Building Global Connections Through a Remote Internship

Through a remote internship with The Korea Society, Haidyn Lounsbery, an Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Korean major, built a professional network while discovering a new interest in data collection and analysis. Read more about Haidyn's story below.

How did you find your internship?

I found my internship through someone in my department who had previously worked at The Korea Society. He inspired me to check out the position, and considered applying.

What do you like most about your internship?

If you don't like your internship what have you learned from this experience?

I have a pretty unique opportunity to work remotely, since the permanent location of my internship is in another state. It was hard in the beginning to network, but I did learn to ask the connections I did have to see who they could connect me with in terms of making a network, this helped me ease into the internship a lot better once I established a solid network. I have also learned a lot about collecting/analyzing data which is something that until now has not really piqued my interests, but is something I find very fascinating.

Let's talk future jobs ...

How did your internship help you discern what you do or don't want to do in a future job?

My internship really helped me to explore and use office software that I have not had experience using before. I was also doing a lot of projects that dealt with data collection and analysis which I really enjoyed. Having this internship has allowed me to learn new skills and develop interests for topics I may otherwise have not found as interesting.

What tips would you have for future Gophers around internships?

If you think the opportunity sounds interesting to you, and would potentially benefit you in your future career, go for it! There's nothing holding you back from an opportunity, and I know it can be scary, but the only way to know is to put yourself out there! I did that with my internship application in the beginning, and now I have a really cool internship that suits my interests and ideas!