Intern in China in the Summer

I managed and planned the JD social media pages (Facebook, Instagram), collaborated with KOLs, did English to Chinese and Chinese to English translations.

Since I plan to go to graduate school and work in China after graduating from Loyola, I wanted to get an idea of what the work environment in China was like and improve my Chinese. This internship did just that. I also gained valuable skills for a future marketing job like familiarity with PS, data analytics, direct marketing, and positive mentoring and support from my boss. My internship made me think of all the things I learned in class as meaningful and interesting, rather than terms to memorize for a test.

I would like to go to graduate school in China and work for a big Chinese company (e.g. Baidu, JD, Ali) in the future. Before this experience, I had always had the idea that I wanted to do something related to Marketing/PR/Advertising in a large company. However, I’d never had the experience and was always worried I was going in the wrong direction and would find out later on in life that I hated my job. After interning at JD and loving my experience so much, I no longer doubt that I am heading into the right career path.

Standing in the middle of a subway so full of people I can’t move more than an inch in any direction on my way to work.

My primary job at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing under the Foreign Commercial Service is to provide assistance to all commercial service officers so as to promote U.S. interests and increase exports to the Chinese market. My job included tasks of writing reports for the Ambassador or researching market intelligence to be used in various projects for U.S. sellers seeking entrance into the Chinese market.

More than anything I gained insight on international business and what a major exactly entails within a global environment. As for projects, worked on automotive research, SelectUSA Investment and E-commerce platforms in China. From these projects, I improved on my research consolidation skills and how to adapt to a constantly changing environment. From
meetings with experts and clients, I also gained insight on how to conduct business talks.

From this internship, I learned that I want to continue doing this line of work in the near future. It may not be exactly working at the Embassy, but I do want to do something within the International trade realm between China and the U.S. Gaining insight on international business from a government
perspective has definitely created a solid foundation on which I can build my career on.

Working at such an institution during impending trade wars was probably the most unique moment for me. The fact that my work and research directly related to events happening with my affiliated countries was super interesting to see. I experienced first-hand how trade wars and tariffs affected both Chinese and American companies.

My main responsibilities at Edelman were translating reports, biographies, and documents between Chinese and English; proofreading English translations and editing; and researching industry news and reporting it for client use. My biggest task was translating the Biweekly Analysis report for a main client, Vivo, from Chinese to English for our English partners and clients to understand.

The greatest outcome of my internship was the improvement in Chinese I obtained from translating all the pieces I was assigned. Through the Biweekly Analysis Reports, I was constantly reading and translating industry-specific professional terms, until the point that translating had become much faster and easier because I eventually learned the terms from repetition. This was personally very satisfying, as it was paired with making great networking relationships, improving my skills in being a self-directed intern, and cultivating wonderful relationships with my Chinese coworkers.

This experience has only supported my passion for languages and made me realize how hard I will have to work towards my goal, as it gave me a taste of real-world translating, and reminded me how much I have yet to learn. I learned more about being an ambitious employee and what types of qualities international firms look for in their employees, so when I apply for jobs soon, I can make sure to outline qualities that Edelman has taught me, such as being a self-directed intern, having good time management skills, and being organized with my tasks. Edelman has also given me an appreciation for public relations and taught me the importance of coworker relationships, as networking can always help you in the future.

A unique moment I had in my internship at China was attending a meeting with about thirteen people and an experienced presenter. The entire meeting was in Chinese, and I only was able to understand pieces of what he was saying, so while people took notes on their laptops, I looked up the words from the PowerPoint. The meeting was frustrating to sit in as I did not like feeling helpless and confused in the moment, but looking back I feel it was a moment of growth for me–it simply motivated me to work harder, it gave me a goal. I know that if one day I can sit in a meeting like that and understand everything the presenter says, I’ve done it. I’ve grown from point A, where I was confused at this previous meeting, to point B, where I have worked hard to get to a point of understanding, and then I can feel accomplished with my growth and diligent work.

My primary job at the WHO was to support my supervisor in health financing research. Specifically, my assignment was to build a database of diseases in China and try to crunch the numbers in an Excel document to find the true cost of various diseases in China, and the burden they imposed on the people and the government.

More than anything I learned how to work in an international environment with people from all walks of life and cultural backgrounds. I feel stronger communicating in Chinese and French (the 2nd and 3rd languages of the office) and feeling comfortable asking coworkers for help even if it’s not in English. Above all though it was refreshing to feel like the work I was doing really had an impact. There is a good chance my work will be used in a brief to the Chinese government on where resources should be shifted in the future, and that alone makes the job worth it.

I have always had a commitment to public service so the World Health Organization seemed like the logical next step for me, an experience that confirmed what I already knew about my career goals. In February 2017 I will start work for the Peace Corps as a business advising extension agent in Senegal, and my time with the WHO no doubt prepared me for that job.

Our office was about 50% Chinese 50% foreign, so it maintained a Western feel while at the same time being decidedly Chinese. The biggest differences were the hours, most people came to work late and stayed late, and the 服务员, or in-office maids. Both of these differences created a much different feel from a normal “western” office environment, but it was a welcome change as it was easier for everyone to focus on work rather than getting in at 8am sharp or washing the pile of dishes in the kitchen.

My primary job was helping to catalog and reorganize the library at Atlas. I also assisted in leading the summer session students in break time activities.

I learned more about working in a diverse office environment with coworkers from around the world. Additionally, I became more experienced in working with children and ESL students.

Going forward I will be applying to medical school, and hope to be able to work in an international environment as I did with this program.

I really enjoyed working with Chinese students. I have worked with children in America before, but never with a primarily ESL group. I loved how the outgoing kids were not afraid to tell me if they did not understand something in English, or to laugh with me about my bad Chinese accent.

Working at JingJobs, I was responsible for researching/posting jobs for young professionals with bilingual talent in China. On top of this, I was also given the privilege to attend several networking events and meet an enormous variety of fascinating people. During my time with them this summer I was also responsible to plan and organize an event of my own under a deadline.

The most permanent part of my internship with JingJobs came in the form of meeting new people and the networking skills I managed to refine. I also ended with a few skills in event planning that I would love to further elaborate on.

Feeling inspired and driven now, I would definitely love to implement these new networking skills in the U.S. From that I would love to try something innovative and make a sort of impression to experienced workers in the U.S.

In the case of experiencing China, I felt it was an amazing time and it definitely has left an impact on my life. When I originally planned to come to China, I was only planning to witness it, work here and go back. But realizing now that China finds itself almost in the center of attention when it comes to the workforce, I definitely plan to return.

My primary function at the Foreign Commercial Service was the support my commanding FCS officers with their tasks and policy goals. I personally worked with AOWG American One Belt, One Road Working Group conducting BRI research in Mongolia and Indonesia. The group looked for opportunities in these particular markets.

The main project I worked on was the economic, geopolitical, and security implications of the Belt and Road Initiative. This helped to improve my research skills, writing skills, briefing skills, among others. I developed a keen interest in economic and strategic research in this internship.

This internship was a mature and professional approach to career development. Going forward, my interests are solidified toward global economic and strategic research.

China has been an excellent opportunity to learn about the Belt and Road Initiative. In honesty, I would not have unlocked the current interests that I hold without the influence of my internship experience.

I conducted various research in the field of Ecological Civilization, then streamlined to Climate Change Initiative and Green Energy. I drafted a framework for China and Colombia co-initiative on Green Energy Collaboration and Implementation and produced a series of intensive benchmark analysis on two countries policies, green energy landscape and roadmap. I also explored research on the Belt and Road Initiative to gain more insights and widen horizon in the research and implementation of Ecological Civilization initiative, and conducted interviews with various organizations, connecting them to form new partnerships from an international level.

Through my internship I learned how to be extremely proactive, because I didn’t had a list of tasks to complete at the end of the day, I had to design what I wanted the internship to be for me and how could I take advantage of this opportunity to make the most of it with my contacts in Colombia and expand the research not just to paper but also conduct networking to make projects real. I developed leadership skills in a team project and strengthened my ability to think critically with innovative approaches to tackle raising issues.

My next step is next semester continue with what I built this Fall, I am working in getting an internship at a Chinese company of clean energies, which I contacted while doing the research of networking in Beijing. I feel this is a life project and picture myself in the future doing green business through Chinese technology between Colombia and China. This has been an opportunity which opened my doors to the international collaboration to solve climate change issues.

I think that the Chinese working environment was really a new thing for me. We didn’t speak fluent Chinese so we had our meeting with a translator. Nonetheless, this never limited our interaction, like to be friendly and say hi to our colleagues in the office. I liked to try to make myself understood by others and it was a really nice experience to learn another culture.

My primary job at Hua Express was designing and creating sales materials for new products. This included not only photography, but English translation while writing product descriptions. I also assisted with creating internal and external company publicity materials, writing company memos and presentations, whichl introduced Hua Express to the public.

Up until this point, my studies in Mandarin have been primarily limited to a traditional classroom. By interning in China, I’ve not only had the experience on language immersion, but also cultural immersion as well. No book or lesson plan can capture the reality of living and working in China. Culture informs every aspect of how a society operates, from what flavors are popular in cuisine to workplace etiquette. The opportunity to immerse myself in Chinese culture was phenomenal.

This internship not only provided me with firsthand experience working in international environment, but it has informed my remaining undergraduate studies, which will have an increased focus on the shifting landscape of business in China.

My coworkers were incredibly friendly, and made an effort to make me feel welcome in the office. We grew very close and even began studying languages together. We were both studying each other’s native language, so we’d take turns discussing and comparing the differences between Chinese and English.

As a content marketing intern, my role was to both plan and create content for the company blog. When I stepped in the door on my first day, I began creating a content plan for one of Kaiterra’s products. During the rest of my time here, worked to execute the plan and created over a dozen articles to be posted. I also assited with other tasks, such as drafting design briefs and case studies.

Mostly, I developed my communication skills while working at my internship. My supervisor found a language partner for me, so I was able to practice Chinese and she was able to practice English. It was great to have this available, as it also helped me make friends at my company. In addition to practicing my Chinese, I also participated in the Toastmasters program through my company. Each week we would work on our public speaking, which I thought was very beneficial.

At the moment, I am not sure what I would like to do after I graduate. However, I am currently working towards becoming a foreign service officer relating to economic development. My experience in Beijing has definitely reinforced this goal.

I went on my company’s ‘nianhui,’ or annual meeting. I was expecting a day full of table discussions and maybe a potluck, but I was surprised to find out that the meeting was a hiking trip into the mountains outside of Beijing. We explored Fangshan park, climbed through several caves, sang karaoke at the hotel, and played games. It was so much fun (more than I expected) and brought everyone together.

At AmCham, my primary responsibilities were generating and copy-editing website, newsletter, and magazine content including event write-ups and interviews, creating social media posts to increase visibility, encourage event attendance, and acquire new members, and helping create original pieces for the magazine and website.

The major skill I developed at AmCham was writing. I had to write quickly, concisely, and for a public audience on a number of topics, leaving me with a sizeable portfolio of published works. Additionally, I learned a great deal about basic marketing and communications principles which I can capitalize on for future job opportunities.

Moving forward, I hope to leverage my experience into marketing and communications positions in either international development or advocacy related fields. Additionally, I hope to return to China, possibly for a master’s degree, and employ my Chinese work experience as a professional in international business or foreign policy.

AmCham is very much an American-run company, with about a 50/50 split between Chinese and American employees. Mostly, I was surprised at how people worked much later into the night with a longer lunch period.