Ninh Hao

Country of origin: Denmark

Placement: The British Chamber of Commerce

I’m majoring in Management and Spanish and thus chose to spend a full year abroad in South America to improve my Spanish. On top of that, South America is one of the strongest developing markets in the world and I knew that by spending my placement year in the midst of it, I would gain invaluable work experience in a market important to many companies in Europe. Furthermore, the British Chamber of Commerce does exactly that – providing business links between companies in the UK and Chile, which on the large scale impacts both country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

My placement position was as a rotational intern so over the 12 months I was able to work in three separate departments; Web & Publications, Finance and Events. In Web & Publications I was handling and assisting on all major publications and managing and improving the business’s social media presence. I was also on the Chamber’s Education Committee where I handled a new competition presented by the Committee for middle school children; I generated the online inscription tool and handled the selection process.  In Finance I handled membership, budgets and planning and meetings with the accountant. I was also in charge of discounts for the members and the promotion and distribution of said discounts. My last four months in Events, consisted of planning and executing approx. 50 events for the Chamber including high profile Golf and Tennis tournaments, whisky and wine tastings along with multiple seminars, workshops and presentations. Responsibilities included meeting with 3rd parties, planning, promoting, executing and finalizing which required tremendous eye for detail and organization skills.

Throughout the 12 months I single-handedly changed over the company’s email system to “Google Apps for Business” and made sure the transition and final operations ran smoothly without interrupting daily business. I also assisted on a major organizational re-structuring project.

Going on placement was one of the best decisions I could have made. I not only became fluent in the language I was studying but I acquired Business Spanish as well as everyday Spanish and I learned how to communicate in a professional manner both written and spoken. I learned about a new culture, got integrated and thus met people I never thought I’d meet in places I never thought I’d go. Not to mention, the incredible work experience and confidence I gained. Being on your own in a foreign country really teaches you a lot in terms of independence and responsibility. Along the way, the company gives you more tasks, more projects and more responsibility because they too, can see how you’re developing and learning and there’s no better confidence boost than that. Going on placement can also give you an insight into what you want or do not want to spend the rest of your life doing! So you don’t stumble out of university and into the first job that comes your way.

I am currently undecided on what I intend to do when I complete my degree. I am torn at the moment between studying a master’s degree (which was the initial plan) or just working straight away – as I realized on placement how much I enjoy working!