Undergraduate Blog / Career Development

How To Land An Internship In South Africa

Nelson Mandela statue at the Union Buildings in Pretoria.

Nelson Mandela statue at the Union Buildings in Pretoria.

After 18 hours of flight and an 11 hour layover in London, I have finally returned, for a third time, to South Africa.

My name is Akeem Allen, and I am a rising Junior at Babson College, double-concentrating in Technology, Entrepreneurship & Design (TED), and Business Analytics.

This summer, I landed an internship at the University of the Witwatersrand, working as a Program Developer for their Centre for Entrepreneurship (CFE). In this role, I am tasked with consolidating the Centre’s ‘Generator, Incubator, Accelerator’ model, in addition to assisting them with their community engagement efforts. With Wits being one of the most prestigious universities in South Africa, one thought was constant in my mind; “how did I end up here?”

Obtaining this internship was a prime example of a commonly known truth; your personal and professional networks will open up opportunities for you that can’t be found anywhere else. In this instance, I was connected to the CFE through a good friend who is aware of my passion for entrepreneurship education, and felt I could serve as a resource to the centre. And although finding opportunities through networks can be seen as common knowledge, putting it into practice is what counts, and is what will effectively propel your professional life forward.

In addition to working with the CFE, I will be continuing my work with CREED, and reveling in all the beauty that is South Africa.

Shaap! (A colloquialism, indicating agreement or approval. Often used as a farewell, or closing to a conversation. Literally “sharp.”)