Internship Logistics

bout nine to six months before you intend to leave
for your internship, get in contact with either one
of the program directors P. Bergman or F. Weidauer. Each case is different, but you can expect to be going through these steps once you have alerted us to your plans:

1. We will give you a number of contact addresses depending on your engineering major and interests. It is then up to you to contact these people and send them the required materials, in most cases a resume, a transcript and a letter explaining your goals and objectives. Once you have established contact with the internship providing company, we will be happy to assist you with letters of recommendation and other aspects.

2. Assess how much time you have either before or after your work period. Then, research what you can do during this time either in the form of study abroad or language courses offered by other institutions.

3. If you want to include a study abroad period, talk to both your German advisor and your engineering advisor and draw up a plan of what courses you should be taking when you are abroad. If you have doubts about your language skills, also talk to any of the German faculty for help in assessing your language skills and, if necessary, in finding appropriate programs to get your language skills up to speed for the study/work abroad period.

4. You do not need a work permit to enter Germany; you will take care of this upon your arrival. If the company that provides the internship does not automatically ask you to supply a letter that states that the work abroad is a requirement of your program, tell us and we will send them a letter to this effect.

5. Interns in Germany (all German engineering students have to do at least two internships during their studies) usually get about DM800 (about $400 depending on the exchange rate) which covers most but not all living expenses. Feel free to discuss with your employer supplemental pay or in-kind support (housing, transportation) that takes into account the special situation of interns from abroad, but don't be excessive in your demands!

6. Make sure to discuss what help you can expect in locating housing and what your transportation needs will be. In most cases you will be able to rely on public transportation to get you to your workplace. If you include study abroad, you will be eligible to stay in a student dorm, but try to reserve space as early as possible! The study abroad program you utilize will be able to point you in the right direction.

7. Plan ahead for the semester of your return to UConn and take the courses that won't be offered when you come back before you leave (e.g. courses offered only once a year).

8. Take advantage of the information available on the Internet to prepare for your stay in Germany, you will be able to find information from course descriptions to the menu of the cafeteria to bus schedules etc etc.

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