Work

EC International is a globalized professional consulting firm with branches in Beijing, Shanghai, Qingdao, Yantai, Hungary, and Mexico, serving over 100 enterprises across more than 20 countries. The work centered on helping Chinese companies successfully establish and grow their operations in international markets. My core responsibilities at EC included, but were not limited to • Overseas operations: o Conducting research and data analysis o Preparing reports and presentations o Assisting in internationalization strategy design o Candidate sourcing and screening o Participating in meetings with international agencies • Marketing: o Social media management and content creation o In-person marketing events o Live Broadcsats o Client visits • Participation in cultural exchange sessions The tasks were distributed by my supervisor, and I was supported with the tasks that required such. Overall, the workload was high, but I learned a lot in a short period of time. My academic background is vastly different than the area the internship is placed in. I graduated with a degree in Technical Chemistry and Computational Science and Engineering from TU Wien. However, I volunteered with IAESTE Austria for 5 years, which requires similar skills in marketing, sales, cultural exchange etc. Those skills helped me complete the tasks successfully and helped me strengthen them in a more professional setting. My colleagues were super nice and helpful. They would help with planning trips and giving us tips on what to do. Especially, the cultural exchange sessions were always fun, and I also got to improve my Mandarin Chinese. I was situated in an office building on the 13th floor. We had weekly meetings on Mondays, where we were reporting about the tasks we did the previous week and the upcoming tasks. The work hours were 35h per week, excl. 1.5h hours of lunch break. The weekends were free.

Experience

Another student from Mexico was doing an internship at EC International at the same time as me. Luckily, we got along really well and shared many great moments together. We are already planning to visit each other soon in our respective countries. The accommodation was arranged and paid for by the employer. Me and the other intern shared a 2-bedroom apartment. We had a small living room, kitchen and bathroom. IAESTE China organized a fridge and some pots for us, so we could cook. Overall, we were satisfied with the accommodation since it was very clean and modern, and all facilities were working fine. The host city, Yantai, offers quite some activities. It’s also a touristic city, so there are many cute cafés and a large selection of restaurants. There are also some bars and an old town in the center, as well as some museums. Of course, there’s also the beach as Yantai is a coastal city. I also signed up for a gym that included yoga classes and a swimming pool. Another tip is to get foot massages. They are very affordable in China. We also met with other international people once or twice per week. There is a small international community here and we spent some time chatting in bars or playing pool. We also went hiking together in the surrounding hills, which offered nice views of the city. There is also one mountain with a café built in classic Chinese architecture style on top. One time a colleague also invited us to her house, and we had traditional hot pot together with her family. It was a very heartwarming experience. Travelling in China was easy to organize since Trip.com offers everything from booking trains and flights to hotels and attractions. Some things need to be purchased via WeChat though. During our 3 months of internship my colleague and I visited Shanghai, Zhangjiajie National Park, Beijing, Suzhou and some cities in Shandong province (Jinan, Qingdao). I also visited Hangzhou. EC took me there on a business trip and I was given the option to postpone my flight, so I could do some sightseeing. China’s nature is truly amazing. I especially enjoyed the West Lake at Hangzhou, the mountains in Zhangjiajie and the Great Wall near Beijing.

Discover

Before coming to China, I had my doubts since the portrayal of China in western media is usually not the best. I was surprised by the kindness of the people though and how convenient and safe living in China is. There is a lot of pressure in the workplace, and work and life blend more into each other. I was impressed by the efficiency and relentless drive, and I hope I can take some of that discipline with me. Everything here is moving fast, and schedules can change quickly. It also makes me appreciate the worker protections we have in Austria that allows for a better separation between work and life. Something that hit harder than expected was the language barrier. Not being able to communicate freely was sometimes tough; it astounded me how much can be communicated with only understanding limited vocabulary. Overall, I am glad I chose China as my internship country. It was educational to see how businesses in China operate and how daily life here looks like. The work at EC inspired me to envision a world with more international cooperation and respect.