AIFS Abroad Reviews

I was able to do an internship aboard through Global Experiences my junior year and the experience was amazing. I was able to travel around Ireland (and the UK), meet some incredible new friends as well as expand my resume through hands-on work experience.

When I returned from my internship in Ireland, and graduated the next summer, I was asked about my internship in every interview I went into. My internship, coupled with some other experience throughout my college experience, helped me land a job after college. I loved being able to experience what life is like outside of college and moving to a new country gave me the confidence to move to a new city after graduating.

The Irish culture is amazing. The people are friendly, the landscapes are awesome and I would go back in a second.

London 2012 with GE was my second internship experience in GE. I would recommend the program to anyone who wants to develop their resume and professional contacts.

Housing:
A good chunk of the GE's fee goes to housing; the London program featured NEW central London apartments in an extremely safe neighbourhood. You get what you pay for; central London is expensive and living closer to the job saves you quite a bit with London's infamous transportation costs. The building that was selected had high security (Which the last program had as well) and impeccable facilities.

If you like a good party and the hustle of the city don't think twice about living in central London. Getting back home after a night out is a breeze when you live in the centre of the city.

Support:
The staff at GE is very good at the jobs that they do. Their records on your program and progress are always updated so that almost all staff members can get quickly acquainted with case and answer questions. If you have an issue and need a response, the office is incredible at getting back to you.

I also had a quick turnaround time with my placement and visa process. This is part of the process with getting a UK work visa (it does suck). I also wanted something very specific (Environmental policy research) so I waited longer than some in the program. GE promises to get you position and they don't pick cruddy placements so have faith in the wait. Always keep in mind that GE works with real employers to hire you; getting hired depends on the market and your qualifications.

Facilities:
The best thing about the London program is Melissa (On site GE rep). Melissa is a fountain of knowledge when it comes to resumes, cover letters, and interviews. As a graduate looking for employment I found Melissa's advice and willingness to help to be one of the BEST points of the program.

Fun:
The summer group was amazing. Since everyone lived together it was so easy to make plans and connect with people in a very alienating city. The GE events are well planned and are an easy way to see other parts of London or England. The fun you have is dependent on you; there was rarely a dull moment so it was up to us to seize the day.

Safety:
The building had such a high level of security it is almost an annoyance. High security buildings seem to be the norm in GE programs and it is well worth the cost. It was reassuring to see resident advisers in the dorms because the group was so large and it is always nice to be able to pick up the phone and talk with Melissa if anything with work or life went awry.

<p>I had a tremendous experience with my Paris internship which consisted of me working at the National Institute of Sport Expertise and Performance. While there were many highlights for me in Paris, one that stood out for me was how well my GE matched my interests and major with an opportunity in a foreign country. The internship was exactly what I was looking for and also became a huge resume builder for me.</p>
<p>I had a full time internship while I was in Paris and a very friendly host family that cooked me amazing meals three nights a week.</p>
<p>What many people should realize when they do an internship in a foreign country is that its not like a study abroad. When you study abroad you are surrounded by other students who generally speak the same language as you and you are being taught in a class by professors. This was an amazing experience because I was in the workforce and fully immersed in a foreign culture with a foreign boss. It was very exciting and while it made me a little nervous at first I soon realized that not only was GE making sure everything went smoothly for me, the people that I worked with were also very understanding and accepting.</p>

I had always wanted to travel to Ireland growing up. I have never thought that an opportunity would arise for me to have an internship in Dublin. It is the summer that I will never forget! I was able to meet people and gain valuable knowledge that will always be with me. My internship was with a small boutique hotel in Dublin. The people I worked with during that summer not only taught me about working in a hotel, but they also taught me to enjoy every moment. They made my experience at work so much fun! The program helped me realize that Hospitality was what I really wanted to do. There are so many people in the Global Experience group that I will always remember and will always stay in touch with. The internship and friends that I made in Dublin are something that will always be with me!

Ireland is where my family heritage lies. I've always wanted to go and interact with the people and see the breathtaking countryside. None of it disappointed. The people of Ireland are truly kind-hearted and generous and the land is something I often think back to fondly. My internship was not the exact placement I'd hoped for. I wanted something geared more towards fine art, but ending up at a wedding and portrait photographer ended up helping me get a part-time job back in the states. So, while I didn't get to be as creative as I'd hoped my boss was very kind and the environment was respectful and educational. I made the best of my situation and used free time at work to educate myself further on photo editing programs. I never had a "bad day" at work. After my relaxing day of work I would have plenty of free time to experience Dublin. My boss was also very understanding of the few days I was late when I got on the wrong bus as well as a couple days I took off when I got a little sick. All in all I enjoyed my program and would definitely do it again if I could.

I had a wonderful experience at my internship. I loved every minute of it and got to do a variety of things from immigration work, to a few estates to a murder trial. This internship was the reassurance I need that I am destined to be a lawyer.

I thoroughly enjoyed my internship in DC in Summer 2012. We were situated in the heart of DC, Foggy Bottom, 10 minutes away from the White House! We were staying in student housing so you got to meet a range of people, all of whom were undertaking internships as well!
The transport system is great to get around the city, the metro is so easy! My daily trip down to Capital South would take me about 20 minutes including my usual morning trip to Starbucks. There is so much to do in DC and after being there a week it really will start to feel like home! I would recommend Global Experiences, they really listen to what you want to do, but it is your internship and only you can make the most of your 8 weeks!

I enrolled in this program for summer 2012 and had the most incredible experience. The communication was great and received my placement shortly after being accepted into the program. The accommodation was in a nice area and support staff helped me out whenever I needed anything. I really enjoyed my job and gained a lot of real world experience in the marketing field. I highly recommend this program for a truly life changing experience, plus it's a good resume booster.

Global Experiences is by far the worst company I have ever dealt with. From the start there was little to no helpful communication. Once they got their money.. all $7,000 of it, the communication seemed to slowly disappear. There was no help coming into Barcelona either. No help on how to get to the residence, what was expected, etc. To start, our accommodation was bottom level garbage. The rooms were unfairly small, the kitchen was full of mold and the bathroom was always flooded, muddy or left with no toilet paper, there was no food provided even though most of the other students in the building received food that was made in the building. The Spanish school only cost about $200 so I don't understand where my money went. The only thing about my program that I loved was my job. It was amazing and I couldn't have asked for a better company. Once I told my bosses about my experience with Global Experiences they declared they would never use Global Experiences again.

The problems got so bad that when we (we being all 10 students of our program) complained about our accommodation and how we were being treated, they ignored us, treated us disrespectfully and in the upmost unprofessional manner. They threatened my job only because I asked for the cost breakdown. From then I had not spoken one word with the Global Experiences home office. I feel mistreated, taken advantage of and robbed of $7,000. With the extensive amount of programs offering internships abroad I would rank Global Experiences on the bottom.

I chose GE because I wanted to Intern abroad rather than study. Their Student Affairs guy, Alex, was the first person I talked to. He was incredibly nice and very helpful. He made me feel like that's how the whole process would go. There would be webinars to prepare me, yadda yadda yadda. I signed up for the program in July of 2011 to travel summer 2012. I didn't hear from anyone at GE again after the payments started rolling in. I thought "well it's still a long way away. Maybe there's not much I can do right now." They made me feel like I had to secure my spot in the London program NOW or I wouldn't get to go (because of the Olympics). So that's what I did.

After a whole semester of basically nothing happening (not hearing from anyone at GE, not knowing WHEN I would be placed in an internship, nothing), I emailed Alex and asked him what I should be doing right now. He directed me to this portal where there was a million bajillion things of paperwork for me to do. Cool... so I did the paperwork. It's now Spring and I still don't have an internship. This is important because I can't apply for my UK Visa until I have an employer to list on the application...so after waiting and waiting, I FINALLY get my first interview in LATE APRIL. I leave June 8th... this is really pushing it, but it's still doable. I interviewed with this employer and one other employer before being placed in my internship on May 12th...3 weeks before I should be on a plane to London.

I scramble to get all of the ridiculous Visa requirements done, while also taking finals and finishing out my school year, and get everything mailed off to the UK Border Agency 5 days before I'm supposed to leave. I had to pay extra to have it overnighted (GE didn't cover that) and pay to have the Visa rush processed (GE didn't cover that either). I'm not sure why I was made to feel like I needed to jump on signing up for this program LAST JULY if I wasn't going to be able to move forward with anything until the last possible minute. In case you wondering...no I didn't get to London on my originally scheduled flight. I had to pay US Airways another $300 to change my flight, I lost an entire week in London and at my Internship (I asked if I could be moved to second session so I didn't lose any time and they said no). I was not offered to be reimbursed for my flight change or offered to stay an extra week (even though I paid for it) and other people were offered both of those things.

My time in London was fine. I had fun, but I worked a lot. To anyone out there considering interning abroad...think really hard. I prefer working to going to school, but it really doesn't leave a lot of time for just relaxing and enjoying the country you're in. My company was nice enough to give me a week off at the end of my internship so I got to see everything I wanted to see before I left.

Once I got to London, Melissa, my GE coordinator, was pretty good. She was helpful whenever she could be, etc. But most of the time, we were all on our own figuring everything out by ourselves.

If I were you (assuming "you" are a college student seeking an internship for school credit or just wanting to study abroad for school credit) I would go through my study abroad office at my university and do whatever they recommend. I did this all on my own and it was an epic fail.