The benefits of working or taking an internship aboard

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One of the best things I did when I was in my twenties was spending a few years working abroad, in fact, I have lived and worked in South Africa, Edinburgh, Amsterdam and Nice in the South of France before settling near Cardiff in Wales. I feel this taught me so much and gave me a lot of life experience as well as making fantastic friends from around the world, many of which I am still in touch with as well as experiencing an array of cultures, new foods, traditions and people.

For me, it was more about diving into the hospitality industry and earning while travelling as much as I could and I'm so glad I was able to do that, so while I didn't develop my skill set necessarily as hospitality was never a long term goal, it was one of the best life experiences I had and I got to really get to know a city from both a traveller and a residents point of view. 

Another option for those who are career focused is taking an overseas internship, which is a great way to up your skill level, work as part of a team, form international friendships and also gain great references. If I was younger I would love to spend a few months in Asia, especially Japan which looks like such an incredible destination. Taking an International Internships Tokyo would be such a fantastic way to embrace a completely different way of life, new language and gain some incredible life experiences while also getting to discover a very unique country. 

With most professional companies that organise internships, they cover all the essentials and more such as finding you an internship in your preferred industry, career coaching and CV support as well as feedback and references bunt on top of that they ensure you settle well, organise social events, visa and accommodation support and airport transfers so don't feel overwhelmed when considering this option. 

Here are 5 more reasons why you should consider an Overseas Internship 

1. Gain relevant experience and get your foot on the career ladder

It's especially hard in today's competitive job market when you don't have experience or your straight out of education to get a role with progression opportunities but an internship allows you to get on the ground experience and a foot on the career ladder as well as CV boosting references and feedback making you more of an asset to any future employers. 

2. Develop your skills

An internship not only offers you to put your existing skills into practice but also to learn new ones that are relevant to your chosen industry. While we learn a lot while at University or College it's not the same as putting that theory into practice and developing the on-site technical skills you need as well as learning to communicate as part of a team, organisation and leadership skills which is often an internship allow you to develop more. 

3. Learn a new language 

While learning a language at home, online, is a good start there is no better way to learn a new language than to immerse yourself in the culture fully, esepically in somewhere like Tokyo, which an internship allows you to do. Also being bilingual or having a second language to conversation level is a desirable extra for your CV and something potential employers look for. 

4. Getting to Travel

Getting to travel and experience a new country and culture is of course one of the biggest draws to working overseas, as it should be. While some internships are voluntary (and some even you have to pay for yourself) there are also earn and learn options and it's a great way to travel while also learning new skills to take forward in your future career. 

5. Make friends and build an international network

Gaining new friends, in business and socially is only ever a positive thing, you never know when those connections will lead to something else as well as being able to share your experience with someone or ask for advice or an outside perspective. I am still in touch and meet up occasionally (when we are in the same city) with people I met while travelling and it's a wonderful thing having an international network. 

Working overseas is something that I would still consider doing now (in fact I often search for potential opportunities) however it's a little more complicated now as I have children, although not impossible. I would however recommend grasping any opportunity to work overseas if it fits your lifestyle as my experience has only ever been a positive one.