Summer in Singapore: Don’t Panic
How should someone with no work experience that doesn’t speak another language and has never been to Asia spend their summer? What’s better than doing an 8-week internship in Singapore?!
I’m Sam, and I’m that someone that’s about to embark on an incredible journey to Southeast Asia as a part of the Smith School’s Global Internship Program. Besides that, I’m also a rising junior at UMD studying Marketing and Operations Management & Business Analytics. My time at Maryland thus far has taught me a lot of things, one of the most important being to never let opportunity pass you by. While I’ve given you some reasons to think this summer will be a challenge for me, I have never been more excited for something in my entire life. I first learned about the Global Internship Program in the fall of my sophomore year and immediately knew I wanted to be a part of it.
For those who don’t know, the Global Internship Program entails a 1-credit pre-internship course taken at UMD, followed by a 6-credit guaranteed internship abroad. If the word ~guaranteed~ wasn’t enough incentive for me, especially given the increasingly competitive nature of landing summer internships, ~abroad~ surely did it. When deciding what country I wanted to work in, I was drawn to Singapore by its booming business, youthful spirit, fashionistas, and arguably most important – it’s English-speaking residents. Not to mention this opportunity would allow me to grow both personally and professionally while interning in a different culture.
Speaking of culture, it’s hard to know exactly what to expect in Singapore and I think this is the source of both my nervousness and excitement. It’s hard to say how this summer will go, but there’s only one way to find out! T-3 days until I fly out and only time will tell…
Singapore, a.k.a. The Lion City, is located next to Malaysia in Southeast Asia and is one of the smallest countries in the world. Despite its small size, this beautiful country is jam-packed with tasty street food, jaw-dropping architecture, and exciting nightlife. Catch me there next week!