I fell in love with Beijing and would recommend Startup China to anyone!

Startup China provided me with an amazing opportunity as a Human Resource Assistant Manager for Starz Sports Management Beijing who collaboratively works with the Yao Ming Foundation.

This position basically allowed me to work for both the company I had been assigned to and for the Yao Ming Foundation. I was quite excited to work because my workplace supervisor informed me that I would have the opportunity to meet famous athletes from around China and the American National Basketball League (NBA).

My intern position was for duration of three months and I had assumed I would only be working in the HR department, however I realised that I was useful to all the departments at Starz Sports from the Marketing department to Public Relations and even assumed the responsibility of Co Editor. I was more than happy to help in any way possible to gain valuable key experience and the fact that this was a paid internship it kept me motivated to work to my utmost full potential. This position exposed me to areas of work I was slightly unfamiliar with given the international work context it challenged me and tested my abilities.

My work colleagues were brilliant, majority of my work friends spoke English but were not confident; this led to a tit for tat verbal agreement where I would correct their English and they would help me with my Mandarin.

Startup China provides Mandarin classes weekly, I found myself not always having the time to attend class due to work commitments or university commitments. Through both work and Startup China just about every week there was definitely a seminar or networking event scheduled. This is perfect for brushing up on networking skills and a great way to meet potential future employers, make new friends and advertise the company you are interning for. I personally found that I met just as many Chinese representatives as Expat representatives.

The apartments are located in such a prime location, close to the subway station literally speaking a 1 min walk from the entrance of the apartment, across the road from a shopping mall and various restaurants, bakery’s and about a good 5 to 10 min stroll away from decent cafes for other coffee fein’s like myself.

Startup China provides a friendly and reliable around the clock contact personnel for all purposes from an emergency or for general enquiries to guiding a taxi driver. Upon arrival at the apartment you are given a welcome pack which outlines practically everything you need to know. From memory this includes hospital and medical addresses, emergency staff contact details, the apartment address in Chinese just in case you find yourself in a sticky situation, clear sim card activation instructions, a bottle of water and fruit, apartment house keeping details and apartment facilities, Beijing street tips and a map of the subway lines and Beijing.

Startup China take utmost care in providing decent intern positions which are compensated and if there are any work place issues Startup China don’t ignore any queries, they opt to find a reasonable solution in a timely manner. Personally, I had a visa issue and I was very impressed in the way Startup China Beijing Staff handled the can of worms I had almost drowned in.

Overall, I fell in love with Beijing and would recommend Startup China to any university students who are opting for a gap period or new graduates who are looking to gain an advantage to jet set their careers or to anyone who is up for a new challenge.