My 3-month internship at Alteredu ends today and this ends the amazing Erasmus journey I have been on. To apply my skills to an international environment with limited starter knowledge of the culture of work would prove to be a great challenge, but with a great challenge comes a brilliant opportunity to improve!
The company itself offers great opportunities for young students to apply a wide range of skills into this highly respected business. It is a great platform for me to apply and improve my skills but with the great support of the team, confidence in the role quickly grew. My official internship title was 'Digital Media Intern' which primarily focuses on digital design but also opens up the opportunity to apply critical thinking into business strategies involving design projects. The role was not only a good chance for me to apply skills but also a great for encouraging in-depth thought processes.
Perhaps the biggest challenge I faced overall was adapting the culture and lifestyle. In the Netherlands, I had the luxury of the language barrier being almost non-existent but it I knew it wouldn't be the case in Southern Italy. Even though the job was in English, the English language is rarely spoken as the majority of the Calabria region has no use for it. I had to teach myself Italian which still needed vast improvement, but living in Italy was perfect for improving my spoken Italian. I went from basic greetings, counting and ordering to being able to say where I worked, how long for, telling the time, asking for basic directions, getting a haircut and even purchasing gym membership, helping me make good connections and great friends.
I'll admit being a city-born person I wondered whether I could thrive in a workplace in such a remote location with a vast difference in culture, but with this being an Erasmus placement I need not worry. All of my concerns entering the internship were natural to feel and the employers understand the concerns from newcomers fully. To help strengthen community spirit within the internship, we even lived together in various apartments. Getting used to seeing one another day after day created a comfortable living and gave us all extra confidence that we can adapt well to our new home. I was even a travel guide when 3 friends and I visited small towns such as Castrovillari & Corigliano to help share knowledge and build further confidence.
As my time at the internship continued, I adapted better to my role. The critical thinking of marketing strategies and sensible approaches will be fundamental skills to apply in my final year of University. Whenever planning or suggesting a strategy, however creative it may be must have practicality and environment taken into account. It's not just enough to have a creative idea because some markets don't have a demand for specific approaches. This role in particular has taught me about how crucial it is to apply this method of thinking when conjuring ideas.
In both my Dutch & Italian roles where a marketing approach is critical, I have been introduced to more thought processes to ensure the best approach is taken and have been introduced to new tools to assist me with my work. I have never used programs such as Elementor as an addition for WordPress nor SEO for web marketing and learning how to use these tools can help improve my own portfolio for the company route or the freelance route. I have worked for two contrasting companies which has opened doors for applying different approaches and gaining more experience.
It's been a fantastic conclusion to my Erasmus experience and I have gained valuable skills to apply in the future, not just for University but for pursuing a career after graduation!
