I am an animal science student from Brazil. The internship arranged for me was in an Australian zoo. Although I had taken an English course before starting the internship, when I first started I was completely lost with the language. After a few weeks working at the zoo every day, I found myself gaining a little more confidence to talk, and I could finally understand Australian slang (at least most of it).
After working a month at the zoo, most of the staff already knew me, and I felt they were starting to lack new tasks for me. One day, among 15 Australian interns, I was called to guide a blind man through the zoo. That day, I saw that my range of vocabulary was terrible. I have asked the blind guy, like a hundred time, if he had already SEEN that or this animal. I could not find a word to substitute the verb to SEE.
Luckily, the guy was completely good tempered. He just laugh at me, and answered that he would love me to take him to hear or to pet the animals. At the end of the day, obviously, I apologized for all the misunderstanding, but he said that was totally ok, that I was such a good guide, and he understood I was a foreign, not yet fluent.
The zookeeper who I was working with that day laugh at me too, and I told her. Although frustrating, the experience was really good for me. I wasn’t used to work with PEOPLE. After that day, I felt I was ready for anything.
What would you improve about this program?
Althoug the internship fit perfectly for me, I have heard a few friends complaining about how they hated the tasks they were asked to, or how they couldn`t see the relation between the internship arranged and their majors at uni.
Maybe Australian internship should bring us more options of internship for us too choose among them. We were told that we have to accept the first offer we got. For me, that worked. For other people, it didn`t.
Response from Australian Internships
Dear Aline,
We apologise for any frustration or disappointment you may have experienced during your internship experience and we are always seeking ways to improve our services and take matters of concern very seriously.
Our records show on multiple occasions our staff tried to assist and address the issues you've raised. Our goal is to ensure a positive and valuable experience for all our interns and if you wish to discuss further we are always available.
We wish you all the best in your future career.
Kind regards, Australian Internships