racism in Halle. He introduced me to some wonderful, kind people who became good friends, and was a phenomenal Arabic teacher. I arrived with a bare knowledge of the alphabet, and Muaz taught me everything until I passed the A2 level in about 5 weeks. I enjoyed teaching English so much, though I loved my Arabic classes more. I taught three students from ages 8 to 30 with varying English proficiency. A lot of people are intimidated by choosing what to teach and how, but I liked making up lessons and games for my students. My advice is to use lots of color-coding, prioritize conversation (at the correct level), and try to enjoy the experience. People learn best when they're connecting with you, rather than being lectured. The accommodations are nice enough for a short stay or an able bodied person, but they get somewhat cramped during July and August, when the majority of people visit. I recommend spending at least a month at the Center if you're able to, though I truly wanted upwards of three months. We went on trips to Leipzig, Berlin, or nearby cities, toured Halle, had picnics, and spent a day with a class of international art students. A local Syrian gentleman taught us basics of violin, Rafat taught us how to cook some Palestinian, Syrian, or Saudi Arabian meals, and another friend tried teaching us Dabke (traditional Palestinian dance). You'll spend a lot of time outside in Halle, and hopefully a lot of time meeting new people. Give this experience as much as you can (and go see Muaz's concerts!) (Doushan, if you're seeing this, hello! I did the review! Sorry it took so long!!!!)

Overall, it was a truly wonderful experience. However, considering the high cost of the program (around €6,000), there are a few aspects that should be improved to provide future participants with greater security and reassurance. The positives: I had an excellent time at work: I learned a lot, improved my english, and met wonderful people, including my managers. This is the most important aspect and the reason I am so happy with the overall experience. The organized trips included in the program were also beautiful. Areas for improvement: Clear rules before payment: we only found out after paying a very high first installment (€3,400) that we had only three chances to pass the job interviews. If we failed, we would be excluded from the program with no refund. This should be explained immediately; otherwise, participants feel forced to accept the first job offer to avoid losing their money. The agency's communication: the dates for the included trips were changed by the agency at the end of July without clear communication. When we asked for an explanation, the agency blamed us instead of admitting the misunderstanding. Fortunately, our University helped us restore the original dates, but the agency should show more courtesy and understanding. Better housing protection and support: the contract states that if a participant is dismissed from the internship, they must leave the residence immediately, even if the rent has already been paid in advance. This causes significant anxiety and sometimes makes the experience very stressful. Above all, it is concerning not to feel protected or defended by the agency in the event of a misunderstanding or an injustice in the workplace. In conclusion, I will always carry with me the beautiful friendships I made and everything I learned at work. However, I sincerely hope that in the future the agency will be more transparent and supportive, given the significant financial commitment required.

Studying and interning in London this past summer through CEA CAPA was truly such an unforgettable experience. Being able to immerse myself in a new culture while also experiencing what it was like to work in a different country was something I will always be grateful for. CEA CAPA gave me the support and encouragement to step outside of my comfort zone, try new things, and make the most of my time abroad. I loved being able to explore different parts of London through my classes and actually connect what I was learning to the city around me. My internship also gave me valuable real-world experience in an international environment. Most importantly, the people I met made the experience so special. I went into the program not knowing anyone and ended up making some of my closest friends with people from all over the country. Overall, CEA CAPA gave me the perfect balance of academics, work experience, travel, independence, and friendships. It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience that I will never forget!