Virtual Internships from Nepal to Costa Rica and Japan

The International Internship Program (IIP) had 50 students intern virtually during summer 2021. We’re excited to feature three of those students, each of who also took over our Instagram for a day to take us behind the scenes of their internship. IIP has a handful of students interning virtually this fall and is currently taking applications for virtual spring internships.

Designing Handmade Goods

Junior Vi Bui is a Textiles and Fashion Design major in the School of Human Ecology (SoHE). Vi spent the summer with the Association for Craft Producers, a not-for-profit, fair trade organization providing design, marketing, management, and technical services to low-income Nepalese craft producers. The UW-Madison connection with ACP dates back to 2018 and can be credited to SoHE Professor Jennifer Angus, who was pivotal in establishing the relationship, enabling students to intern onsite in Kathmandu with the organization through IIP.

Vi took over IIP’s Instagram account for a day this summer to provide an inside glimpse at her internship. Check the Highlights on our IG page for peek inside her time at ACP!

International Internship Program: How did you decide to pursue this opportunity?

Vi Bui: I saw this opportunity on the weekly SoHE job opportunity email, and decided to apply because the description closely matched the material I studied in school. I was also interested in the concept of bespoke or handmade goods, as well as helping other women gain economic opportunities.

IIP: Some of the most amazing moments for students abroad happen through cultural immersion and engagement. How have you been able to get a feel for the culture, even though you’re not on the ground in Nepal? What have you learned?

VB: In our meetings, our supervisors educated us on the buying trends in Europe, USA, and Nepal to help inform our design choices. It was interesting to compare first-hand the trends in all three regions. My supervisor Dipak is married to a painter that emphasizes in Nepali folklore, which was interesting because I even got to see one of her paintings in the Zoom background!

A dinosaur prototype designed by Vi

IIP: Is there a particular skill or skills you developed through your internship?

VB: I was able to develop my ability of nonverbal communication. Because of the language barrier, I added as many pictures and references as I could, so that someone who does not speak English could still get the gist of my idea. I also tried to keep my explanations over Zoom concise and brief. Because a lot of apparel manufacture happens overseas, it’s always worth my time to practice this skill.

IIP: What advice do you have for students considering virtual international internships?

VB: To students considering virtual internships, I would say do it! It does not have to take up a lot of your schedule, and could be stacked with school or other work. I think being adaptable and open to critique is important, especially since the company could be operating with a totally different time zone or work culture.

Stay Positive, Ask Questions, Be Flexible

Che John is a junior majoring in Computer Engineering and a King-Morgridge scholar. Che John interned in an information systems role this past summer with the University of Costa Rica, where he helped design a knowledge management system. He also took over IIP’s Instagram account for a day to spotlight his time with UCR. Che John’s takeover can be found on IIP’s Instagram Highlights.

IIP: How did you decide to pursue the opportunity with UCR?

Che John: I scheduled an appointment during an online Career fair.

IIP: What did you learn about working for an international university?

CJ: Staying in sync with an entire team!

IIP: Is there a particular skill or skills you developed through your internship?

CJ: Knowledge management.

IIP: How did this internship make you think about your future career?

CJ: It showed me the multi-faceted nature of being a research student.

IIP: What advice do you have for students considering virtual international internships?

CJ: Ask questions! Your supervisor is there to help you.

Translating Toward a Future Career Path 

Junior Josie Anderson is a double major in International Studies and Japanese. Josie interned this past summer with Asterism, a healthcare nutrition company that researches, develops, registers and commercializes dietary supplements, functional nutrition, and beauty products. Look at our IIP Instagram Highlights to view Josie’s takeover.

IIP: How did you decide to pursue the opportunity with Asterism?

Josie Anderson: Ever since I had heard about the UW-Madison International Internship Program, I knew that I wanted to pursue an internship that would allow me to utilize and learn additional Japanese language skills. During this past spring semester, I frequently checked the IIP online database for any Japan-associated internship opportunities of interest to me, and I ended up finding the Asterism position opening and decided to apply for it! I was especially excited about it since it’s more of a translation-focused internship, and translation work is exactly what I enjoy and am interested in pursuing.

IIP: What did you learn about working for a small international startup?

JA: Aside from my translation work of course, I learned a fair extent about business-to-business e-commerce and marketing strategies as well as Google Analytics. I was completely new to these topics, and I thought they were important to get at least a general understanding of to help better navigate the increasingly digitalized modern professional world. I also was able to learn multiple methods of how online communication worked within Asterism’s international team of both employees and interns.

IIP: Is there a particular skill or skills you developed through your internship?

JA: My internship at Asterism particularly developed my Japanese-English translation skills, which I consider as essential for my own future vocational interests. This position gave me a solid grasp of the workflow and tools that typically go into translation work in general, and I also got to enhance my Japanese language skills in the process since I learned a lot of new vocabulary while translating various documents and infographics.

IIP: How did this internship make you think about your future career?

JA: Because this internship directly involves translation work, I can consider it as an essential foundation for building my future career path. The fact that it is so relevant to my career interests is a great benefit to me. I feel that it has provided me with good experience that would allow me to begin progressing towards actualizing professional translation work as my future career.

IIP: What advice do you have for students considering virtual international internships?

JA: I absolutely recommend checking out the UW IIP website and online database as well as talking to the IIP advisors to learn more about virtual international internships and discern the best option! Doing a virtual internship worked well for me since translation work is often largely online. There are so many different internships out there, so of course it depends on the individual in consideration of whether opting for a virtual international internship would be a good fit.