Work

Being a Computer Engineering student, my job was working on a REST API for an inner tool that’s to be used by developers (mainly the Mobile Development Team) working at Makolab (My host company). I was glad that my supervisor and the team found a project that’s equally satisfying for both me and them, as it was similar enough to my previous experiences so I could be useful, yet it was using an unfamiliar language and framework for me so it was still quite a challenge. I’m happy I had the chance to learn Java as it’s an important language with many opportunities. I also got to see how such projects are tackled in professional companies, outside the limited scope I was previously exposed to in university. I witnessed the Software Development lifecycle and how the organization guarantees such high quality of its products. I’m sure the skills I learned during this internship will help me immensely in the future.

Experience

My daily life in Łódż was lovely. I’d commute to work and back by the tram. The tram in Łódż is very practical; you can go everywhere in Łódż with a tram or two. There’s a 50% discount for students on all ticket types and the subscription. I had a Migawka (subscription card), it was incredibly cheap (about 28 Euros) for my entire internship duration of 90 days, allowing me infinite commutes of the trams and busses. My accommodation was in dorm Tygrys (Meaning Tiger in Polish) and it was extremely cheap. It’s about 20-25 minutes by tram from Piotrkowska (main commercial street in Łódż) and Manufaktura. My work was right next to Manufaktura so it was an easy commute. There are so many interns in dorm Tygrys, I believe there were about 70 or even more during my internship. There was always something to do as people often wanted to hangout. My second day there we had a Karaoke night and it was amazing, we were more than 20 people from all over the world. We also often had dinner together, made barbecues, or hung out in the T.V room. Socializing with the locals wasn’t the easiest as many people do not speak English, but with the younger ones, there were better chances. Still, with so many interns there, and co-workers, there was a big range of people to converse with in English. One of the advantages of Łódż is that it’s in the centre of Poland, so travelling to other cities is so easy. We often planned our own trips to other cities, sometimes we joined IAESTE weekends too. At the end of my internship, I had visited Kraków, Gdańsk, Warsaw, Wrocław, Poznań, Prague, Dresden, and Berlin. Vienna and Budapest are also not that far away. I did not try much of Polish food, unfortunately, but we often had brunch together at Manekin on the weekends. Overall it was a great experience and I got to know so many people from so many different cultures, and I’m really grateful for that.

Discover

I think it was really important for me having this experience at this point in my life. I learned to be independent and take responsibility for myself completely. I learned that I can handle myself quite well and that I’m more mentally resilient than I thought. I discovered new sides of myself, like how much I like travelling, and I think I’ve become more outgoing after my trip. It has changed my perspective about my life, studies, and my work in general. I think I value other things now than just studying. I was grateful for the experience of work and raised a lot of questions about what kind of life I want to have in the future and what things I prioritize. I’m still figuring it out after returning home, but, after 21 years of living in the same country, having this experience just made me contemplate a lot more about things I rarely bothered with before. It definitely provided me with a new point of view and broadened my horizon in many aspects.