Very cool opportunities in Germany
Another
rainy February day in Schwabenland, Southwest Germany, and you would be
forgiven for thinking that SA exchange student Tori Ingham would have a
long and aching yearning for a hot day and a suburban Adelaide beach.
But instead of returning to Australia at the end of her exchange placement at Nuertingen-Geislingen University (HfWU), Ingham opted for a northern winter and an exciting internship with the Grafenberger Rampf Group.
Tucked away in a tiny village close to the beautiful South German Mountains, she has been working for two months in the marketing department at Rampf, a leading global service provider in the field of plastic polymer chemistry.
And there is a touch of the pioneer about Ingham. Since the signing of a student exchange agreement between UniSA and HfWU two years ago, Ingham is one of the first students to complete a semester in Germany.
When she graduates from UniSA she will have a degree in Management (Marketing) and International Studies but she believes her skills, professional knowledge and confidence will have been enhanced enormously by the experiences she is having in Germany.
"The study has been great and the internship with Rampf is more than I could have hoped for," Ingham said. "Great, job, great people and I am learning so much."
Organised with the help of the Department of Marketing and International Relations at HfWU, Ingham says the internship is an extra attraction for students who want to make the most of their international study experience.
"The integration of study and engagement in the working world is perfect."
In return local companies have the benefit of students’ English proficiency and for Ingham that has meant designing brochures for the US market, working on their internet marketing, contributing to the organisation of company presentations for trade fairs and doing some global online research on Rampf competitors.
For HfWU the hard work they have invested in "selling" the exchange program to Australian students is starting to pay off.
They say Australia’s affordability, climate and its exotic status with Europeans could have quickly turned the program into a one way street – with lots of German students heading south and few Australians coming to Germany.
But Ingham believes the opportunities available through the HfWU exchange will soon have more and more students considering a semester in Germany.
"This is a very beautiful country and the weather is not as bad as the stereotype – it can be a nice change."
And with even more effort being placed in an expanded internship program for international students and the availability of the international students program where lectures are taught in English, the attractions of HfWU continue to grow.