Andrew Berkman, Sydney Internship Program—Business & Econ Track

Intern in Sports Marketing with the Australian Rugby Union, Spring 2012

Internship: After arriving in Sydney, I got an interview and accepted my internship with the Australian Rugby Union within Community Rugby, a department that promotes the sport across the country to school-aged children, organizing tournaments and Gala Days.  Another intern and I also had the opportunity to work at the National Women’s Sevens Rugby Championship.

I Learned: The study abroad experience taught me more than I truly expected.  I learned the Australian people are some of the most hospitable and entertaining people I have met, and their culture is truly unique.  I also figured out where I may want to live to pursue a career following graduation.

Comparing/Contrasting My Work Experiences: Since most of my internship experiences prior to the semester were finance related, they were vastly different from my experience with the Australian Rugby Union.  My two finance internships were in much larger work environments with more hierarchical and strict company cultures, while the ARU was more organic.  The Rugby Union was absolutely open to new ideas and opinions from a foreign intern.  On Thursdays we also had the opportunity to play touch rugby with our fellow colleagues including former players and current Wallabies coaches.

Hardest Part: The hardest part of the experience was by far budgeting my money.  Australia is an extremely expensive country; however, the experiences we shared were absolutely worth it.  It’s an amazing place.

Best Part: The best part of my experience was renting a car with two of my friends for the weekend surfing and swimming Byron Bay and then hiking around the rain forests of Southern Queensland.  I also spent a week at the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest snorkeling, hiking, skydiving and bungee jumping. I could go on forever about my positive experience and the friends I made during the program.