Study, practice included
Fun fact: In the 16th century, a trainee was originally a person who engaged in unclean practices.
Since the 17th century, the term has come to mean what we use today - someone who completes an internship.
"Thanks to ongoing demand and labour market analyses, we know what is in demand on the labour market and adapt our curricula accordingly," emphasises Gernot Hanreich, Rector of FH Burgenland. At the study centres in Eisenstadt or Pinkafeld, students book virtually all-inclusive courses - study and practice garnished with languages, social skills and unique subject combinations.
Internship at Pro7
Ružica Goranović is a graduate of the Bachelor's degree programme in Information, Media & Communication: "I was able to complete my work placement as an intern in the editorial office in the "Factual" department at ProSiebenSat.1 in enchanting Munich.
The internship gave me an insight into a whole new world. Television is no longer just television for me, but an overall composition that is made up of numerous precisely harmonised components.
During the internship, I was able to take a lot with me for my future life. I was given the opportunity to work in a market-leading company and take a look behind the scenes. I was able to generate a broad spectrum of knowledge and familiarise myself with a wide variety of areas. The opportunity to rotate to other departments was also great. I took advantage of this straight away and worked in the in-house creative agency "Creative Solutions", in the editorial department of "taff" and at SAT.1 Frühstücksfernsehen in Berlin. I was more than enthusiastic about my department, which is characterised by a lot of passion, heart and appreciation.
Growing up during an internship
There are many opportunities for young full-time students to gain work experience. "The work placement is very important to us," explains Tonka Semmler-Matošić, Head of the largest and oldest degree programme in International Business Relations. "Our students spend four months in the fifth semester on an internship in the Central and Eastern European country whose language they have already studied intensively with us for two years. In this way, we combine professional practice with a lot of international experience. The students come back mature and are absolutely fit for the international labour market after completing their studies."
The internship is completed in the form of a traineeship. What the students earn is a matter for negotiation. However, it is a requirement of the company partners that they do more than just make coffee and copy files during their internship. "The areas of work for our students roughly correspond to the specialisation options they have with us during their studies." The tasks range from controlling and accounting to marketing, foreign trade, project management, logistics and tourism management.
The internship is similarly organised, albeit mostly in Germany, in the Bachelor's degree programmes IT Infrastructure Management, Energy and Environmental Management, Building Technology and Building Automation as well as Health Management and Health Promotion.
Intensive experience
Things are different on the Social Work degree programme, for example. The long 14-week work placement is preceded by several short internships. These are completed in organisations in Germany and abroad to give students the opportunity to get to know as many fields of social work as possible.
Special experiences are therefore guaranteed. Like the one that students Robin Lang and Laura Golubovic had in India last summer semester.
During our internship in India, we worked with children, teenagers and women affected by violence and accompanied them in their everyday lives.
A good overview
"More than half of our degree programme consists of internships," reports Clarissa Glatz. She is studying for a Bachelor's degree in Healthcare and Nursing. At the end of the programme, students receive a general diploma. Prior to this, students undergo a generalist training programme in which they learn about various specialist areas of healthcare and nursing. The specialisms and sub-areas are specified, as is the duration of the individual placements - at least four weeks or 160 hours. Students are free to choose which institution they go to. The many phases in their careers enable students to familiarise themselves with a wide range of areas of work. For example, Clarissa Glatz has already worked in geriatric care, in the operating theatre, on a neurological ward and in a cardiopulmonary rehabilitation centre, gynaecology and ENT ward. She is currently gaining new experience in home nursing. "I accompany Volkshilfe employees in the Riedlingsdorf area. I change dressings, help with personal hygiene and carry out blood glucose measurements, for example."
A cool job thanks to an internship
Lukas Raab has always been interested in technology, he was particularly fond of control engineering because "controlling things remotely is just cool." He studied for a Bachelor's degree in Energy and Environmental Management at the Pinkafeld campus of Burgenland University of Applied Sciences and specialised in building technology. He completed his work placement in the measurement and control technology department at PKE Electronics AG, where he also wrote his bachelor's thesis.
"In my work, I compared building automation concepts for functional buildings, basically working out which bus system is best suited to the respective application." Using a sample project he developed himself, he analysed all the available standards.
"I was able to derive results from this." Lukas' results were not only interesting for his company. "We also used them to create a 140-page reference work as a special service for our customers."
Among other things, he is currently working on the building management system at Vienna Airport's Pier West. "I'm the interface between the client, programmers and technicians there and coordinate everything on site." He is studying for a Master's degree in Building Technology and Facility Management at the University of Applied Sciences.
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Internship,
Stays abroad
