Voices from Abroad: Maddalena Armellini
Kolkatta (India), Internship Abroad, IIMC
Edinburgh (UK), Exchange Program, University of Edinburgh
 Women working at the IIMD |
What does a student majoring in Economics expect from the outside world? What for a job, a career, a passion? Towards the end of my second year of the Bachelor in International Economics Business and Finance at Università Bocconi, these questions found their way inside my brain. Just as it is in yours, reader. I had always felt I needed to reach out, see and face different realities for the sake of curiosity; at that point in my education path I needed to see first-hand what I could be heading towards. That was when I decided to apply for an internship, an obvious thing to do, you might say. Maybe less obviously, I picked an Italian ONLUS, Project for People, managing the fundraising and project-financing for other small local NGOs through the continents. Probably even LESS obviously I choose as a location Kolkata, India.
I was determined – I only applied for that one position. Though, I would lie if I told you, reader, that I was prepared when I got a positive answer back from the association. I had no idea about what was to come. Beware not to leave with too clear an idea, if you decide to go. I was lucky, I could not build any kind of expectations – so I did not let them ruin the unforgettable experience that followed.
Professionally speaking the internship at the Institute for Indian Mother and Child (IIMC) gave me the chance to see how an NGO works from the inside; the strengths and limits of a local institution; its relationship with the territory and the people living for it, by it and thanks to it. I helped the head of the microcredit program to check the balances on the monthly reports, I followed the workers at the Grameen-style bank to the group meetings, I visited women "councils" in the rural area south of Kolkata.
 The IIMC headquarters during a summer monsoon |
On the other hand I could put in practice lots of what I read and studied. Do not trust the usual saying "one learns more from working than from studying", at least not if the subject in question is Economics. Observing action on the field, collecting data, analyzing them in spreadsheets makes sense if later the results are compared to previous studies; writing reports helps if there is a benchmark-theory. I loved the activity because it brought together two worlds – university and work.
Open-mindedness and curiosity means everything when choosing to live in India for two months. Everything is different; you know this, everyone knows. REALLY different. It is also stimulating, if taken with the right approach. The key-word is "adapting"; to the climate, to the animals, to the crazy way of driving. But also, to the long waits and delays that are nerve-wracking to any efficiency-lover (in a European sense); to the disarming truths with which you will surely come across: for example, realizing that the third biggest cost on a Grameen bank income statement is entered under "Tea and tiffin". I strongly suggest an honest self-selection before deciding to take on the challenge!
In my opinion, the internship revealed itself as deep human experience, in addition to everything else. It is impossible not to meet extremely interesting friends, to be touched by the distance of the people surrounding one and try to build a bridge over such gaps. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't – it's still worth the effort, I can assure you.
You have to know, patient reader, that a couple of days after I came back from those two months in India, I moved to the more familiar environment of a European city – Edinburgh, Scotland – as an Exchange Student. I felt I needed to continue on the foundations laid down during that intense summer; right away, I enrolled in the Development Economics course and I found a passion. The only thing I regret is not having followed that class BEFORE leaving, since I would have gained even more from my internship period. I cannot do more to encourage you – or put you off; it's now up to you.