Alumni Interview with Nivine HH

 What inspired you to go abroad?

From the beginning of my studies I have loved traveling.

Why did you choose CareerDC?

My friend told me about CareerDC and how they found him an internship abroad. CareerDC team helped me so much! They updated my CV and profile and gave me tips to pass my interview with Malaysian companies. It was faster and easier than doing it by myself. I had tried applying directly to the internship but it didn’t work, so I contacted CareerDC.

What was your favorite part about Malaysia?

Their open-mindedness and multiculturalism. And I liked the weather—it’s never cold—mainly sunny and hot. It can be cloudy some days but there isn’t winter like in France.

What made your experience abroad unique?

My CEO was really easy going and nice (and really funny)!

How did local staff support you throughout your program?

Every time I had a question or an issue, I called CareerDC and they were always available to try to find a solution for me. 

What's one thing you wish you would have done differently?

Contact CareerDC sooner so that I wouldn't have lost my time finding a company in Malaysia on my own. 

Describe a typical day in the life of your program.

I woke up and went to the office at 9:00 a.m., then I worked on my Marketing tasks with one of the employees and learned new things. We went to lunch at 1:00 p.m. for one hour. I continued my tasks from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. and went home. I ate dinner around 6:30 p.m. and was working on my internship report for my UNI before resting a bit and then went to sleep.

What did you enjoy doing in your free time?

Visiting the countries around Malaysia during the weekends—flight tickets were so cheap there! I visited more than nine countries in five months, one of the best experience in my life.

What was your accommodation like? What did you like best about it?

I was in a huge house shared with young people and the best part was that I was just 10 minutes walk away from my office in KL. But usually students coming from abroad will rent a room in an apartment in a complex—a building with security, access to swimming pools, library, gym, etc.

What is one thing every participant should know before participating in your program?

Even if CareerDC team is doing everything in their power to find you an internship, you still need to succeed during the interviews CareerDC organizes, between your future organization and you.

Now that you're home, how has your program abroad impacted your life?

My internship made me grow professionally and personally! Now that I discovered new countries, I want to live abroad. I prefer the Malaysian culture more than mine.

Would you recommend CareerDC to others? Why?

I’ll recommend it 100%, I saved time and had one of my best experience thanks to CareerDC and the nice company they found me! I couldn’t ask for more.

What was the hardest part about interning abroad?

It takes time to settle in a country you don't know for few months, with all the research like accommodation, what to expect, the culture, etc.

What surprised you most about Malaysia?

The people were really nice. They make the country even better. People were so calm and always trying to help.

How difficult was it to communicate with locals?

It depends, but in general their English was pretty understandable. If you compare their English to the level of English in other countries like Thailand or Laos, their English is really good in Malaysia.

What is one thing you wish you would have known before interning abroad in Malaysia?

Share-housing is better than renting an apartment only for yourself.

If you could intern abroad again, where would you go?

South America, I have never been there before. Or maybe in Africa but I know it will be more complicated there.

What do you feel the biggest benefit of interning abroad is?

It opened my mind in a way nothing else does. Plus, I had an experience that turns out to be a big added value on my CV. This will help me for my future.