The United States not only does business with companies around the world - Sony, BMW, etc. - but they have companies with headquarters around the world, too - Bank of America, Abbott Laboratories, etc, so there are many professionals who think getting some kind of exposure to foreign cultures and businesses through an international internship is vital to career success. Others think it only matters if a candidate intends to work in international relations or for a company with a strong international presence.
"Global experience is very important for students," said Mike True, director of the Internship Center at Messiah College in Grantham, PA. "Anytime one can be immersed in another culture, understanding is enhanced regarding how their lives and our own are intertwined. It gives us the opportunity to see solutions to issues from different perspectives. When a student pursues an internship in an international setting he/she not only gets a taste of another culture, but he/she sees the realities of the workplace as never before.
"Understanding how different cultures make decisions, process tasks, and approach time-sensitive issues yields insight that may be very beneficial to future work with a U.S. company or government agency doing business overseas, or with an international company doing business in the U.S. Bottom line is the ability to realize business is conducted differently outside the U.S. A global economy requires a global perspective for an individual or business to succeed."
True realizes that international internships aren't an option for everyone:
"Not all students can take advantage of international opportunities. Those who can't need to make use of a multitude of resources like the book - Kiss, Bow or Shake Hands: How to Do Business in Sixty Countries. They need to locate international organizations in their areas, contact consulates or embassies for information, eat in international restaurants, attend international festivals, befriend an international student(s), and get as much exposure as possible to a variety of cultures right in their 'backyards.'"
Sema Akgun Thimmes, who came to the US from Istanbul, Turkey as a Rotary Youth Exchange student while in high school, agrees with True about the importance of international internships.
"It is VERY VERY important for college students to have a global experience because you gain knowledge and perspective that no one could ever have without this experience," said Thimmes. "You get to live in a French, Italian, or American culture for a year to understand their lifestyle, the way they make decisions, etc. I can think like an American and a Turkish person thus giving me an opportunity to think differently."
"To differentiate themselves in a tough employment market and global workforce, some of the best and brightest college students are leaving U.S. internships behind for experiences at foreign employers. It is the type of opportunity that might just differentiate a graduating senior from the pack," said Melanie Terbeek, account manager for Bite Communications, on behalf of Infosys, an India-based company that launched its flagship international internship program, InStep, this year.
"Global experience can benefit graduates in supervisory and management positions when they have employees of various nationalities. Not only can they talk with them, but also they can better understand cultural differences that might exist," said Dale Silva, assistant professor and advisor for Johnson and Wales University's International Hotel & Tourism Management BS Degree Program. "Global experience can be a benefit when serving an international customer base. By understanding the unique decision-making process based on the client's culture, sales people will be more effective closing sales.
"As the world becomes smaller due to technological advances, graduates will be required to have more experience in a global environment. This experience will be more authentic if gained through hands-on international experience rather than through textbooks and other substitutes," Silva concluded.
Joshua Marcuse, founder and president of Young Professionals in Foreign Policy, would agree that someone intending to work in a foreign country or for a company with a large global presence should participate in an international internship of some sort. But for those students and recent graduates who aren't specifically interested in international business, having global internships on their resumes are nice but not vital.
"International opportunities and the skills and experiences they engender are going to be a common factor among almost all successful candidates for jobs with a strong international focus; however, for the vast majority of jobs, it won't matter," said Marcuse. "International work experience is a desirable and differentiating trait, just like playing on a sports team, volunteering with a charity, or earning a high GPA, but it's not critical. Most HR recruiters will think of it as a generic leadership quality. Big trends like globalization, labor mobility, or even the financial crisis are not going to have a profound microeconomic effect on what firm's think a competitive candidate looks like, except in a niche like international consulting."
In the end, it all boils down to what each student wants. Students who were born in the United States but have parents and/or grandparents from another country may want to do an international internship simply to learn more about their heritage. Others may be curious about other cultures and want to know what every day life is like in another country. And some may want a competitive edge for job searching. Although having international experience can put one candidate ahead of another, especially with a global company, not having it isn't necessarily going to be a deal breaker.
