Meaningful Internship for Social Service

I really enjoyed my internship with the FU-BEST program. I was placed working with a nonprofit that houses refugees in Berlin and I got to spend my time with children each day. I learned a lot about my needs, my desires for my future, and how I can incorporate social change into all of that. It was a really unique experience and opportunity to work alongside some amazing people and organizations who work hard to integrate and assist the many refugees in Berlin.

I gained a lot of cultural knowledge from the course that goes alongside the internship and it helped me contextualize my experience and prompt me to ask myself many personal questions about my career and personality. It was a good space to really explore those themes and it pushed me to focus on being present and engaged while abroad in an unfamiliar job setting.

I chose to do a personal photo project in my last few weeks with my internship which was super fun and rewarding for the refugee families, children, colleagues, and for myself. I took portraits of children and documented summer party events that allowed me to be involved but still observe the situations. I got to display them in the refugee shelter and give copies to the families to keep. It was a good way for me to also be of service to the nonprofit company because my German (beginning) skills were limited and thus limited some ways I could participate. However, don't let this discourage you from applying if you are up to the challenge of practicing your German skills and want to dive far from your comfort zone.