5-Month Internship Programs | Top Israel Interns

Really amazing experience. I learned a lot at my internship and I had a lot of support from the TII staff. Definitely a great way transition from college to work life. My mentor really challenged me and I feel like I grew not only as a person a professional but also as a person. I can't wait to come back to Israel again. The accommodations- were also great. Everything was practically new and the location was right in the center of everything. During our free time, we chilled on the beach any chance we had.

The program provides very value for its price.
The group was smaller compared to other programs/organisers which made the experience more personal and the staff more approachable.
The TII Staff was great and very supportive of any issues that came across and tried their best to resolve them in a timely manner.

The Placement process:
After the initial phone call to find out more about the program I was assigned to an internship placement coordinator.
After sending over my CV and cover letter we had a call to find out what exactly I am looking for and where I could develop the best.
The coordinator found me the perfect placement within the High-Tech and Life science industry.
She also made sure to explain my commute, as my internship was in Herzliya.

Apartments:
The apartment we stayed in was in South-Central TLV (Florentin). It was bright, modern and was only a short walk away from Rothschild, the Shuk, the Beach and many more interesting places.
We did have some problems with the Wifi but the TII staff was very keen on resolving the issue.

Activities:
TII provided a wide range of activities such as day and overnight trips, career progression programs, volunteering, group Shabbat dinners and many more.
Our Madricha was amazing in providing us with information on extra activities and events happening in the city.

Smaller group compared to other internship programs. In one side is good, because you’ll have more support from the staff, they were always very nice and helpful. But can be bad in the social side as it’s a small group. For me it didn’t change a lot as I already knew a lot of people in Israel. In general the program is very good. Ulpan classes are great, apartments too and the trips are amazing! Placement coordinator are also really good and found me the internship I wanted. If you’re looking for a more personal experience for sure this is the right option.

A unique program that allows you to live as a working Israeli with accommodation in the best locations, very supportive staff and some wonderful trips and activities. A special way to spend a gap-6 months, before or after university.

Regardless of your work interest, there is so much in Israel for you to explore. Should your world be within sports, science, arts or culture the Top Israel Interns team can find a work placement to help improve both your work and life experience. If you want to move to Israel, or simply want to work abroad for a 5 month period, the program immerses you in the heart of Israel's two major cities and takes you on wonderful trips and excursions, allowing you to experience all the very best of what this small -underestimated - country has to offer. Life long friendships are easily made and experiences and memories will be treasured forever.

Amazing experience, I really was placed in a 'top' internship and was given an amazing apartment right in the centre of the city.

The Madricha that was provided by the program was excellent and really made the program what it was. Truly a lot of fun.

Top Israel Interns took us on plenty of well-guided trips that showed us the bulk of Israel. You do get to feel like you're living in Israel and having a proper life in this special place.

I chose to go with Top Israel Interns because my buddy told me that they have the best internships and that they are really there to make sure that you find an internship that is best for you. He couldn't have been more right! I interned at a hospital and learned a lot from my mentor. I only wish I could have had more than 1 mentor so that I could have worked in different departments. Overall, it was a pretty cool experience. The apartment were also really nice and in the center of everything.

I interned at a tech company in Tel Aviv. I learned a lot from my supervisor and co-workers- I really felt like I was apart of the team and that everyone wanted to hear my opinions. I also loved living in the center of Tel Aviv- was really so much fun exploring the city and checking out the music scene. Plus the apartments were pretty nice and cool. I just wish I had had more time to explore the rest of the country and meet more Israelis.

Before coming on the program I was very excited for the unique opportunities Top Israel Interns had to offer, but unfortunately, many of those promises never came true, and we did not receive the programming that was advertised.

INTERNSHIP PLACEMENT
- During the internship placement process, it became clear that I (along with my fellow participants) would have to take our placement process into our own hands. The internship coordinators are NOT helpful. They offered to teach us how to optimize our resumes and cover letters which never happened. Aside from taking weeks to respond to emails, the coordinator responded rudely and simply told me to go to my school’s guidance center to fix my resume, without even telling me what to correct.
- I never heard from her after I found my own internship opportunity.
- There was no internship orientation as was promised

COMMUNICATION WITH STAFF
- I was extremely unhappy with my living arrangements. I had my phone calls avoided and was finally told I could not be moved because they had virtually introduced everyone to their roommates.
- 2 hours later, my only other flatmate at the time was transferred at his request. That was extremely unfair.
- Towards the end of the program, our room was infested with ants, and it took 5 days to get someone to come spray. Until that point, AGAIN, my phone calls were not answered and not returned by the program coordinators. One admitted she did not have authority for certain things that needed to be done.

LIVING ACCOMMODATIONS
- Online there are photos of the newly renovated apartments in Florentine posted, stating that’s where everyone is going to live. It also mentions well maintained lobbies and good security.
- Our apartment had neither security nor a lobby, and was situated on the main floor with our apartment door opening to the street.
- The apartments were run down, lower quality, had recurring mold issues which nobody fixed (we were given spray to take care of it ourselves), broken furniture, broken doors, no AC or air circulation in living rooms/showers/toilets/kitchen/laundry rooms.
- We recurrently got little or no notice that the landlord/someone else/strangers/repairmen were coming into the apartment, and they would come in when we are at work or on a day trip. This made me OVERLY uncomfortable- especially when we found out during a day trip that the exterminator was coming, and I had left personal items and envelopes of money laying around.
- Our living situation was sub-par, and definitely NOT worth the amount of money we had to pay. - We also had to travel to the apartments far away for all programming, some day trips, and the sheets and bedding were delivered there (so we had to carry it all home when all of those folks had it delivered to them). We were totally stranded and forgotten.

PROGRAMMING
- The day trips were advertised on the website as amazing- “the program includes two group Shabbatons (weekends away) which includes rappelling in the north, a tour of the Knesset, ATVs in the desert, a visit to exclusive start-ups and much more”.
- We did NONE of those specified items and did not have either group Shabbaton

DAY TRIPS
- The program hit rock-bottom the day we went to the Dead Sea and an Oasis. The lunch they promised to provide consisted of 1⁄2 a bagel per person because not enough food was supplied. Because of the insane disorganization, we missed our next stop (the Jordan River) to get pizza.
- The website claims that past trips went north for “kayaking, camping, to basketball games, enjoyed sushi nights, chocolate workshops [and] wine festivals”
- we did nothing even closely resembling those fun-sounding excursions
- We were also never taken or given the opportunity to attend any of the “social and cultural events” that were mentioned.

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES
- there were many social activities that we were told we would have that never occurred, such as “pot-lock dinner, professional development workshop, movie night” and “opening and closing sessions as well as a seminar where you learn about Israeli start up and hi-tech culture”.
- TII was also advertised as a program that would offer career advancement workshops regularly, which did not occur. For many of us, that was a huge factor in deciding to participate in this program, and was a huge let-down.

I have also been informed that the 5 month program currently running had Ulpan (hebrew lessons) but only for about 1/2 the amount time they originally promised.

JUST AN AWFUL EXPERIENCE. PLEASE TRY A DIFFERENT PROGRAM.
(I enjoyed onward israel, personally!!)