Program Reviews

When I first saw an ad on facebook for a social media marketing and diving internship I thought to myself - this is something that is way too good to be true. This was something I had been looking online (exactly to that description) for a few weeks. Before this internship, I was a marketing coordinator with a huge passion for scuba diving so this was perfect! I immediately applied to see what this programme was all about.

I was very nervous about moving halfway across the world but Emma made me feel at ease (she helps you out with all the onboarding things). Getting to Bootcamp I didn’t really know what to expect, I was hoping for a lot of learning (I know, what a nerd). Bootcamp was quite intense, I definitely learned more than I hoped! Anna is a great teacher, she taught me a lot about social media marketing other digital marketing things. Anna picks a placement for you, I was very nervous about where I was going to be placed. When she told me I was going to be placed in Komodo, I was a little disappointed but she assured me that was the best choice for me. Fast forward 6 months and I am extremely grateful to where I have been placed. My dive shop is amazing, the location is beautiful and the diving...wow. I cannot even begin to explain how amazing the diving is in Komodo National Park. I am writing this review with 2 weeks left of this internship and I have completed almost 200 dives in Komodo (only 10 more dives to go!). Each week you also get check-ins so don’t worry, you still get continuous support throughout your internship. I mostly spoke to Elisha for my check-ins, she is great at giving advice and guiding me in the right direction to improve my content.

I am very glad that I applied for this internship. I have learned a lot, made so many new friends, developed a lot as a person and I got to experience so many incredible things. I have now decided that I want to go into freelance marketing, something that I would not have done if it wasn’t for this internship. Don’t hesitate if you think that this is for you. I assure you that you will have an awesome time!

If you are worried about applying for this internship, I would strongly advise that you head on over to Paradise Interns socials. There you will find the current interns (Pinas) taking over their accounts, talking about their daily lives. You can ask them questions on their live takeovers or on the story takeovers when they leave their Instagram handle.

I was living in Indonesia for about 2 years by the time I came across Paradise Interns. Even though I'm a diver, the diving aspect was always a bonus as I was really looking to explore another skill set to take into a different field entirely. Similar to other reviews, the month-long Bootcamp was intense, however, considering the time people might spend to study this in college, the level of intensity during Bootcamp is expected to prepare interns for their placements. My experience was a bit different as I wasn't placed at a dive centre and worked remotely. I had a great time getting to know my colleagues and because I was placed at a not-for-profit organisation, it was great to implement my new skill immediately to help underprivileged children. As part of the Paradise Interns corporate social responsibility program, Anna and her team were great in that they provided the mentorship to support the NGO objectives which was so kind. To summarize my experience in a few words, the entire internship was hard work but what I was able to do with it was rewarding, not to mention transferable into other professional sectors!

After traveling through Indonesia, I fell in love with the country and wanted to stay. Started searching for internships and lo and behold Paradise Interns popped up.

I had already been self-studying digital marketing at the time and scuba diving was one of my passions- you could not design a more perfect program. Applying was simply a no brainer. Next thing I knew I was off on a plane back to Bali.

Boot camp was an awesome experience and you'll have fun bonding with your fellow interns. Anna, the founder and probably the main teacher, is a smart cookie- even if you come in with a bit of a digital marketing background I'm sure you'll learn a lot. After a month in Bali, I was off to Komodo where I enjoyed some of the best diving on Earth for five months! Mantas, pristine coral reefs, and a never-ending diversity of fish became part of the daily routine. The office work was nothing too overbearing- I found it to be a fantastic way to beef up my portfolio.

I was sad for the internship to end but that didn't mean I had to go! The Paradise Interns network helped me land a job as a Marketing Manager for a dive shop. This program seriously laid the framework for my future career- I do not know what I would be doing without Paradise Interns.

I had a great time doing the Digital Marketing Internship with Paradise Interns! I could improve my skills in social media marketing, learn more about marketing in general, which should always be included when learning about social media. As a non-diver I had the greatest time on Bali, working mostly remote. I had lots of free time to do trips around Bali or just enjoy the day. If you're a diver, you get free diving every day. What I enjoyed a lot during the boot camp was the learning atmosphere, the location next to the beach and that beautiful rooftop. And I liked the food :) I would recommend to book at least berakfast & lunch ...
Anna was super helpful anytime I had questions, she is a boss babe and super fun!

And yes.... first it sounds too good to be true, but it is real!

I’ve been freelancing and learning about social media marketing for the past 3 years, but I’ve never been to Asia, and I had never done scuba diving. When arriving to Indonesia I was met with the friendliest locals, and the other incredible interns.

The first month boot camp was very intense, but I learned so much and it really sharpened my marketing skills. My placement on Gili Air and with the dive shop was spot on! I connected with the staff there immediately, making lasting friendships. The dive shop manager was also my instructor, and he guided me (very patiently) through all of my courses. I was able to dive nearly every day!

The life after diving was equally as amazing. Gili Air has no motor vehicles, only bicycles and horse carts. Everyone here, expats and locals, and amazing people. Genuinely kind, incredible humans. There’s a great balance of night life and chill days.

I love it so much I was able to find a job on Gili Air, and am still living here! Doing this internship was a spontaneous decision, but it changed the direction of my life in the best possibility. The opportunities, the friendships, the culture, the experiences that this internship offers are just magnificent!

So, probably like everyone else, I thought (after finding a post on a scuba facebook group) this is too good to be true.
I was planning on doing some travelling anyway, so if it fell through, not a big deal! I didn't even expect to get a place to be honest as I had no background in marketing, I just thought it was pretty amazing to be able to get my Dive Master cert in Indonesia.
Honestly, boot camp was very hard for me, I started from nothing, I didn't even know the lingo. After four weeks, however, I felt like I had learnt so much, more than anything I'd learnt in university and that was a three-year course! So, I am super grateful for all the information Anna and Jen filled my head with, they are great teachers and were very understanding when I was a bit slow with some things.
I was posted on Gili Trawangan at a brand new dive shop, so a lot of the designs in brand guidelines were completely new, which was fun to create and to then see the shop fill up with designs I'd made. Over the five months I stayed on Gili T, I learnt more than social media marketing, I learnt a little bit of bahasa Indonesian, how dive shops work behind the scenes, to live away from home and be completely independent.
My Dive Master training was great, I had such a good mentor and I was able to dive one to two times a day, almost every day, in some of the most beautiful dive sites I'd ever seen. I've made so many memories and close friends being out here and can't quite believe how it has all turned out. It has really changed my life.
Now I am working for the dive shop I interned at, they were very happy with my work and offered me a job to carry on what I'd been doing for the past five months. Now I can call this amazing paradise my home and now I have an extended island family too!
This has been an experience of a lifetime and it's still going.

I was looking for a place to do my dm in Komodo, so I emailed a bunch of dive shops asking if it was possible to do some marketing related stuff in exchange for a dmt. One of the diveshops pointed me out to the Paradise interns program and I got super excited about the opportunity, the first month was quite intens but we’ve learned more about social media then I could’ve ever dreamed of!

The five months after the bootcamp I was placed at a diveshop in Komodo, so my dream of doing the dmt in Komodo and working as a social media manager came trough after all.

I can safely say that Paradise Interns was a life changing opportunity for me. Having the opportunity to spend 6 months in Indonesia, get my dive master and learn such a wide variety of social media marketing skills was truly eye opening.

Paradise Interns shows you the ropes of what it takes to be a social media marketer, by introducing you to programs such as buffer, canva, IFTTT, mail chimp and many more. The whole first month is dedicated to ensuring you have the skills to run a whole social media operation for a real life dive company. You learn how to create brand guidelines, create and schedule content, find a 'brand voice' and how to be consistent when it comes to posting and interacting with your followers. Not only this but your voice gets to shine through too as you get to write and produce your own blog posts. Theres so much more that you learn with the whole Paradise Interns crew within the first month of being an intern, not just social media skills, but also what it takes to be a part of the whole 'digital nomad' culture in terms of mindset and focus. You meet like-minded people looking to get involved in a like-minded lifestyle.

Once the first month is done, you are sent off to your placement that Anna has hand-selected for you. She places you where she sees your personality to be a best fit, which she chose perfectly for me. Being placed in Komodo was one of the best experiences of my life, with world-class diving and wonderful people. I could not have asked for a better place to learn and develop my independence. I loved the whole program so much that I completed my IDC and have gone on to find work here in Labuan Bajo.

The founder of Paradise interns, Annam is one of the best mentors you will ever have. Anna was extremely helpful when it came to finding accommodation and sorting things out. Not only this, but Anna's always available to speak to if you have questions, concerns or you simply need a chat.

There are so many options for new interns now, it isn't just for savvy divers. The company has internships across a vast range of companies. They have spots at non-profit organisations, dive resorts, conservation groups, health and fitness, food and beverage companies and many other up and coming businesses here in Indonesia!

To all of you out there that are considering this program, just apply, I promise you won't regret it.

I learned SO MUCH during this internship. The bootcamp in Bali for the first month was in a beautiful villa, and everyday we learned new skills to prepare us for the placement. I didn’t know anything about digital marketing before this internship and the bootcamp fully prepared me for the following months. Anna is always available to answer your questions. The 5 months that I spent on Gili T were amazing. I was placed at a wonderful hostel where I became part of the family. It was easy to find a work life balance. I was constantly learning but never felt overwhelmed. Do it !!!

Let's be clear - it was hard work, I was busy, and sometimes a little stressed out. But even though a few unlucky things happened to me outside the internship (like getting sick) I had an amazing time. I learned techniques which are gonna be incredibly useful to me for my future career plans during the bootcamp. Then, I became a confident Divemaster prepared for anything after learning in the strong currents and amazing underwater landscapes of Komodo National Park. What more could you ask for?