All students are eligible to apply for the program's Internship
Track. Students intern at an organization or company that
specializes in an area of particular interest to them. Students
participate in internships for eight or more hours per week and attend
an internship course, Issues of the Chinese Workplace, which provides
them a forum to discuss the observations they are making at their
internship placements.
CET asks Internship Track students to provide information about the
kind of internship that they would prefer. However, students must
realize that placing students in internships is an intricate process
that relies on many factors outside of CETs control, such as location,
work schedule, availability of supervisor, overall work environment,
etc. Therefore, final internship placement is determined by the program
staff.
CET encourages Internship Track students to approach their internship opportunities with an open mind and understand that the ultimate goal of the internship is not merely gaining work experience but also learning about Chinese culture vis-à-vis typical Chinese work environments. With ten years of experience implementing internship programs in China, CET believes that often the most important discoveries are those which go against the student's preconceived notions of what he or she will find.
"As a long term project, I oversaw the products in of all of their warehouses in the United States. I also did a variety of market research projects for companies looking to enter the China market."
— Fall 2008 Shanghai alumna from Vanderbilt University
The following kinds of internships may be available:
Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprise/Joint Venture (WFOE/JV) internship-- Students intern at a western company based in Shanghai. Students can expect to speak comparatively more English with their colleagues and will typically engage in more traditional clerical work--running errands, making copies, etc.
Special skills internship -- Typically the most successful type of internship, students are placed at organizations where they can put into practice their specialized knowledge or skills. These internships are generally suitable for students with unique talents, including speaking a third language fluently, using programming or website skills, performing, cooking or working in the arts.
NGO/NPO/Charity/Volunteer Organization internship -- There are ever increasing numbers of organizations in this category, some of which might be similar to the WFOE/JV category above as they are run and managed by Western personnel. In these types of organizations, students can expect to speak more English with their colleagues and engage in traditional clerical work related to the organization's mission. In locally run organizations, students would likely find themselves doing tasks like basic translation, English polishing, and grant-proposal writing.
Service industry internship -- Students take an entry-level position at a restaurant, a hair salon, a department store or the like, in an effort to better understand the lives of the people who typically engage in such work. This category of internship is challenging, but ultimately extremely rewarding and enlightening.
Embassy or consulate internship -- This category of internship is highly competitive and available only to outstanding applicants with strong resumes.
Public sector internship -- These internships include placements at orphanages, schools, hospitals or public offices. Internships such as these are rare and difficult to arrange, but do become available on occasion.
Connection-based internship -- For this kind of internship placement, the student comes to the program with an internship site selected and initial arrangements made, usually via personal or family connections. CET will vet the site on the student's behalf and provide a final stamp of approval.
1920 N Street, NW, Suite 200 - Washington, DC 20036 - (800) 225-4262 - cet@academic-travel.com
