Program Reviews

Coming to Korea for an internship turned out to be one of the best decisions of my life. First I had a consultation call with Meiji and they questioned me on my industries of interest and previous experience. To be honest there were a few problems with the Host Companies at first, but eventually a few weeks later they matched me with the perfect company. I worked with a very small company in Seoul, and in the end I was so happy with them. It had an amazing family feel to it, and I felt very welcome as a new foreigner in the workplace. I was met by nothing but kindness and it lasted throughout my whole stay. They really helped me out in the beginning when I had issues setting things up like my bank account, so I will be forever grateful for all they did for me! For now it is goodbye but I am sure that it is not forever, Seoul will always have a special place in my heart.

I am studying for my business bachelors and wanted to get some real world experience while studying, so I found the virtual internship at Meiji and thought it was a good option. I chose to do this also because I wanted to get experience with international business in Asia, so I can make my resume different and help my future career as a international professional.

The Korean company I worked with had a lot of tasks for me to get involved with, which is just as I wanted so I stayed very busy. I did this during a break from university which was convenient because it meant that my schedule was still very manageable and i had time to relax.

Meiji helped me a lot to find this internship, when i emailed them they gave me helpful information, although there is a big time difference they did there best to reply quick. I would definitely recommend meiji internships and recommend a virtual internships especially if you want to get experience in a convenient way. After working with the company i now plan to visit Korea for a in person internship after I graduate!

DISORGANIZED - I had to hound Meiji for important information that could have forced me to terminate my internship had the issues not been addressed in time. I felt alone during the preparation process and throughout the entirety of my internship once I got to Korea, as I only ever heard from Meiji if I reached out in an emergency. I was nearly forced to cancel my trip altogether due to Covid complications, which Meiji left me to navigate alone despite already having the information I needed at the time.

MISLEADING PROMISES - I arrived at my housing accommodation and found that Meiji had basically dropped me off at a dump. The place was still under construction, and I was the first and only resident. Dirt, workers, and construction fumes everywhere. Ear-splitting noise from the drilling outside my door every morning. Waste fumes coming from the bathroom. A sewer fly infestation moving from the drains to my bedroom. There was hardly room enough to live and it wasn’t fully furnished like I was promised it would be. The place wouldn’t have been acceptable for a standard accommodation, let alone the “superior accommodation” that I had paid for with Meiji's business package. Even then I had to fight them for four days before they finally agreed to move me, at which point my health was already compromised.

POOR FOLLOW-THROUGH - Also included in my package were language courses, sightseeing trips and networking events, and I only received information on these WEEKS into my internship after reminding Meiji multiple times that I was waiting on them. The “networking events” were a few web links to interest groups completely unrelated to my field of work, most of which either required payment or were not meeting within my period of stay. I understand events were difficult to find during the pandemic, but Meiji should have warned me of this before I payed for the service.

NO WORK MENTORSHIP - The internship itself was an okay experience and my boss took good care of me. However, I was not learning from a creative professional who could teach me how to finesse my abilities, but rather getting projects thrown at me and trying to figure out on my own how to give the company what they were looking for. I did get some work experience to put on my resume, however, and I am thankful for that.

UNSAFE - I must also mention that in the three months I was there I was put in danger multiple times. Perhaps I was a rare case and Meiji had no means of protecting me, but my aloneness as a woman and lack of a support system in Korea put me at risk. By the halfway point of my internship I was afraid to leave my apartment.

FALSE HOPE FOR YOUR CAREER - Meiji claims that their business package is meant for those who intend to pursue a career in Asia upon graduation and want the best experience possible to “free yourself of any stress.” I returned home with no hope of finding a job in Asia, and those three months had my stress and anxiety at the highest they’ve been in a long time. South Korea itself is amazing and I do believe the experience of working an internship abroad is worth it, but if I were to do it again I would not go with Meiji Internships. This was an enormous time and financial commitment, and I felt that the amount I paid far exceeded the quality of service that I received.

I spent my first 4 months of the year in Seoul, a place that's as dreamy as the internet makes it seem. This company was an important tool to achieve this dream, they were quick to find me a company that would accept me even with my limited experience and that was willing to spend tons of time giving feedback each time my work didn't match their standards (I worked mostly on video editing and photo retouching). Don't be afraid to apply to any program even if you feel like your CV is empty, most likely they will make it work, for which I'm very grateful.

Recently got done with my 5-month internship with a company in Japan. I contacted Meiji Internships long ago wanting to do an on site internship in Fukuoka, however the circumstances changed and therefore I settled for a virtual internship. Even though it was not was I first intended, it ended up being pretty great, lots of learning and also I have to say that the people at Meiji were nice about the change of plans and helped me find a different host company. I'm sure the on site companies are good as well, but mine was amazing and definitely flexible, as I could work at my own pace without them being pushy. I think this is a service that is worth the price if you need credits for university.

Are online internships here to stay? No clue but they might as well be, in my experience they are as demanding as any other type of internship or job. I spent most of my time writing and learning marketing stuff, which is directly related to my uni studies but not my main area of expertise. Nevertheless, it's a skillset that I wanted to develop so that I could apply in future jobs and include in my CV to expand my opportunities a little bit. I have a very good aftertaste of my internship at a Korean company, if anything, I am actually surprised of the amount of work I had to do (which is not inherently bad, I just thought I would be able to be lazy lol). This company is more than decent and will help you even if you somehow happen to run into any issues or if you just need assistance in negotiating with your host company.

Honestly, what an experience. Now that it's over I'm extremely sad and suffering some post-trip depression, but I would not change a thing. Meiji Internships really did they're best to make my trip easy, they were very methodical with each of the steps and and helped me redo my CV to get host companies to get an interest in me and eventually (faster than you'd think) I had a successful interview with a very respectable company. I worked seamlessly with them for a few months, I did my part and they did theirs, no problems whatsoever and I learned more than I could've wished for. Not to mention my CV looks pretty decent nowadays.

I remember reading Meiji Internship's reviews on go overseas back in like 2019 when I first thought about doing an internship abroad, crazy to see how much the world and my life have changed since then, I was clueless. After some of the toughest times of my rather-short life, I am sooo glad I got behind a couple semesters in uni, otherwise I would have ended doing a boring internship back at home or an online one (those are actually cool from what I read here). In any case, I wanted the realest of experiences and tbh I think my internship ended up being better that what it would have been had I taken it back in 2020. My Korean got better and even though you don't really need it in Seoul, it was a nice extra that made me feel closer to the culture and proved a bit handy at work. So do learn the basics at least if you plan on going.
I just got back home and the people at Meiji reached out to me asking for an honest opinion, and how could I say no to them? They facilitated the internship and the trip of my dreams, and made it seamless. They only thing I had to do was work hard to get that experience on my CV and enjoy my free time in the place everyone wants to be nowadays. Their programs are good and iirc they offer different packages, so you can choose what you need.

If you are debating which city in Japan you should do your internship in, well, I can't really help that much because they're all amazing (got to visit some touristic spots during my stay), but I will tell you that Fukuoka is a solid option. I would be lying if I said I knew anything about this city before researching online but after living here for a while I just want it to get the recognition it deserves. It's not as flashy as Tokyo or Osaka, but personally I feel like that makes it just so much more unique, it's a great city where you can find literally anything you're looking for. Honestly you can get the full Japan experience even if you don't leave Fukuoka, it's big and it has it ALL. Public transportation was better here than in Osaka (by far) and imo beats Tokyo as well. It really pains me to leave this magical place.

After finishing my internship in Seoul there's only one biiig downside: now I don't know if I want to visit Japan next or if I should just go back to South Korea. You know, being there for months has been the best experience of my entire life, and I even got to feel like a local by the end of my stay. However, I did wish I spent more time traveling (which I couldn't do as much because I was supposed to be working obviously). I mainly did small weekend trips and those were incredible but if you're planning to do your internship there and you have the budget, i'd recommend adding at least 2 extra weeks dedicated to just traveling. Oh and Meiji was great of course, the fact that I don't need to mention anything in particular is a sign of how easy everything was with them: getting info, the payments, interviews, etc. was all nice and simple.