How did you prepare for your internship abroad?

"First, I booked flights and looked around for accommodation. My English teacher and my colleagues from KEMPER SYSTEM in Germany and England actively supported me in this. I then got in touch with the managing director, Peter Dietrich, and gave him my flight and arrival times and hotel address. On the day of departure, I flew from Frankfurt and was finally met at the airport in England by Mr Dietrich and taken to the hotel."

What were your tasks during the internship?

"I was allowed to create and maintain contacts in our Navision system. I also processed certificates, tested the Telelook app and edited and maintained Excel spreadsheets. I also participated in a trade fair in Manchester and helped with the trade fair follow-up."

What did your daily routine look like there?

"I was picked up at the hotel by Mr Dietrich or a colleague at around half past eight in the morning and then had my tasks for the day explained to me and then worked through them independently. Around 5:30 p.m., I was then brought back to the hotel by one of my work colleagues. During my 2-week stay, the manager always took a lot of time to show me around the company, the city and the culture. I was even able to visit Liverpool and Manchester at the weekend."

What did you particularly enjoy?

"I was really impressed by the open and caring nature of the KEMPER SYSTEM UK staff. I would not have thought that you can feel so comfortable in a 'foreign' country within such a short time. I was welcomed in a very open and friendly way and was able to experience and see a lot. In addition, the people work in a very relaxed manner and don't let themselves get rattled so quickly. In general, I was very involved in the day-to-day business. I have fond memories of the friendliness and politeness of my colleagues and look forward to staying in touch with them."

"Within my three-year apprenticeship as an industrial clerk, I have the opportunity to take part in an internship abroad. These internships are designed to promote international work experience and language skills. The internship abroad is supported by the Erasmus+ programme

After everyone encouraged me to do the internship abroad at our subsidiary in England, I signed the contract. A few days passed before I received the scholarship. I immediately sat down and booked my train, flight and accommodation. Since the hotels in England were a bit too expensive for me, I booked a nice private room via Airbnb. Matching flights and rail&fly tickets were quickly found.

After a month, the time had come. Full of luggage, I went to the "Willi-Bahnhof" in Kassel. From there I took the ICE directly to the airport in Frankfurt. Everything went smoothly. After a 1.5 hour flight, I arrived in Manchester. When I came out of the airport, the managing director of the subsidiary was already waiting for me. He drove me to my accommodation in Warrington. This was not far from Kemper System. After my host family welcomed me very nicely, I unpacked my suitcase and rested a little. The night passed quickly, but I hardly slept because I was very excited to meet my English colleagues.

In the morning, it was time for my first day at work. A nice colleague had picked me up. The managing director introduced me to my colleagues and showed me the premises. I noticed that everything was very small - in contrast to KEMPER SYSTEM in Germany. The colleagues were all very nice and asked me lots of questions. During a small talk - also called "tea time" - my fear and excitement faded very quickly. I spent the first day in the camp. It made me realise how different the processes are. When my first day of work was over, my first weekend also began directly. In the evening, I was invited to a meal at the market hall in Altrincham. On Saturday, I took the train to Liverpool. There I visited the museum, the Beatles exhibition, the shopping centre and also got to see the Giants. It was absolutely worth seeing.

After the weekend was over, I was looking forward to the nice colleagues and the work that was to come. My tasks were very varied. I did paperwork as well as reports from the ERP system, worked on Excel spreadsheets in the marketing area, processed samples for clients, sorted brochures into folders, tidied the archive and much more. I even took part in a full-day sales meeting where I was able to meet the sales representatives. One day I went to a trade fair in Birmingham together with the managing director. Many different companies were represented at this fair. This day was very interesting for me. So the first week of work went by very quickly. On my second weekend, I went to Manchester on Saturdays to the Trafford Centre. This was a very big shopping centre where you could buy a lot of different things. The English were already in a Christmas mood. On Sunday I went to eat in a pub in Warrington. After waiting 20 minutes for a waitress to take my food, I noticed that in an English pub you have to go to the counter to order. This was a bit unusual.

I realised after a few days how quickly you can get used to a different culture and how polite the English are. My language skills improved every day and deepened more and more that very quickly I was no longer afraid to communicate. Communication with the English people went without a hitch. My host family was also very nice and helpful. I learned a lot during these two weeks.

I would like to thank them for their help.

I would like to thank Kemper System UK for welcoming me so nicely and supporting me in all things. I would also like to thank my training company for encouraging me to take on this internship. And also many thanks to my English teacher, Ms Bux, who made it possible for me.

It was a super experience to work in another country.
I recommend this internship abroad to anyone who has the chance. Definitely worth it! ☺

Cheers!“