Seoul Internships with Beyond Academy

Had been the most wonderful journey that I have started, with a mix of business development which took place with the company they had places me with and adventure with the other interns in the community and also a lot of randoms haha. Taught me a lot of things throughout the way and also gave me lot to think about within my self. With an substancial amount of self confidence that grew with my time with them, all I can say is it has been insane. Also got to experience a insane amount of culture that’s unseen in the world.

I embarked on this path to boost my CV since my first university year. It could not have been the best choice; the Beyond Academy team has always been present and attentive since the beginning. I left with many doubts and fears since I chose Seoul as the destination for my internship in Marketing, with a different language, culture and mentality compared to Italian and English. However, the Beyond team was not only present but, above all, EXCELLENT. I can never forget Ji Won, Alize, Seona, and Jinyoung, who made me feel at home from day one and organized the best events. Thanks to them, I had fun and learned much about Korean culture. These girls are the heart of Beyond Academy, and I will enjoy spending time with them. As for my internship…..well, I can only say PERFECT. I worked with a great company where I grew and could put myself to the test, bringing many results and satisfaction. This is crucial for all those who have reached this point of my review: this experience may cost a lot, but it will repay you 100% in every aspect. I say this with all the sincerity and honesty in the world, and I know that one day, this investment will pay you back ten times as much.

The internship was great at providing me with a lot of experience and gave me a good insight into culture and how it is to live in the country I interned in. The program activities they provided were a lot of fun. I enjoyed getting the experience and working on my resume as well as on my career in general with the career workshops that were provided in the program. The company that I worked at was also amazing and I was so thankful to the program for taking the internship placement so seriously and helping me get the internship.

Overall, I had a great experience with Beyond Academy's Seoul internship program. First of all, Seoul is a beautiful and vibrant city with so much to do. Therefore, as an intern here, it is impossible to get bored. Especially through the great events organized by Beyond Academy themselves, you will get to see, hear, and taste a lot of what Seoul has to offer. I would say this program is a great way to experience Seoul.

Then there are also the other interns which I feel definitely made this experience for me. Beyond does a great job of creating a sense of community with this program through its events and workshops. This makes it very hard to feel lonely. I especially have great memories of experiencing Seoul's nightlife with the other interns. (Note, however, that you have to be 19 to enter most clubs/bars!) On a related side note to this, I would recommend getting the accommodation through Beyond as you will likely be placed in an accommodation with other interns which further emphasizes this community feeling.

Also, the Beyond Academy team themselves are excellent. They are always available for any questions or concerns and are overall great people to hang out with.

The only small negative I could think of was the work I had to do at the internship itself. I felt like the tasks I got at my host company were a bit too easy and sometimes they did not have any tasks for me at all. Speaking to other interns, I noticed they had similar complaints, ranging from the internship not aligning with their expectations to not enjoying the tasks they were given. This is not entirely Beyond Academy's fault as I chose this internship myself but they did give me a sense of urgency to choose quickly and to just accept the internship given. It made sense why they told me this though, as I was quite late with applying. So, as advice to people interested in pursuing this program, make sure to apply early so you have plenty of time to pick a company you truly feel happy with. Also, make sure to research your host company well and perhaps clearly ask your interviewer what the tasks are that you will be performing. I must say that I still really enjoyed the internship! The overall vibe at the company was very chilled and I had lovely colleagues.

So I went to Seoul this summer for an internship in marketing. I want to preface to say that I had a lovely time; I was put in a good place to stay, in a safe area, and had a fulfilling internship. I very quickly was given the opportunity to make friends and to continue those friendships twice a week doing events that were actually quite fun (most all of the coordinators are college students in my age range and decide were we go, so it’s kind of a local experience as well). I literally felt lonely only once, and it was on my first night- but I was jet lagged so it didn’t matter. However, I will go into detail on the internship/process.

The way it worked was I made sort of a resume (and there was a lot of content given to me to make a proper resume, so all the interns were given pre-departure help; I didn’t use much of it, but I heard from others it was useful), and it was given out to companies who then reached out to me for an interview. I was frustrated in the beginning because when they find a company for you to intern at, everything goes really fast and it might feel a bit difficult to say no (for me it did). I found that you have to feel out your companies (from little information because most are startups) and stand firm if you feel you won’t gain anything from the company you’re interning at. Remember YOU are PAYING for an internship (a lot of money at that lol), get exactly what you want. There weren’t many problems in this internship experience (like at all), but this was the biggest: a lot of interns felt they were giving up 6-8 hours of their trip abroad to sit around and correct some English mistakes or do a job that didn’t necessarily fit what they wanted to do. Tbh, that is essentially what you will be doing in most entry level internships, but unless you do fashion or photography, you are there to do English corrections/ work that involves English. This is the type of internship that looks better on a resume- or for the personal experience- than it actually was to complete. Most interns went on company trips or to conventions, but don’t expect to be next leveling your work experience. Also, no one found a problem with using English in their company, but be aware that you are going to a literal different country that does not speak English, the language barrier is still there.
So the way I’ve decided to think about my internship abroad was that I had 2 weeks of vacation and 6 weeks of working (I did an 8 week program).

I’d also like to quickly touch on the housing and the bank transfer. Yes, you do have to do a bank transfer; no, you cannot use a credit card. I’ve never had to do a bank transfer in my life, and I was trusting any diety that would listen to not be scammed by a random internship company. I was not, but be aware that to pay for this internship you will have to do a bank transfer. The housing also is an added cost that- for Seoul specifically!!- I felt was not worth it, necessarily. Most interns do the paid accommodations (like me), but Seoul is super cheap to get housing for. Just get some place in Hongdae or Shinsa or Dangsan. That’s were you’ll be put anyways, and it’s like almost a thousand dollars cheaper. Also the housing you’re put in Shinsa (guerillaz) is literally surrounded by love motels (it is what it sounds like). Dangsan was great though- that’s where I lived- and the accommodation pros were the ease to a station and being surrounded by many of the other interns (which I knew very well from the weekly get togethers that are built into the program).

Anyway, the review is getting long, but I just remember having like 0 information available when I searched up the company. It’s a legit company, but it’s just not as popular in America (but it is popular in Europe). I hope this helps you!! Despite all I wrote, I would recommend doing this over a study abroad. Mainly because you ARE given professional help and you feel more “adult” and independent going to work and doing cool company culture things. I know way more about Korea because I was forced to interact with locals than in a study abroad where I would stick to other English students.
Have a great time!!

What I enjoyed the most out of this experience was getting to meet such a diverse, welcoming group of people. The other interns always brought great energy to events and it felt nice to know that others were going through similar experiences and challenges because then we could solve them together. The Seoul community team also does a great job of being a mentor but also a friend, like the interns. It really makes for a comforting environment that cannot be replicated. There are talks of us meeting one another in the future and I’m definitely looking forward to that! I think this internship helps with making global and long lasting friendships.

Going abroad for an internship sounds as exciting as it is terrifying, but BeyondAcademy and its team helped to completely dissipate any fears I had. Staying in a city as big and as culturally significant as Seoul, I was terrified at first of everything, be that getting around, communicating with others, respecting social norms I may not be aware of, or any other fears someone new to a country might face. Thankfully, BeyondAcademy’s Seoul community was so warm, inviting, and helpful, I never hesitated to ask for help or clarification. Welcoming me with gifts to help me settle in, occasionally checking up in between the busy days of work, and of course the thoughtfully organized weekly activities were just some of the factors that made me feel not so alone. Getting to experience a fashion internship in Seoul, which was nothing but exhilarating, would not have been the wonderful experience that it was, without the kind community and its coordinators around me.

I did a 6 month internship through beyond and I felt like I got a lot out of it. I feel like it is more beneficial if you go for a longer period of time because you get to experience more while you are in Seoul. I really enjoyed all the activities that were planned. Also, my internship was enjoyable and I learned a lot from it over the 6 months. It is was a bit hard to adjust at first, but after a couple of weeks or so I found myself becoming more comfortable especially with the rush hour subway journeys to and from work.