Tammy Chan

I always knew I wanted to study abroad when I was in high school because I had heard about all of the fun experiences that my friends and family had while they were abroad. I chose Singapore because one of my family friends always talked about her experience at NUS. Additionally, I knew I wanted to go to an English speaking country so Singapore was one of the options. I chose the Global Internships program because my counselor had recommended it to me during my first semester at Cal. I was very excited to be able to not only build my resume through working the field I wanted to pursue in the future, I was also able to take classes and learn about a new culture.

The convenience and structure of everything was very surprising to me. All the transportation was very clean and organized. Malls, eating areas, and recreation was easily accessible because Singapore is such a small country. Additionally, it was very interesting to learn the work life balance because everyone was working long hours and barely had time to do things at night or on the weekends.

One of the things I was the most nervous about before the trip was getting along with those on the trip. I didn't know anyone else in the program and was scared that I would be stuck with people I didn't like for two months in the summer. However, I found a great group of friends because everyone else was just as nervous but willing to reach out and mingle with new people. At the end of the trip, I was able to make some really amazing friends.

A typical work day would be leaving for work at 8:00AM and staying there until 6:30PM. I worked as a marketing intern in a skincare company. A lot of the work I did dealt with social media outreach and website blog posts. Additionally, I worked with developing new product packaging and shipping products to customers. After work, I would usually go to dinner with friends either in the city or at the university. Afterwards, I would go back to NUS and hang out in the downstairs common area with others in the program to finish some homework for our class.

I took two courses while I was abroad. One dealt with leadership and human relations of a workplace and the other dealt with exploring the culture and history of Singapore. I had never taken an online course in college before so it was a good experience to be able to balance that with our long work hours. The other class was very different than courses I had taken at Berkeley. For one thing, it was always with my friends. Typically, I don't have all of my friends take the same class as me. Additionally, the classroom was small enough to where we were able to get to know the other students as well as the instructor. I also really liked this class because we were able to go on field trips around the city that related to our coursework. This meant that not only did we get to learn about it through a text, we were also able to experience the curriculum.

My most memorable aspect of my time was being able to travel with my friends. I was able to not only explore the amazing country of Singapore, but also visit Indonesia and Malaysia. Those memories were very special to me because I had never been a part of planning the logistics of a whole vacation trip. We got to know each other even better than ever before because we had to overcome challenges together.

Not only did I gain a professional experience in a field that I now know I am truly interested in, but I was also able to step out of my comfort zone in many ways. Living abroad means that you don't have your family around to rely on. This was something that I was able to learn a lot from. Additionally, I was able to step out of my comfort zone by getting to know a diverse group of Berkeley students.

I think the best advice is to try everything. You may not have another chance in your college career to study abroad again so be open- minded and engage in all your experiences fully. It was one of the highlights of my college career. I also encourage people to talk to those who have been through the program before. Their experience and guidance will help you immensely. I was able to gain so much knowledge from other fellow study abroad ambassadors before my trip.