I wanted something different and adventurous. When I looked up what Cape Town had to offer, like the beaches, mountains and all sorts of very touristy things to do, I thought that getting to do my internship in a city like that sounded like a dream!

Initially, I was looking for an internship in the biological sciences. I wanted to work in a lab setting and learn some of the really important research techniques that I need to know for my future.

Initially, I expected to do more actual research, but I was much more involved in lab work, which was fine with me because it's basically the same thing except I never worked on any specific project.

Yes, they did help me out when I needed it, but they also let me do some independent work which was nice! It's kind of nice not having to shadow someone all the time, and when I got to do things on my own I felt like I really learned new stuff.

Yes, I was challenged, not only at work but also by working in a foreign country where things are done differently from the US. Just getting to experience working in a different culture really challenged me.

Yeah I think so, I helped my supervisor with a lot of paperwork and the connections I made were very valuable.

Yes, I do feel like it was definitely worth it. Also, getting to travel a good portion of South Africa was great and definitely worthwhile.

I was kind of afraid I would have a hard time adjusting to the new culture and not make any friends.

Yeah, I think these are just typical fears people have when travelling to a new country, and it usually turns out a lot better than you initially were worried about. For me, it definitely turned out great. I made friends and this experience has made me want to really come back to South Africa!

I would say Cape Town is a really beautiful place and I would recommend visiting South Africa to anyone!

Yes, the Bridging Gaps team was able to help me out with passport information and visa stuff, they helped me with accommodation and they set me up with an internship pretty quickly. They were really helpful and quick to get back to me if I had any questions!

It's been nice, especially getting all those discounts for the tours I did. Also getting good advice on activities to do and guidance on my internship was nice too.

I’d say the best feature is getting one-on-one assistance; because Bridging Gaps is a smaller programme, everything felt more personal and you were willing to go out of your way to help me out and make my experience worthwhile.

Yes, the Bridging Gaps team was able to help me out with passport information and visa stuff, they helped me with accommodation and they set me up with an internship pretty quickly. They were really helpful and quick to get back to me if I had any questions!

It's a little different for me because I lived further away from where other interns were staying, but it would be great if there were more social events.

I feel like the programme fees were very reasonable and probably the best price you could get for travelling and working in another country.

The fees were definitely worth it!

I’d say save up if you can and do it. Getting experience working overseas looks great on your resume, and if you need to save a little more to get that then I’d say do it!