Program Reviews

It was a bit of a rash decision to intern in Barcelona with Connect-123. I was already spending two months in Spain, so I figured I mind as well round out my summer travels with an internship in Barcelona. Well, the month I spent in Barcelona did not "round out" my summer, it made my summer!

It is impossible to summarize my experience in a testimonial. My internship placement was exactly what I was hoping for. It challenged me everyday as I produced marketing content and communicated in a spanish speaking business environment. I discovered new skills and gained self-confidence. It was exciting and invigorating... Now I feel I can take on the world (or at least my next job/internship).

I cannot recommend Barcelona enough. I am mentally prepared to pack up and move to this amazing city for good! I lived in a great neighborhood with vibrant locals who often held live-concerts right outside my window. I lived close enough to run to the beach in the morning and watch the amazing sunrise. Barcelona feels like a big city because it has so much to offer. Yet, it's small enough to feel like home.

And finally, Connect-123 lived up to the name by connecting me with other interns who are now lifelong friends. Coming from vastly different countries and cultures, my friends inspired me every day. We learned from each other's experiences and celebrated our differences. I truly believe that meeting people from around the world can broaden your perspective on life. We met in a paella cooking class organized by Connect, but soon we were inseparable and organizing our own adventures such as hiking Montserrat and exploring beaches of la Costa Brava. I am saddened to leave Barcelona behind, but I take solace in knowing that it is only goodbye for now. Thanks to my internship, my friends, and all the adventures, I have fallen in love with this city. I know I'll be back again one day!

Barcelona is your next trip! If it's not, change your travel plans immediately and get on a flight to Spain!
Bursting with vibrant culture and nightlife as well as some of the kindest people in the world, Barcelona is the place to be. Not to visit, but to actually live, and with my internship through Connect 123, I had the opportunity to truly experience life as a real "Barcelonese." I was able to intertwine myself into the culture and the language for a full immersion experience filled with new friends, personal discovery, and unbelievably delicious food!

However, while living abroad changes you (usually for the better!), I still felt like myself throughout the entire experience because my internship was so tailor-made to fit my personal interests and strengths. I believe I was able to get a lot out of this opportunity because my work was so closely tied and reflective of my personality that I could learn and grow in the areas I wished to improve upon in order to succeed. The internship was valuable to my future career because it allowed me to test the waters of what a life in this field would consist of and now after completing my program with Connect 123, I'm diving in headfirst!

Connect made my internship and trip abroad possible! I loved my time in Buenos Aires, and Connect provided support throughout my time there. Paula helped me explore the city and with any questions I had. I had a wonderful apartment, internship and made amazing friends through Connect. I traveled with Connect on my gap year and it was an incredible program. I would highly recommend Connect123 and Buenos Aires!

Connect-123 have done a good job in setting me up with an internship that matches my academic background. They were very helpful in making sure I got the chance to talk well with the host organization before taking the internship. For my internship I was working outside of Buenos Aires, so I did not get to spend a lot of time with other interns or participate in the activities, but whenever visiting BA they were keen to connect me with other interns.

Right from the start I felt welcomed into my marketing internship experience. The first day I jumped right into hands-on tasks and learning the ins and out of the company. I was able to achieve a lot for the company and learned a ton of skills that I'm now taking with me to look for a career.

I have learned a lot through my internship, but also through the city I have explored and the people I have met. Highly recommend! The staff is awesome and the people are so friendly. I truly enjoy going to Connect events, as well as my internship. I wish I didn't have to leave so soon!

My work place was walking distance from where i was living so every day i would be able to walk through beautiful Buenos Aires to my internship, and it is beautiful. My work place were encouraging of me getting around and seeing beautiful Argentina and therefore flexible with my work times. The work experience its self was really great. i was given trust and responsibility through my time there and felt like i was truly helping to make a difference. Everyone was so friendly and through Connect 123 i made some friends fro life who truly made the journey a wonderful one.

This is the first time I have travelled alone and lived in a foreign country. Connect 123 not only gave me such an amazing opportunity as a pre-med student to work with children at a public hospital but also helped me prepare everything I need (such as housing) before my arrival, picked me up and made sure I was comfortable when I arrived and met up with me during my stay to make sure everything is ok (you have a lot of freedom so it's not like they were constantly on your back). Katie and Paula, especially Paula, were so friendly, and helpful. Also you become really close with other Connect123 interns because there are a lot of social events when you are not working.

The biggest difficulty is the spanish. I knew basic spanish beforehand but in Buenos Aires, especially where I worked, no one spoke english and spoke Spanish really quick. It is definitely a challenge, but it forces you to really learn and speak the language. The people there are understanding and nice to foreigners as well. I worked every morning, weekdays. When I was not working, I explored Buenos Aires which is a very fun city and has a crazy nightlife. On the weekends/holidays I travelled Argentina.

This entire experience is a win/win. I gained valuable work experience in a hospital while learning another language, and also managed to travel and meet new friends from all over the world.

My experience with Connect-123 in Cape Town was absolutely amazing and the best 3 months of my entire life. I was terrified going to South Africa by myself and not knowing anyone, but Connect-123 made the transition into life abroad extremely easy and helped me get acclimated into my everyday life in Cape Town. Connect-123 offered lots of awesome events throughout the program that allowed us to see the real culture of South Africa and got us out and about in the city.

I've traveled quite a bit in other countries around the world and I have to say that other cities pale in comparison to Cape Town. Cape Town is my absolute favorite city in the entire world. The city is beautiful and sits nestled in the mountains and looks out to endless oceans. There is an endless list of fun activities to participate in while in South Africa. You can jump off the world's highest commercial bungee jump, shark cage dive, see exotic animals on a safari, go for incredible, breathtaking hikes and go surfing. It's the perfect place for anyone seeking an adventure.

On top of all this Cape Town has a fascinating, empowering history, which you cannot escape while living in the country. In addition to all of this, the food is incredible! I'm not kidding when I say I ate the best meals of my life while in Cape Town. Those who say you need to travel to Italy to eat amazing food, obviously have not been to Cape Town. The city is filled with a vast variety of different restaurants and markets that are to die for! My roommates and I basically spent every weekend exploring the Old Biscuit Mill market.

In terms of my work experience in Cape Town, Connect-123 set me up with the most amazing internship! I loved going to work every day and I felt I gained incredible hands-on experience. My internship was in the exact industry I want to pursue a career in, so it was seriously-spot on! Also, my co-workers in Cape Town basically became my family there. They were fully invested in making sure I was situated and enjoying my time in Cape Town and at work. At the end of my internship, I was offered the opportunity to continue writing for their global website once I headed back home. My internship in Cape Town will without a doubt help me professionally in my future.

If you are debating whether or not to take advantage of an opportunity of going abroad, I can not stress enough how rewarding and life-changing an experience like this can be. No matter where you want to go, travel opens up many doors and helps you see the world in a different perspective. My experience in Cape Town has definitely opened my eyes and I'm already looking forward to my next adventure, wherever that may be! Take a leap of faith and I promise you, you won't regret it!

My program experience was pretty good with Connect-123. The program lends itself to a lot of flexibility, depending on your preferences for what type of company or organization you would like to work. I appreciated that they went to great lengths to find an internship with an organization I liked and wanted to work for. I think the thing I was most unprepared for was living IN A CITY. Buenos Aires is HUGE. Coming from a background of suburbs and farmland, this was a huge shock to me and added to the stress of culture shock. I also was not prepared for the smoking. I had issues with people smoking in the house I was placed in, and Connect-123 was not very responsive to my complaints and requests to move housing. They said that I should have informed them of my severe second-hand smoke allergy. The one problem was this - ALL of the housing information I received from the program said their housing facilities are all non-smoking. If given this information, it seems logical to assume that I should not need to specify that I have a second-hand smoke allergy on my applications.
Apart from the smoking, the internship itself was great. I enjoyed working for the non-profit research organization where I was placed, including the people I worked with. The office was small, with only two other people working in my section, but I enjoyed the closeness with my coworkers and the ability to have open communication. However, I would say that I did get lucky in my placement. I spoke with a few other interns in B.A., and some of them were not happy with their placements because their bosses wished they had had a better/higher understanding of the Spanish language. Connect-123 says that it's okay to participate in their internships even if you don't know the native language of the country you're traveling to. Personally, I would recommend not looking in Buenos Aires if you're not in any way familiar with the Spanish language or only have an intermediate level. I was lucky enough to have a boss mostly fluent in English, but others on this program were not so lucky, and this definitely affected their overall experiences.