Byline High Res

I EDUCATION
My Malaysian Internship Experience
By Riley Amelia O’Farrell
former intern at the malaysia australia business council
In October 2018 I participated in
an eight-week internship program
offered through my university,
Deakin University, in collaboration
with the Australian Government’s
New Colombo Plan (NCP) initiative.
The NCP aims to increase knowledge
of the Indo-Pacific in Australia
through encouraging Australian
undergraduates to complete
internships in these regions. Since
the initiative was launched, the NCP
has been extremely successful,
with more than 10,000 Australian
students annually taking up the
opportunity to live, study, work
and travel overseas, whilst gaining
greater cultural awareness.
I am studying a Bachelor of Arts
and Commerce, majoring in Public
Relations and Marketing. My
internship was a Communications
and Public Relations internship,
and I was fortunate enough to have
the Malaysia Australia Business
Council (MABC) as my host
organisation. I had never travelled
on my own before and remember
feeling incredibly nervous thinking
about what the next eight weeks
would hold and whether I would
enjoy myself. However, stepping
out of my comfort zone and
completing this internshipwas
one of the best decisions I have
ever made. I had the experience
of a lifetime and gained so much
knowledge and understanding from
interning abroadand learning about
Malaysia’s unique, welcoming and
truly amazing culture.
Improving my transferable and
technical skills to prepare myself
for the workforce was a personal
objective of this internship.
Whilst simultaneously immersing
myself in new social and cultural
experiences. As workforces become
increasingly multicultural and
diverse, I believe that internships
like mine are incredibly rewarding,
providing invaluable opportunities
for international work and living. I
hadn’t experienced much of Asia, so
I was eager to intern in Malaysia and
discover its diverse cultures, whilst
exploring some of the magnificent
towns and islands.
From the moment I stepped inside
the MABC office, I was welcomed
and supported by Linda, Nisa, Kiff
and Tasya, a current intern and I
know that my fellow intern Tegan,
who joined the MABC a few weeks
after me, experienced the same.
Everyone was incredibly welcoming,
and I instantly felt more comfortable
and knew I had made the right
decision interning overseas. They
also introduced me to some of
the famous and delicious staple
dishes of Malaysia, including Roti
14 MABC BYLINE