I have chosen to undertake a work placement abroad because I am studying Spanish and believe that the best/only way to improve a language is by immersing oneself in the culture. I chose to do a placement because I felt that it would distinguish me from other prospective applicants as I will have something different and interesting on my CV.
Erasmusintern.com
I sent my CV and a cover letter to the placement provider.
My main tasks included preparing and filling silicone moulds with plaster, manipulating plaster pieces to eliminate the imperfections, packaging the products, and translating passages of information to be printed and sold with the products we made. Also, as one of the only Spanish speakers in the workshop, I was often required to help interpret between the other interns and the workshop manager, who did not speak much English.
A typical day generally involved manipulating plaster pieces, using different tools and learning new techniques as we went along. We would work on a rotation and take it in turns to fill in the silicone moulds every couple of days. Sometimes pieces needed painting, varnishing, or packaging.
I really enjoyed being in a creative, friendly, yet professional environment, surrounded by people with similar interests to me. It was really refreshing to be surrounded by such a multicultural group of people and to see how well we were all able to communicate and work together.
The placement was challenging because it didn't turn out to be exactly what it was advertised as, and numerous people (including myself) felt quite cheated by this. I eventually quit the placement because I disagreed with the way they were misleading us. The whole experience was quite frustrating as they would not accept their mistakes or do anything to correct them. However, it taught me to negotiate in a different language and gave me an insight into how Spain works as a whole.
I definitely used the language skills which I have been learning on my course, in order to communicate with the locals.
I don't think my placement has drastically changed my thinking about my future career choice, but it has definitely confirmed that I would like to work in the creative industries in the future.
I would advise students to look for placements which have reviews from other students, so you can hear what it is really like before you get there. And if you find yourself in an unsatisfactory placement, try to look at the good things that you can take from the experience, and all of the extra skills you have learnt through that experience, rather than focusing on the negatives.
Form completed: 31 Dec 2017