Work

The topic of the internship I applied for was relatively new to me. I was excited to learn about the computational modulation of human cancer since my studies at home focused mainly on laboratory work. Unfortunately, all members of the research group that were actually concerned with the topic were not there at the time of my internship. Additionally, some communication problems complicated the situation. Finally, I was assigned a literature research project of an immense workload. Even though I pointed out the impracticality of the project from the beginning and my point of view was shared by other members of the research group, I had some trouble at the end of the internship period. Luckily, all members of IAESTE Iran did their best to support me over the whole exhausting process. To wrap it up, my internship did not go as I imagined it and the only time I learned something about its specific topic, it was from one of the other IAESTE interns. Nevertheless, I feel like I developed personally regarding my ways of communication and self-confident appearance. This may come in just as handy as the more content-related knowledge that I was looking for in the first place.

Experience

I am very happy to say that every negative aspect of the internship experience belongs to the previous chapter. My time in Iran will always be a source of the most valuable memories for me. A country where it is mandatory to wear long cloth and a scarf at over 40 °C and where the political situation is not the most stable one may not sound like the perfect summer destination. It turned out, it was for me. Of course, you should be prepared to follow the country's rules and deal with aspects such as visa when you come there - but I guess this is quite an international truth. Coming to Iran, it was very easy to meet people, especially in the context of IAESTE and the university. The IAESTE interns lived together in male and female dormitories respectively. The buildings were situated near the university's main campus in the heart of Tehran. They were not luxurious, but at least the girl's dorm was very clean and had a nice rooftop to spend the time after 11 pm, the dorm's closing hour. Together, we went on trips through the city and ate, played board games or discussed for hours and explored the diverse selection of extremely nice cafés in Tehran. One special event was also the IAESTE international food day. One of the employers invited us to his villa, where we spent the day trying all the delicious dishes from all over the world, prepared by interns and locals. Furthermore, we did not only see Tehran but also many other cities of this culturally rich country. IAESTE organized a trip to two beautiful cities. We saw camels in the desert and swam in the Persian Gulf, went camping in the north and explored Persepolis in the south, visited mosques and caves and waterfalls, got to know each other in such a short amount of time.

Discover

Thinking of the past weeks, I am nothing but thankful for the experience. I came to Iran because the internship offer seemed to suit my current interests so nicely and it would have been great to learn more about the topics I came there for. Nevertheless, I am convinced that I owe the unpleasant outcome of the internship itself to a coincidence of unfortunate circumstances. Instead, I got to know a fascinating country I most probably would have never visited without the internship. I learned about a different culture with different ways to handle situations. I learned that I can feel comfortable in a completely new environment without feeling homesick for a minute. And most importantly, I got to meet a whole bunch of incredibly interesting and funny people I hope to stay in contact with for a long time.