Marnaysha Jean-Francois, a sophomore SSS student, and double major in Psychology and Sociology, is the first UConn student to participate in the Virtual Internship in Paris this spring. Her family hails from Haiti and she is proficient in French, which piqued her interest in this opportunity when her plans for an exchange in South Korea were delayed due to the pandemic.
Marnaysha is interning at a non-profit headquartered in Paris that works with children of incarcerated parents. She explains, "They oversee things like facilitating safe visits between the children and the parents, develop programs that support the parent-child relationship, minimize violence for children, and organize workshops for parents, among other things."
The spring virtual internship experiences have already demonstrated the ability for students to learn about the culture of the host country, despite working from the safety of a computer in the US. Marnaysha, despite being just weeks into her work with the Paris organization, has already identified some major cultural differences in the work place. "I noticed that at work, the French are much more open, not about their personal lives, but about their political views, their societal opinions, and other things along those lines. They also like discussion and encourage everyone to share their opinions. There is a lot of interrupting going on as you talk, but it is not considered rude. They also love using abbreviations as they speak, which sometimes makes it hard to keep up. But overall, they’re very friendly."
UConn Education Abroad works with partners, such as EUSA in Paris, to place students in internships allowing them to build on skills they have, while considering new focuses that connect with their academic interests and future career goals. EUSA's process is structured to help students articulate what skills they are seeking to gain through their placement, while providing relevant information on their current professional skills and experiences. Marnaysha describes, "They have this student gateway where I filled out my personal information, uploaded my resume, and wrote down what I wanted out of the internship. The director of the program reviewed my competencies and areas that could use some growth, and he paired me up with an internship that matched. From there, we had interview workshops and mock interviews to help me prepare for the French interview. And after I was settled into my internship, we had several meetings to track my progress and also interact with other students in the program."
Marnaysha will continue her internship during the spring semester but still plans to participate in an exchange in South Korea. "I want to know about their aspirations and what they look forward to every day. I want the in-person experience of their lives during the day and their nightlife. I will keep an open mind when experiencing their culture and I understand that I too might come as a culture shock to them."
To learn more about 2021 summer programs, register for our Summer Global Programs Showcase!
For more information, contact: Education Abroad at abroad@uconn.edu