One of the toughest challenges many new graduates face is to land their first meaningful job related to their studies. A meaningful internship can make a world of difference in a student’s future career prospects.

The Kearny Alliance strives to offer our Scholars internships and career opportunities directly related to their coursework – in both for-profit and non-profit organizations – and in support of our mission of Aid through Trade.

We also provide internships to select non-Kearny Alliance scholar students interested in trade and trade-related social enterprises.

Kearny offers me valuable experiences and brings me closer to my Vietnamese motherland

 

My Vietnamese root & the internship opportunity
I was born in Holland although my parents are Vietnamese. Because of my Vietnamese root, I always desire to learn and understand more about the Vietnamese culture. But most of the questions I got about Vietnam were only answered verbally by my parents, which were hard for me to imagine how they would be in reality. I told myself that I got to find out the answers when growing up.

Being as a student of TMA (Trade Management Asia) in Rotterdam and having the opportunity to do my internship at the Kearny Alliance has never been a better way to help me learn more about Asian trade from Western perspectives and discover my childhood questions about my motherland Vietnam. I am glad the internship opportunity at Kearny Alliance enables me to develop my work experiences and skills and get into the cross cultural exchange with multi-cultural team, which will be useful for my future career and life.

I was introduced to the Kearny Alliance via my Vietnamese teacher of the Rotterdam University. I read about the organization and I was enthusiastic to get involved with the program. Before I started this internship, I thought about my goals I want to achieve. My goals were to learn more about the export program and to improve my Vietnamese speaking skills and experience the Vietnamese working culture compared to the Dutch working culture.

As an intern I have the responsibility to work together with the Program Manager Khiem Vu and Export Consultant Thuy Ho.

Work experience
At the beginning I didn’t know what to expect from this internship, because everything was new for me. As a Vietnamese/Dutch student, I have never worked in Asia before so I was very curious to get involved with this work experience. Kearny Alliance export consultant Thuy Ho explained me step by step how to work a long with the Developing Country Export Assistance Program. I have the opportunity to get in contact with other suppliers and increase my communication skills. Through this information I also had the chance to go to interviews with suppliers that are interested in our program. With this information I wrote company profiles, I created supplier profiles and I helped the suppliers with their export marketing websites on Global Sources Online.

Besides, I was assigned to write several news releases that contain useful information for suppliers I worked with. This task developed my skills in writing, communication and marketing. So, I had a chance to learn and experience the marketing in the Eastern perspective which is very interesting and valuable to me as I can compare that with the marketing sense in the West.

Learning opportunities: Work, culture, language, life
This is my 3rd time in Vietnam but I have never experienced this before. I am already 9 months in Vietnam right now and I learned so much about the culture. During this stay in Vietnam I got more used to this city life.

I have worked with great and inspiring people that helped me think what I want to do in the future. The internship at The Kearny Alliance was a great and a useful experience, because I have managed to develop my skills that will be very useful in my future career.

I’m sure I want to make career in Vietnam one day.

Kearny inspires me to contribute more to Asian trade development

 

As a student at the University of Applied Sciences Rotterdam I had the chance to practice an internship abroad. The study gives you the opportunity to practice an internship in a Vietnamese company abroad which is related to Export & Import. Through my teacher in the Netherlands I got in contact with The Kearny Alliance and so on have worked for 4 months on the Developing Country Export Assistance Program with my lovely colleagues.

In February 2011 I left the Netherlands to begin a complete new experience, to be living a whole year in Vietnam for study and an internship and gaining more knowledge and experience in Asian Business.

After my study at the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City I applied for an internship at the Developing Country Export Assistance Program. The job description really fitted my interest and one of those things was helping the Asian community by creating jobs and alleviate poverty and that together with its mission “Aid Through Trade”. This was my chance to get involved and use the skills I obtained from my study and work in an environment that meets my interests.

When I started at the Kearny Alliance I received a real warm welcome from my colleagues. They immediately wanted me to feel comfortable and understood that working abroad for the first time and working with new people was kind of difficult and a challenge. But when time passed by my colleagues gave me the feeling I was part of the team and invited me also for dinners and celebrations. This was a lot of fun and really appreciated this because now I felt more at ease when working at the office.

My specific tasks were attending interviews, writing suppliers profiles, monitoring suppliers account activity’s, generating buyers inquires, communicate efficiently with suppliers, market research for sourcing reports, publishing press releases and creating jobs. Every two weeks I was given a new subject to focus on. The most interesting part of my tasks was writing supplier profiles and monitoring them online. This was completely new for me because I never wrote any profiles or pieces in English which were being published in important reports or on websites. But when I started writing these profiles I really enjoyed it and gave me the chance to improve my writing skills.

The biggest challenge for me was the market research. The market research was finding information about a Vietnamese industry, analyzing the information and incorporate this in the sourcing report. I was working on the footwear industry and all of the information was old dated or in Vietnamese and it was most of all a lot of information which you have to filter and get the most important and useful pieces out. Most of all my tasks included some marketing, PR, Communication and Business Administration so this was more than satisfying for me because I really have gained a lot of knowledge from the tasks I have been involved in. The people who trained me also inspired me a lot because in the future I really want to get more involved with helping the Asian community combined with trade.

I want to give a big thanks to my mentor Mr. Khiem Vu who inspired me a lot and helped me broaden my horizon and Ms. Thuy Ho for being so helpful and patient.

I have worked with amazing colleagues from Kearny Alliance and Global Sources who most of the time made me laugh but also showed me that working in an Asian environment doesn’t have to be that strict and you don’t have to reckon a lot on hierarchy. It all just depends on what type of workers you have and what kind of boss your dealing with.

I really had a great time working at the Kearny Alliance and gained more insight of working in an Asian environment and international trade. This experience has inspired me in different ways and hope to be an asset for the Asian trade community in the future.

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Kearny Alliance Internship Represents Civic Engagement

Thuy’s positive attitude, cheery disposition and curious, hardworking nature made her a perfect Kearny Alliance Intern.

Hanoi’s Foreign Trade University faculty of Business English not only provides students with knowledge and communication capability in the setting of foreign trade, but creates an appropriate environment for the development of necessary soft skills as well. I was fortunate to work on my graduation thesis with the Vice Dean, who has devoted her time and effort to the faculty students’ development. She introduced the Kearny Alliance internship to me along with many other attractive job opportunities of different aspects.

I am always passionate about a job which challenges myself in return for outcomes beneficial to the community as a whole. Therefore, I decided to apply for the internship in the Developing Country Export Assistance Program because I saw the possibility of visualizing my desired job when learning the organization’s mission and the program’s objectives. In addition, I believed that what I had acquired from my education could meet the internship requirements.

I considered the internship a great chance to learn and better myself, so I made all-out attempts to do each task I was assigned. At first, my task was quite simple since I had only to build up a database of export suppliers across various product lines. My strength was brought into play when I conducted pre-research of a specific industry in Vietnam. This strength owed its root to the project-based structure of my faculty courses which trained students to employ research skill to deal with an issue in group.

The internship became more interesting and challenging when my supervisor, Kearny Alliance scholar alum Karen Pham, explained the tools to support suppliers, gave hands-on training, and let me experience these activities on my own. Accordingly, I assisted the making Vietnam Sourcing Reports by contacting suppliers, interviewing them, and drafting their profiles.

I was also involved in the Developing Country Export Assistance Program plus. My responsibilities were to help suppliers manage their export marketing websites on Global Sources Online and handle inquiries of buyers sourcing through this B2B website. This task allowed me to apply my knowledge of business correspondence and increase my responsiveness to various situations.

Whatever the tasks were, either small or tough ones, they made me feel the sense of civic responsibility when my ability contributed to the social welfare of society. I am really grateful for the supportive atmosphere of the Kearny Alliance team during my internship, which helped me to mature and grow.

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I put my learned theories about Asian culture to the test

The internship gave me insight into working in for an international company in an Asian environment.

Trade Management for Asia (TMA) is an economics / management program that focuses on all needed knowledge towards doing business in or with Asia.

TMA is an international study which besides the theoretical courses and exams offers the possibility to gain experience and develop personal skills through different projects such as export-import projects and more in which students work in assignment of an existing company. In addition, every student needs to choose from the Asian languages: Vietnamese, Mandarin, Japanese, Hindi or Indonesian and will specialize in that language and country for the rest of the study. That will include studying for a semester and doing an internship for about five months in the chosen country.

I selected Indonesian because I believe Indonesia’s economy will grow significantly in the next few years, which means it has many opportunities to offer.

After studying in Lippo Karawaci – which is West of Jakarta – I started searching for internships outside Jakarta. I was dying to see more of the Indonesian culture and get away from all the smog and traffic jams. Another TMA student was already doing his internship at the Export Service Centre in Bali (ESC) and told me that the company was very interesting for a TMA student and offered a good and useful internship.

Those words and the company’s businesses – especially the sourcing and export business – made me decide to apply for an internship at ESC. I expected to get more experience in the export and sourcing business and broaden my network.

Finally, I was assigned to make a market analysis for ESC’s business unit You Shop We Ship (YSWS). Based on the internal and external analysis, I was able to advise YSWS on how to increase the number of customers. Especially the customer and competitor analysis were very important for the company, therefore I put most effort in these aspects. Furthermore, I visited a few suppliers of ESC to get more insight into the sourcing business.

The biggest challenge for me was to combine my own work style with YSWS’ manager’s work style and make a report that satisfies both. At the end of my internship YSWS’ manager let me know she was very satisfied with the work I did. In my report, I summed up all actions needed to be taken, and a possible way of implementing these actions. YSWS’ manager implemented many of these actions and used a lot of aspects from my analysis, which made me very satisfied. 

The internship gave me insight into working in for an international company in an Asian environment. I was finally able to put all my learned theories about the Asian culture to the test. It was very easy for me to adapt to the Indonesian way of working. Also, the people working at ESC were very helpful and open. I gained a lot of new friends at ESC and broadened my network with many useful connections.

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My experience influenced me in the most positive way

Mohammed dreams of getting back to Bali… not for a holiday, but to start his career.

How I came to be in Asia
For my study I chose Trade Management Asia because I always wanted to move from Holland. This study gave me the opportunity to go to Asia. The reason why I chose Asia is because Asia is the future, or maybe it already is.

The other reasons have more to do with the culture, values and other aspects from the society.

The internship opportunity
First, I applied to many companies, mainly in Jakarta. But I also got the email about the Export Service Centre from a lecturer at the Rotterdam Business School. For me, it was important to do an internship in an international environment where the core business is marketing and/or import-export. ESC is an international organization and it exports to many places, so it was a perfect fit.

I interned with the You Shop We Ship (YSWS) business unit because that was the department on which I could contribute my knowledge about marketing. YSWS handles the whole logistic process, but also setting up marketing activities for the future in order to expand its business.

The work experience
My specific task was to write a marketing plan for the European market, or at least the most important countries for Europe. At that time this was Holland, Germany, France and the United Kingdom.

The purpose of the plan was to find new markets or ways to increase the sales for YSWS. First, I had to find out which markets/countries were interesting for YSWS and why. I did this by analyzing the behavior of the customers of these countries. After this was finalized, the communication plan could be set up.

The overall task I was handling had a lot to do with my marketing coursework. Each project I did, Marketing was included. My previous study was named Marketing & Communication and now it is Trade Management Asia. In other words, I had Marketing for 7 years in total.

Learning opportunities: Work, culture, language, life
The thing I learned during my time at ESC, had more to do with the working culture. It was more important to deliver quality work, and it didn’t matter how that was be achieved. For me, this is a great advantage compared to Holland.

With some colleagues, I usually went to the clubs during weekends with the intention to create a strong mutual relationship, both local and foreign.

I already spent seven months in Indonesia before starting my internship at ESC. This means the most interesting stories or challenges happened during the first half of the year. When I started at ESC, I was already acclimatized.

My internship at ESC influenced me in a way that I will go back to Bali after my graduation for sure. Not for holiday, but in order to find a job to start my career.

It can be concluded that my experience influenced me in the most positive way.

I had a great time during my internship. I learned a lot about people, methods of working, and the most important thing is that I learned a lot about myself.

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Bali is a different world. Every day, I learned a bit more

Hilletje (2nd from the left) with her  colleagues and friends at Uluwatu!	Intern	Hilletje Hulsman
	Country	The Netherlands
	Home Town
	University	University of applied sciences Amsterdam - Amsterdam Business School Communication Management
	Program	You Shop We Ship
	Internship	Export Service Centre - Communication employee
	Location	Bali, Indonesia
	Year	3rd Year

The internship opportunity
I signed up with an agency that arranges internships in Asia. Through it, I came in contact with Export Service Centre Bali.

The Export Service Centre is a full trading company that helps buyers worldwide source from the best suppliers in Indonesia. They gave me the opportunity to learn about the sourcing and shipping process and I would be working in a diverse team.

The work experience
Since I’m a communications student, I was my responsible for several tasks related to my study. I worked on the external communications: Improving the website, working on advertisements etc… Besides that, I worked on internal communications.

Learning opportunities: Work, culture, language, life
As I expected, Bali is a different world. A different culture with different people and different food! Every day, I learned a little bit more.

I worked together with great people and I felt really welcome. My colleagues and local friends were very helpful and taught me some Bahasa Indonesia words! In my spare time, I went rafting with the other interns of Export Service Centre. I also loved to explore Bali, watching the beautiful sunset at the beach and learning to surf.

After a while, I got more and more used to the Bali island life and after 6 months it really felt like my second home and I had a hard time leaving.

Aku cinta Bali and I hope to be back soon!

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It was a great experience, I will benefit from it my whole life

Lia having a drink at world-famous Jimbaran Beach on Bali’s west coast.

The internship opportunity
I applied for an internship at the Export Service Centre in Bali, Indonesia – a social enterprise of the non-profit Kearny Alliance.

The Export Service Centre is a full trading company that helps buyers worldwide source from the best suppliers in Indonesia. They gave me the opportunity to learn about the sourcing and shipping process and I would be working in a diverse team.

The work experience
The Export Service Centre team had about 20 Indonesian staff and two Dutch. The direct beneficiaries are all local small-scale producers of handmade goods. The customers are mostly foreigners (Dutch/French/Belgium etc); therefore, I had the chance to work with lots of nationalities. I mostly worked for the marketing manager. My main activities were assisting with contact for Dutch speaking customers, set up mailings for them and administrative tasks.

The customers I worked with were mostly tourists who bought products, like statues and furniture, in Bali and came to ESC to arrange transport for these products to Europe. They came to the office or we visited them at their homes. I discussed the shipping process, the address information of the retail shop and the delivery address, the transport price, the time of arrival etc. I also worked with potential customers who asked for the tariff of shipping to Europe; I provided them with information about the options and prices.

The mailing I worked on was a special Christmas/New Years action for regular customers. Because ESC existed 5 years, we offered to pay the personal documents for the next shipment and also a discount if they shipped above a certain measurement. I have noticed that a lot of customers really appreciated the fact that they could communicate in their own language. It is easier to arrange something important like the shipment of your brought products, in your own language, or a language you are fluent in, especially if you are in a foreign country where you don’t know the habits and rules.

During working on these tasks I could practice a lot of the theory I studied during my study. For example how to work with customers; how to have a sales pitch, how to communicate in a foreign language and how to communicate with customers.

Learning opportunities: Work, culture, language, life
I definitely learned a lot from this experience. It was challenging for me to work in an Indonesian working environment. I only had experienced a Dutch working climate. It was a challenge to get used to the culture, the habits and the rules in a company active in Indonesia.

When I came in Bali, I directly rented a scooter, but the first week I was really afraid to drive it; the traffic is crazy there; nothing compared to The Netherlands. For me, it seemed like there we no rules at all! But after several weeks I figured they had some rules, but you just had to know them, to see them! Later on, I really enjoyed riding my scooter and I really missed it when I was back in The Netherlands.

During this internship I lived in Seminyak, in a room that was rent out by a Balinese family. They rented out 6 rooms, next to their own house. Because I lived so close to them, I could get a great view of their habits: making little offers in the morning, pray for the family temple, a ceremony for the new temple. They were an important part of my time in Bali. If I did not understand something I saw at the street; like a certain ceremony/building etc., I could always ask them, they always tried to explain it to me. Partly because of them I learned so much about the Balinese culture and their religion.

In my spare time I spend most of my time with my neighbor who was also doing an internship in Bali and some other international students who worked or lived in Bali. In the weekends I mostly went to the beach to enjoy the weather, I shopped, take the scooter to visit other places on the island and sometimes we went to see some ceremonies. I also had a friend from Vietnam who came over for two weeks. And I of course, I enjoyed the Balinese nightlife.

During this internship, I had a great experience; I made new friends, I got insight in other cultures, I learned to understood actions and habits of other cultures and countries, I got new insights in life and the way of living. It was a great experience, I am sure I will never forget it and I will benefit from it my whole life.

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Kearny programs are very practical programs

My internship with Kearny Alliance gave me a lot of insight into what sustainable development really means and what does and does not work in terms of aid.

Sometimes Western countries have had the belief that they could solve issues with solutions that made sense from a Western perspective. For instance, I worked on a feasibility study for a job creation program in East Timor. The United Nations and other development organizations have put millions of dollars into East Timor and yet unemployment in the capital remains at nearly 90%.

What is needed is a real holistic approach to the complex issues in East Timor in which solutions are crafted in conjunction with the community and that also allow people the dignity and pride of helping themselves. It has to be from the bottom up and not the top down.

Kearny programs are very practical programs that focus on what I call social entrepreneurship. Instead of handing out monies, Kearny offers services, training and development - but it is up to the individual to use his/her entrepreneurial skills to work for them.

Kearny does this in conjunction with partners whether the community, other NGOs, government entities, businesses and educational institutions. Kearny helps bring all the players together so everyone has ownership to the problems, the solutions and ultimately to the successes of creating lasting jobs for people and their families. Good business and international sustainable development should not be antagonistic forces.

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Working for Kearny Alliance was extremely rewarding

Kearny truly attests to my belief that when you give a man a fish he eats for a day, but when you teach him to fish, he eats for a lifetime.

It is this type of model that truly effects sustainable economic and social development.

Accordingly, working for Kearny was an extremely rewarding experience—not only was I able to lend my expertise and see quantifiable results, I also had a rich educational encounter. In fact, I was able to (in conjunction with 90 other Masters’ level students from about 40 countries) produce a report that was based on a three-week session at the United Nations Office in Geneva (the 41st Graduate Study Program).

The theme of the program was “New Ways and Means to Strengthen the United Nations’ Capability for Collective Action.” In the report, I shed light on the importance of trade and practical program implementation that involves the collaboration of the entire UN system, NGOs, the corporate environment and private entities—a framework within which Kearny already operates.

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Kearny Alliance helped me give back to Cambodia

It is such a great thrill to be doing my Kearny internship in Cambodia with DigitalDivideData (ddd).

My family origins are Cambodian and I came to the United States as a child as part of the Cambodian refugee resettlement. With my skills acquired in the business world and through my MBA studies, I wish to give back to Cambodia.

DigitalDivideData operates with a simple model that is dramatically changing the lives of Cambodian residents.

By offering international clients outsourced data services, numerous jobs are being created, thus empowering disadvantaged individuals—who would otherwise remain jobless—by providing them with above average wages, education, and healthcare benefits.

Simply put, empowering them with hope and human dignity. Thanks to Kearny, DDD is expanding its operations to rural Cambodia and Laos. I have been involved in improving the DDD operations, human resources, sales and marketing.

It is exciting to see DDD reach financial self- sustainability (operating costs are covered by income generated) as this means the potential of creating even more jobs.