Intern Abroad in Seoul, South Korea with WorldStrides

Overall participating in my internship helped me not only improve personally but also helped me learn more about my career path. As well as expanding my knowledge of the Korean language and broadening my view of different cultures. I enjoyed my time in South Korea, and it was bittersweet when the program came to an end. I'm glad I got to make a lot of relationships abroad and explore my individuality!

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I was so grateful to be able to work with TEANEducation again! The staff is so nice, they helped me find an internship placement that best fits my description. I was able to make so many memories abroad once again! I defiantly recommend exploring the South Korea programs if it's your first time abroad

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Hello! I am Cameron, I went to South Korea through ISA for the Late Summer, Fall, and the Winter Seasons, and it was my favorite memory and makes me want to go back A.S.A.P! Going to the country without prior knowledge of the language I was able to learn through the classes I had taken at Korea University and immerse myself quick enough that I did not struggle as much as one would think. I love food, and it was so easy to get a quick bite to eat or have a nice sit down meal with friends and colleagues, during my first week a meal was set-up through the program where everyone in the program was able to have a sit-down nice meal where we learned each other's names and ate great Korean Fried Chicken! Pro's: Food, Culture, People you meet, Overall Experience Con's: When you leave you just want to go back !

I knew I wanted to study abroad at some point during college, but when when the whole world closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic during my spring semester of my freshman year, I lost hope in that dream. However, I was able to achieve this milestone when I attended study abroad information sessions and connected with our study abroad office. They directed me to a portal full of all types of programs from around the world. I knew I wanted to go to Asia, and I could only afford a summer semester. Eventually, I narrowed my desired country down to South Korea, in which I chose ISA Abroad's internship program. I mainly chose to be an intern over enrolling in classes because of affordability and I didn't need to earn any more credits. I wanted to graduate at the same time as my peers in May 2023, so it made more sense to experience this opportunity in a different way. I also loved the idea of feeling like I was living and working in a foreign country almost independently. From start to finish, the program was exactly what I needed to grow as a student and a young adult. I made numerous connections and friends once I returned home, and I felt a new sense of self efficacy in myself. A lot of the friendships I made were also possible due to the few field trips we took as a whole. The staff of ISA were also very helpful from when I first applied all the way to the end of the program. There was a tremendous amount of support for us without any sort of micromanaging or infringement on our autonomy. Even when students began getting sick, our supervisor was able to take us to clinics and pharmacies. Personally, my match with my employer was incredible! I learned so much about marketing and travel agencies, but most importantly, I learned a lot about Korean geography, history, and culture. I couldn't have asked for a better boss and coworkers! There were some downsides to this program. We did not live in apartments located based on our companies like we were initially told, which I was actually very excited about. Consquently, my commute was an hour away from our hotel. At times, there were moments where the amount of work I did compared to interns at different complanies felt unfair, but I understand this isn't necessarily ISA's fault. It went the same for the hours I worked compared to peers because I didn't have as much freedom in my schedule. Despite it all, I still had an amazing and fulfilling experience through ISA's intern program. This entire summer has permantly shaped who I am. I would do it all again if I could!

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I spent 8 weeks interning in Seoul during summer of 2022 - it was the best thing I've ever done and I still talk about the experience! I'd never left my home country before, let alone by myself, but I never felt worried because the ISA team did a great job preparing us for the trip. They gave us very clear instructions for arriving at the airport and even arranged private transportation to the hotel. We were in a fantastic location right next to a subway station and had access to so many things right outside the hotel: convenience stores, restaurants, boutiques, and K-Beauty shops galore! The pandemic made it really hard to meet people in college, but the program gave me the chance to make some lifelong friends. Some of them were from the same university as me, which made transition back home a lot easier. My group became friends from day one and we did everything together, whether it was drinking soju and playing card games in each other's hotel rooms, hiking in a misty forest, getting lost in gigantic malls, sharing many baskets of Korean fried chicken, touring the DMZ, or cramming ourselves into sweaty karaoke rooms. But making friends was only half of the experience. My internship was close by and I worked about 45 hours per week. It sounds like a lot, but there was plenty of free time after work and on the weekends to explore the city. As a social media intern, I enjoyed not having to sit in the office all day every day. I helped my coworkers with off-site video shoots and toured historical sites with them, but my favorite work assignment was vlogging my experience at a raccoon cafe! It was definitely not something I would've been able to do back home. I also loved getting to know my coworkers despite the language barrier; we had so many valuable and eye-opening conversations about culture, politics, and history. They treated us to lunches every day at local restaurants, as well as dinners, drinks, and even a movie! They threw me a going away party on my last day which was so special to me. I miss them terribly, but we still follow each other on social media. I plan on going back to Seoul someday and I'm grateful to have them as contacts there. I could go on forever about how fantastic and life-changing my experience was. It had such a great impact on my life that I based my final project in college about it. I will forever treasure the things I learned about myself during those those 8 weeks in South Korea. It made me a stronger and more adventurous person and I wish that I could live it all over again.

Going abroad was a transformative experience for me. Although I have traveled with my family in the past, this was my first solo journey. Despite initial nervousness, I found it easy to make friends among fellow travelers and locals. Along with new friends the abroad experience enriched me academically and personally. I'm glad I took the opportunity to go abroad and highly recommend it to others considering studying abroad.

Spending time abroad was amazing. Meeting different people and living in another culture was super amazing! Id love to do it again. The atmosphere before was professional setting and working with my original degree and profession. The foods and traveling abroad make it more of a high side to try interesting and new things.

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