Sofiia from Ukraine: "build connections, travel and learn new skills!"

Sofiia, a student at Ivan Franko National University of Lviv from Ukraine, came to Bratislava for her internship as an Administration and Billing Support Intern.

Before she came to Slovakia for the internship, she had a familiar worry that many people share when starting a role in a large company, about not having enough knowledge or experience to keep up:

“Before the internship, I was worried that I didn't have enough knowledge or experience to work in such a company. After the first few weeks, I understood that I was able to learn everything during work by cooperating with my colleagues.”

Those concerns didn't last long, as Sofiia had a supportive manager who made sure she was never left on her own:

“I was always able to contact my manager. He always introduced me to colleagues from other departments whenever possible and tried to help when I had questions. My colleagues from the very beginning helped and answered all my questions. ”

Additionally, one common problem students have is a lack of experience in professional setting. Internships are helpful in this situation, as they let students build this kind of interpersonal skill in a real workplace. Sofiia shared the same experience here:

“During my internship, I was responsible for the validation of invoices in two tools (one internal and another external). I had to communicate both: drivers of the vehicles and account managers. Apart from that I was also helping with the preparation of working instructions for ACCB. Although I learned a lot during the direct work in the administration and billing department, I believe that the most valuable thing during my stay in the company was communicating with colleagues of different nationalities, ages and with completely different experiences in life and work.”

Besides work, there is a wonderful opportunity to explore Slovakia and experience new culture. For Sofiia, the similarities with Ukraine made things feel familiar, though one difference stood out clearly:

“Slovakia borders Ukraine, so it is not surprising that the mentality of the people is similar. A significant difference between Slovaks and Ukrainians, I would say, is the attitude towards studying at the university and working culture.”

In Placement Slovakia we know how important it is to have an accommodation prepared in advance, so the adaptation process goes as smoothly as possible. Therefore we provide all of our interns with flats that are shared with 2-3 other interns:

“In general, I am satisfied with the accommodation and my room. There is a good transport connection, so it was not a problem to reach the office or the city center. We had a good relationship with our roommates and when controversial situations arose, we resolved them together.“

At the same time, the most pleasant experience was working and spending time with people from different countries and backgrounds, while getting to see firsthand how a large corporation operates. 

As advice for interns, Sofiia shares:

“I would recommend to new trainees to use their time during the internship as much as possible for traveling, getting to know new people, and networking at their workplace. Bratislava has a great location, so you easily reach other countries by all types of transport.”

We are glad to have had Sofiia as an intern through our program and wish her success in her plans.