The best post-graduation decision I could have made.

From a very young age, I dreamed of going to South Africa. Before summer would arrive, I would go to my parents, and show them brochures of student programs I had requested to receive in the mail, and of course -- every year their answer would be no. They thought I was too young and that South Africa was far too unsafe.

After many years, of trying to convince my parents, I finally decided that I would go to Cape Town the summer after I graduated from college no matter what -- even if that meant postponing my job hunting. Of course, my parents were not very thrilled. Like any parents, they had safety concerns and were worried about me finding a job after graduation. In hindsight, these should not have been worries -- since Connect123 provided me with work experience that has become a talking point in almost all interviews, and provided me with the knowledge and support to easily navigate Cape Town.

Overall, Connect123 was able to find me an internship that fit my interests and backgrounds to a tee -- something I could have never done had I gone through the application process alone. I worked at a startup where I also gained more of an insight into South Africa's booming entrepreneurial culture.

On the side, because Connect123 hosts plenty of students from all over, I was able to easily make friends and meet people who would be willing to explore Cape Town and the rest of South Africa with me. We abseiled down Table Mountain, hiked Devil's Peak, travelled through South Africa's Garden Route where we went on an elephant encounter and crept through caves. We organized a trip to Kruger, and I even explored South Africa's neighbor, Namibia.

All in all, if you are having some of the same concerns I was having before I left, my advice to you would be to just go. You will gain much more work and life experience than you will ever gain in two months' time.