Program Reviews

Being someone who's always wanted to travel and volunteer abroad but hasn't been able to yet, this was the perfect opportunity to make a global impact, whilst the restrictions remain with the ongoing pandemic. It's created a strong foundation to build upon for when I can go over and volunteer there one day.

The internship is so flexible around any other commitments you may have and being a current university student I found I was able to manage my time between both quite well. It's a fantastic way to immerse yourself and learn about a different culture through a vast amount of resources including culture sessions and guest speakers from Fijian organisations. The ability to choose a social action project from a range of organisations in different sectors gives you no limits and you will definitely find one that suits you and your needs e.g. career field or passions. It was a great way to network with other like-minded people globally and allows you to develop yourself personally and professionally through various transferrable skills.

The TP team and mentors are absolutely amazing and help to push you and challenge yourself to inspire and produce the best outcome for your project. They have such a great energy to motivate you and by the end of the internship you know you'll make a massive difference and help contribute towards the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and Fiji’s National Development Plan.

Overall, a hugely rewarding and a once in a life time opportunity!

The Think Pacific Virtual Internship has been an incredible opportunity in contributing to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and Fiji’s National Development Plan. This gave me invaluable insight into some of the big challenges that NGOs tackle which requires innovation to drive changes within communities.

The best part is of this internship is having the opportunity to immerse yourself in the culture and the challenges within Fiji and implementing everything you’ve learnt into a sustainable action project - gaining plentiful transferrable skills.

Highly rewarding experience and another plus is you have the opportunity to make global connections!

The ability to choose the organisation you want to create an action project for enabled me to choose a cause related to my career aspirations and personal interests. This meant I could really focus my internship to my personal interests, instilling a passion for the work I undertook.

The online virtual portals provided a plethora of information about all aspects of Fiji and Fijian life. This was a great way to feel immersed in the culture without physically being in Fiji itself. I personally found this to be the most interesting and resourceful area of the internship.

Furthermore, I built a good network with my intern cohort and mentors, using group chats and zoom calls.

When I first began the internship I wondered how it would work being virtual and all!.. but I immediately became engaged and emotionally invested in many of the partner organizations causes. The Think Pacific team and the Guest Speakers are so passionate and enthusiastic about the cause - it is really inspirational. I was impressed by how many resources and information is available. I learnt some brand new skills through the informative skills series and developed my own personal skills - I felt more confident for completing the internship. My mentor was always there to give me support and feedback no matter how silly the question! Overall a really rewarding experience!

This experience was an eye-opener in every way. It introduced me to a rich culture like Fiji and inspired me to know more about it. The program itself gave us a lot of flexibility and scope to grow as a person and learn more about the country. The best part of the program was the love and support of the Think Pacific team. Their passion and dedication to the cause made it more worthwhile and a fun activity to work on. Involving myself with the projects made me feel like a served a purpose for the betterment of the Fijian people. Definitely, an experience to remember for me.

During lockdown, this opportunity with Think Pacific gave me a chance to contribute further than my own community, and for that I am grateful. It felt amazing to be part of a bigger picture, while the world was going through such a hard time. I felt incredibly proud of what I contributed to the organisation. My mentor brought the best out of my knowledge and I finished the internship feeling very confident. There were times when I felt over qualified for this virtual internship, but on reflection, that is what actually happened what that this internship give me confidence in my knowledge. I now feel strong in my self which gives me the boost to grasp more opportunities.

This internship provides a great insight into the charity sector which is a fantastic opportunity for those wanting to get involved in this area. This internship offers a unique opportunity to learn more about Fiji, its history and culture, and apply this knowledge to our individual action projects. Really enjoyable experience, definitely recommend to students who are exploring different avenues and are looking to contribute something exciting through the various action projects available. 10/10

This is a great internship to gain experience and also learn a lot about Fiji and its culture. It is especially good because when it comes to the project, you get decide which organisation you will work with and what topic. Given that there are almost 100 organisations to choose from, you are able to tailor your experience to your needs and what skills you want to develop. Alongside this, there is a wealth of resources to support you in your project as well as help you to learn about Fiji and almost everything about it, at your own pace and without even travelling there. Would highly recommend doing this internship.

This is a unique and valuable experience because you are able to learn a lot and make an impact in such a short amount of time. What you learn and what impact you make is also your choice, so you can focus on the things that interest you most and make an impact in areas you want to learn or develop certain skills in. The programme is very well structured and there is a great support network built in. I personally wanted to gain experience in international development and sustainability, and it is quite difficult to find good internships/ experiences in these areas. However, there were so many options to work in these areas, and I now feel I have a unique experience to bring up in interviews.

I think the virtual internship was a fantastic way to still keep the annual trip going but by reducing the price, it enabled more people to be able to join. I feel as though I was still in Fiji through the educational talks and words of the day, learning about the culture, the food and hearing from other people’s experiences. Still managing to submit and complete the action project was my favourite part and now I look forward to seeing what happens next with my suggestions. Thank you for it all!