College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Iowa State University

Working in London

Career Services offers unique opportunity for students who want an international experience
As a junior at Iowa State, psychology major Katie Young participated in the National Student Exchange program.

"I was very satisfied with that experience, but coming up on the end of my undergraduate studies, studying abroad again didn’t appeal to me as much because I had been at Iowa State for four years already. I felt ready to graduate and to go to work," she said.

"I thought working abroad would offer a different outlook on a new culture as well as give me job-searching and work experience."

So when Young became aware of a study and work program in Great Britain offered by the Colleges of Business/Liberal Arts and Sciences Career Services Office, she signed up.

Young was one of 17 students who will spend up to six months in the London area working and receiving academic credit for that experience this summer.

"These internships or jobs are like no other internship or job they will have in this country," said Steve Kravinsky, director of the Business/LAS Career Services. "In many cases they are the only Americans at their respective firms. The best part for the students is living on their own. They learn what to do because mom and dad are 5,000 to 10,000 miles away."

Young and the other 16 students took a three-credit course (USt 336, International Perspectives in Career Development) during the spring semester prior to going to Great Britain. The course focuses on the student’s career development, the job search in the United Kingdom or Australia, cultural sensitivity, and basic information on the countries.

For the past seven years, opportunities to gain work experience were offered through this program in Great Britain, while a similar program has been held in Australia.

Heather Johnson Huntley, career development coordinator, has been directing the Study and Work in Britain program for the past three years. Kravinsky has led previous journeys to Australia.

After classes end in the spring semester, Huntley leads the group to London for a three-week long session. Students participate in academic, cultural, social, internship search and housing search activities on the University of North London campus.

"We have a series of classes the first week in London," Huntley said. "We also take in the culture of the city and have tours of some of London’s major firms."

But for a majority of the first three weeks in London, the students search for jobs and housing. That's because after three weeks, Huntley heads back to Ames and the students move out of their pre-arranged housing.

"It's a total leap of faith for the students to go to London without a job or a place to stay after three weeks," Huntley said. "I don't know if I would have had the guts as a student to do this."

That wasn't a problem for Young.

"Simply moving to a huge city and having to search for a job and a place to live was a valuable experience in itself," she said. "But after getting settled down, it has been interesting to meet all kinds of people from all over the world. Living and working in London has made me more independent and more confident overall."

Young performed a variety of duties as a sales assistant for Ottolenghi, a cafe/bakery/coffee house located in Notting Hill. In the past individuals participating in the Study and Work in Britain program have interned with such firms as Caterpillar UK, USA Today International, Merrill Lynch, Sprint UK and the American Chamber of Commerce.

A classmate of Young's, Courtney Martin, a triple major in management, international business and French, spent the summer with a paid position with Cargill UK, where she interpreted French financial documents.

Young admits that the thing that appealed to her most about the Study and Work in Britain program was the flexibility.

"This program was very suitable for my needs," she said. "I got the freedom to work and live where I wanted in the UK, to travel wherever I wanted and to schedule my own calendar."