CSUSM GBMA is around the World!
Hello Cougars!
Today, we would like to share about Kristina Winder's interview! She is senior student at CSUSM in Global Business Management, Marketing option, and one of our GBMA member. She is currently in Germany doing an internship with Mercedes Benz. She will return to the U.S. in 2017.
We interviewed her with some questions that you might consider when you are doing global internship.
Q1: Why did you choose that country?
I chose Germany because of its strong economy, great exchange study options and because I wanted to learn another language.
Q2: How was the culture shock for you?
In the beginning, it was very hard to get used to. Germans tend to come off as “cold” people until you have enough time to get to know each other. It took me about 3 months to break through their walls, but afterwards it was worth it. The way of doing business is also completely different than the U.S. For example, a lot of face to face contact is preferred over electronic contact, customer service is not as important as it is in the U.S. and Germany has been slow to adopt electronic methods of payment, therefore most people deal in cash, which can be tricky to manage at times. And the food was also a huge culture shock to me, because coming from California we have a lot of vegetarian, vegan and healthier options for food but Germans tend to prefer heavier meals that are mostly meat or bread based. This was very hard to get used to for me because I love eating healthy and there weren’t many options for me. Even though there were a lot of cultural differences, I still felt like I was able to integrate and thrive during my year abroad in Germany.
and, How did you overcome?
I overcame these cultural differences by pushing myself to accept that not everything can (or should be) the same as my home country. I told myself that there is a reason I wanted to come here – to explore and learn about another culture, so I need to accept that this is how German culture is and learn to appreciate it. After this I began forcing myself to go out to cultural events like couch surfing events, meet-up groups, or events happening in the city. At first I was scared to go alone because I was afraid of looking weird but after a while I began to love going by myself because then I would have to force myself to interact with other people and make friends. This worked really well and I made a lot more friends this way than I ever did before. I also pushed myself to make German friends and to communicate in German because that is the best way to integrate into another culture.
Q3: What do you like about working abroad?
Differences:
I actually love working abroad, I think the work environments here are a lot more relaxed than in the U.S. and relationships between co-workers are very important, therefore, short coffee breaks and office talk is widely accepted. I feel like working in the U.S. makes you a sort of “workaholic” and anytime you pause to enjoy a moment or talk to a coworker it is seen as a “distracting.” The only thing that frustrated me about my internship was my steep learning curve of the German language. My boss told everyone to talk to me in German and not in English so at times it was really hard to understand what my assignments were or how I could do them. I could tell this also frustrated my German colleagues when I asked them to explain the same assignment over again because I didn’t understand it the first time. However, after the first few months of speaking only German my language skills improved tenfold and I was able to communicate without any major problems, therefore, I am thankful that my boss pushed me to do this.
Norms of the country:
I’d say one norm of working in Germany is that you work hard, but you also play hard. For example, we had a few after-work parties where we would party until late in the evening, but the next morning everyone would be at the office on time and ready to work. Being on time is also a huge cultural norm and it is expected that you arrive early or on time to everything.
Q5: Is there something you would do differently?
If I could I would have tried to learn more German before coming to Germany because it would have made things a lot easier, I also would have forced myself to be more open to meeting others during the beginning of my time in Germany, because I didn’t change my mentality until the last 6 months of my time here.
Q6: What do you do for fun?
I traveled very often, in total I went to 5 different countries and tons of new cities in Germany and other parts of Europe. It was amazing to be able to travel so often and so easily. I also liked going out in the city and meeting people – I also tried a few dating apps which was really helpful because the people I dated showed me lots of local spots that I would have never found myself.
Q7: Is it easy meeting people?
It can be, but it can also be difficult. Whenever I would talk to others I would explain that I am American, and most Germans would ask me about the politics and what my opinion was, this made conversations really easy because we often shared the same viewpoints. However, sometimes it was hard to converse with others, especially because I am not fluent in German, but I still tried and was successful in many cases.
Q8: What is your advice to other students thinking of working abroad?
Tips:
I would suggest learning as much of the language as possible so it is easier for you to integrate, I would also suggest exploring the country a bit so you have a feel for the city/ country before start interning. I would also suggest keeping an open mind at all times: things are going to be very different and sometimes frustrating or scary, but overcoming these challenges will make you stronger person and more capable of dealing with future challenges both national and international.
Things to consider:
This internship is a great opportunity for global business students who want to gain an understanding of other cultures and working internationally. Although this was not in the sector of work I wanted to go into, I can’t deny that this was an incredibly rewarding experience that has already helped me with my future. It is absolutely worth the time and money invested!
Thank you so much, Kristina! Hope you enjoy her story and could see the taste of living different countries! If you have any questions or want hear more clarification from her, please contact us or follow our social network! We would love to help you!