Meiji Internships

Looking back at my past three months in Tokyo, I can wholeheartedly say that it was the best decision to go with Meiji Internships for this program. I chose the business package with all its features and they did not just land me an absolutely amazing internship in a logistics company but also took me to so many sightseeing trips, networking events with fellow startup companies, business dinners and much more. Make sure to follow Japan's business etiquette as they completely differ from Western standards. The best of all was they landed me a full-time job after my graduation so I'm moving to Tokyo next year with the same company that I interned with. Doumo arigatou gozaimashita Meiji!

Studying social work and even doing an internship in Asia was unthinkable for me. The nature of my job and the need to communicate seemed big challenges but I like challenges! So I expressed my needs to Meiji and they carefully listened and assesed my case. After some initial time, I had good news that they could help me with my request but told me to be open to another industry as they do require two industry choices when applying with them. I helped out a Japanese NPO organisation dealing with single mothers and orphans in Tokyo. I have never thought that Japan has this side as it always looks so technologically advanced and shiny. But let me tell every society has its PROBLEMS! I was very happy to learn that there are many good souls in Japan engaging in a lot of social work and it really helped me expand my knowledge on the cultural bridge on how to properly communicate and cater to Japanese people in need. I am very thankful for this experience and will make sure to visit Tokyo again in the near future. Arigatou Hara-sempai you told me so much.

The whole internship experience was well planned and successfully implemented by both, Meiji and my host company. The balance of work and leisure was allowing me to explore Tokyo and also do some sightseeing trips outside the city. My organisation did support me with dinners out with fellow employees and also had the chance joining some business networking events organised by Meiji. I will be back for an interview this Summer again in Tokyo. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

This was absolutely the best internship I could have dreamt of! Robert made this journey unforgettable and offered me the best internship in a local IT company. I had a very intense two months that exposed me to so much learning and coding with Phyton, C++ and Java. THANK YOU for the great work you did!!!

My digital marketing internship with Meiji was so fulfilling from the start to the end, they made a lot of effort to accommodate me throughout this internship. The support I had from the airport pickup, orientation and also during the internship was great. I loved the sightseeing excursions we had. Most of them did take place within Seoul except of one trip we did to Incheon's Chinatown and local fish market. I highly recommend Korea for an internship but I would never work here long-term. Koreans are even more workaholics than Japanese!

Meiji Internships was very helpful with all parts of my transition to South Korea. Their response was very efficient within 1-2 days as they do have a lot of applicants in Korea. Most of them seemed to be located in Seoul, but me together with 5 other interns were in Busan which I preferred a lot! You can go for a weekend trip to Fukuoka and we also visited Meiji's headquarters there. Busan is super fun and a port city and Korea's second larget megacity. The Meiji team took us around and organized all parts of our program, from my airport pickup, sim card, public transportation card and also had a terrific experience with the help of them. I recommend Meiji for those wanting to travel abroad and be an intern in Asia as they seem to have a well established grip in this part of the world.

Just finished my 6-Month internship in Tokyo and it was simply amazing. Great people, great food and the lifestyle is a rollercoaster of fun, excitement and adrenaline all the time. They say Tokyo never sleeps and I can approve that 100%! Meiji did a great job in placing me at a great IT startup that helped me developing their European business branch from zero. At the beginning I was like, "Hold on, you want what?" and then I ended up bringing in the first clients after 4 months which sounds like a long time but considering the whole marketing campaign I made together with their designer team it was actually quick. The highlight of my internship was the trading convention the boss took me together to Okinawa, which I will never forget. Now looking back after this great time it is time to get back to my business degree as these people decided to hire me after my studies are done! I can't thank everybody more than enough and I recommend anybody to consider the Meiji experience as it changed my life! Literally!!! I should mention with a grain of salt that we had in the same host company at least 4 other Meiji interns at my time and two of them didn't work well with the working culture and stress in Japan... so before you choose to come to Japan I do recommend to know what you want as Tokyo can become sometimes quite extreme. For me I loved every second and would do it anytime again! Arigatou to Yanagida-shacho for your kind and strict guidance throughout my journey. Can't wait to be back!

My 3 months in Korea were simply a blast! The whole experience was amazing and Meiji Internships did make sure I was in safe hands throughout the whole process. From the application start all way to arriving at my apartment in Seoul. The staff did a great job making the whole experience as smooth and comfortable as possible. I was placed in a guest house and cultural tourist agency where I was exposed to an international environment helping fellow foreigners to get around Seoul. At the same time I was also able to discover all the hidden spots and foodie places that this great city has to offer. The whole internship passed by so quickly and I am really thankful for this very rewarding three months I had there. I made some business contacts while I was there and will be back for another internship next Summer. Khamsamnida Meiji!

I don't know where to start but this IT internship for the past three months was a game-changer for me! I have made so many contacts, developed my Java Script and C++ coding skills to the next level while networking with the local entrepreneurial crowd filled with international IT geeks, locals business man and even a few angel investors, Fukuoka just blew my mind! The best thing about Meiji was how much of a grip and connection they have in Kyushu and really know the whole local companies pretty much. I have hung out with the staff and fellow interns for a couple of dinners and food gatherings and I cannot intensify how much it is important to get out of your comfort zone.

I went to Tokyo to do this internship with one goal in mind; to get international experience that would make my CV shine amongst the rest. Anything else that came with it would be a bonus, and let me tell you there were a lot of bonuses! There were so many new experiences for me and I was definitely pushed way outside of my comfort zone (in the best way possible). Thanks to this, I’ve definitely found my feet in my profession as a business development consultant. Even if the internship isn’t particularly in your field of interest, I can’t recommend this program enough for all of the personal and professional development that comes with it. It is definitely a financial commitment though - Tokyo is not a cheap city, and to be honest I would recommend that you avoid cutting costs as much as possible - it’s an awesome city and you have to spend quite a few yen to have the best experience there. So be sure to save up enough before you get to Tokyo!

My internship experience in Taiwan was so good that I’ve turned into one of those really annoying people who never stop talking about their ‘unforgettable trip abroad’. For me that’s literally reality, because my trip to Taiwan was unforgettable. From the moment I stepped off the airplane, I somehow knew this was the place for me. It was at that point I really felt lucky to be working in such an amazing country! It’s definitely not easy to find an internship in Taiwan by yourself, and in fact a lot of the expats I met over there were amazed when I told them because the didn’t know they existed! Having Meiji take care of all the admin was so awesome, I felt like a VIP hopping off a plane and straight into a new job. The internship was with a real estate company operating in the outskirts of Taipei. They involved me in all of their projects and pretty much treated me like a normal member of staff. While some may see this as a no-mercy approach, this was exactly what I was looking for, and it gave me so much room to grow. I had no problems throughout my stay in Taiwan, but I knew if I did I could always count on Meiji to guide me through them. They couldn’t have provided a better service! I would recommend an internship abroad in any country - not just Taiwan. But if you do, don’t do it alone! I doubt any of this would have been possible without Meiji holding my hand throughout.

I’ve always been the type who enjoys the road less travelled, which is why I chose to do my internship in Hokkaido! Tokyo just doesn’t have that much of an appeal to me, its way too crowded, full of tourists, and too fast-paced. Hokkaido is the opposite of everything I just said! I worked with a small business locally-famous for it’s milk, (when I first tried it, I immediately understood why… Hokkaido milk is no joke!) which was an area of business I never imagined myself working in. Although I was working more on the admin side of things and never even touched a cow while I was there, I really enjoyed being in the presence of a group of people so passionate about their craft. They also really valued their workers, every morning we gathered for a short catch up talk and drunk milk together (I mostly used this as an opportunity to show off the Japanese I’d learnt) - you wouldn’t find that in Tokyo! Hokkaido is just awesome. The countryside is like being on another planet, yet you still have these bustling urban cities like Sapporo. I will say it’s not quite for the faint of heart though, the winters are pretty brutal and you should be prepared to have your life temporarily dictated by the weather. With that being said, I’d definitely recommend Hokkaido as an internship destination, and make sure to try the milk while you’re there!

I am a US born-and-bred Korean who had unfortunately never had the privilege of visiting my home country. It had been a dream of mine since a young age to finally go to Korea and reconnect with my roots, as well as my family! Once I graduated and found myself with a lot more freedom, I decided I would finally make the dream happen. I didn’t want to just visit though, I wanted to live, breathe, and feel Seoul! The best way to get into the groove of Soul life was to start working, but without any language ability it’s not so easy - so I got in contact with Meiji Internships! They offered me a company you cannot say no to, and the company was in a field that was related to my major. Best of all there were no language requirements! The work was in the industry of PR & Marketing, with a strong focus on social media platforms. I represented a company that deals Korean goods on the international market, and I found it really interesting to have to consider the ways to market cross-culturally! However the working hours were a standard 9-5, so don’t expect to be lazy. On my time off I took full advantage of Seoul and by the end I could really feel my Korean roots, I started to get a really strange feel of nostalgia even though I’d never lived in the country. I connected with a lot of my family, and learnt so much about my own heritage. This was such a moving, and meaningful trip for me!

When the time came to find an internship as part of my university degree, I joked around with the idea that I would do my internship in a paradise like Thailand. After a little research I found that this was definitely possible, and arranging it would be much easier than I had anticipated it to be. Fast forward a few months, and I’m lounging on a beach on the other side of the globe with a ridiculously cheap cocktail in my hand. If you’re asking me, there's no better way to spend your days off work! To avoid any misunderstandings, I wasn’t just lounging around for 2 months. The manufacturing company I worked with always kept me busy, and believe me sometimes I NEEDED those days of rest. Don’t think twice, give Meiji a shot!

Off the back of a terrible internship I did back home in Australia, I still felt as if I hadn’t really gained any work experience, so I searched abroad. Meiji’s services appealed to me for the professionalism (as well as all the fun the interns seemed to have had). I was so glad to find that this followed true with my internship, because they handled my case so professionally and efficiently, and I had so much fun! They placed me in the graphic design department of the local tourism board, and my main tasks were to design marketing materials to inform residents and tourists (both domestic and international) about events across the city. I felt that I thrived in this role and really gained a lot from it. Plus, I got to attend all of the events as part of my work, which was a much welcomed bonus! This internship showed me what true work experience is, and I’m glad I continued searching after my bad experience in the past.

I was lucky enough to do my internship at a resort on the outskirts of Fukuoka, the area was basically in the countryside but it still had a bit of a city vibe to it. I’m a big fan of the countryside, and being a bred-and-born city boy, there was a lot to discover. Seeing those tiny road-side vegetable shops that have no staff and rely purely on the honesty of people was definitely a highlight for me and a reminder why I love the Japanese culture so much! I will say, I’m definitely not a fan of those countryside spiders though (they’re HUGE). Working at the resort was a real pleasure. I think many of the guests were shocked to see a foreign face working in a countryside resort, but they were so kind and I loved answering all of their curious questions! There a few occasions were I was surprised to find that guests had gone out of their way to buy gifts for me, Japanese people are honestly so sweet. If you’re considering Japan for your internship destination, I absolutely recommend Meiji, and equally as much recommend the countryside!

Since I graduated it was my first experience to working, and so the internship in Tokyo really teached me what I need to learn and know. My coworkers were eat very nice and so helpful. Even I cannot speak Japanese, they are trying to understand what I am saying. I love Japan and want some work experience in a peaceful place, so this was a best option for me. Also the coworkers and the CEO was very open minded, its easy to adapt here!

After completing my bachelor in Hospitality and Tourism Management, I quickly realised that I had no real industry experience. I want to focus my career on hospitality abroad, primarily in Asia where I can play a role in bridging the gap between Asian culture and Westerners. So, I started looking for an internship in my dream country, Japan! I relayed this information to Meiji and instantly it seemed as though we were on the same page. I paid for the express option and they put all the pieces of my internship together in what seemed like an instant. They matched me with a hotel chain in Shinjuku, where we accepted probably 90% Japanese guests and 10% foreign. But much to my surprise, there were 2 fellow kiwi staff working there! I don’t know if this was intentional by Meiji but it was a great touch - it’s honestly near impossible to find anybody from New Zealand in Tokyo! As much fun as Tokyo is, it is also super tiring because it literally never sleeps. I mean, especially working in Shinjuku… stepping out of work at the end of your day into what seems like a huge street party, it’s hard to resist! As you can imagine I spent a lot of my time partying, going to bars, clubs, and enjoying the nightlife (of course in between all of the obligatory sightseeing). They say distance makes the heart grow fonder, and I can say this is definitely the case for my relationship with Tokyo <3

I would like to praise Meiji Internships for finding me the very high quality placement for my internship. I could ask them any question and they would address my problem. They always immediately to help me. Additionally, they helped us not only before the internship but also during it, and it is thanks to them because I got a great opportunity to see my dream city of OSAKA! My internship was with IT, and I helped my company with the IT tasks for their new product launch. Sometimes the work was a bit difficult but really I am not here for an easy time! Because it was difficult I felt that I could learn so much. To be specifically, I have now mastered Microsoft Excel, and also website softwares like Wordpress and Webflow. These are really useful experience to have, and can make the job finding really easier. I have dreamed of this city even when I was a child, so I could not believe to be working in there for 2 month. In this 2 month I had seen everything that is in Osaka, including my favourites which are the universal studios and also the aquarium which is so huge! It is also the best place in the world for food. I was scared that I would be miss the food of Spain, but I think now that I like Osaka food more than Spain hehehe. If you go to Osaka I advise you to try the okonomiyaki and the takoyaki, you can see it everywheree! If you dream to see Osaka and also experience, I advise you turn to Meiji Internships. I am certain they will help you and you will have the best time :]

As a busy university student, I had a lot on my plate and really had no time to be searching for internships abroad. Meiji was recommended to me by a classmate, and that’s how the journey began. Having that middle man that takes away the stress, time, and headache that comes with searching for an internship? That’s a godsend. I worked on the digital marketing for a student accommodation provider right in the centre of Seoul. It’s painful to admit, but I’m addicted to social media, so this was no problem for me! Also as an actual student I felt that I could really understand the needs of the customers, so I was definitely in my element there. The small team I worked with was extremely encouraging. They understood well that I came from a completely different culture, and they did everything they could to ensure I settled in to this new one. Together we worked hard in the office on weekdays, but partied harder in Hongdae on the weekends - what more could you want? Two thumbs up from me, if I could I’d give it three.