Internship Report：2022 OSIPP Scholarship for overseas internship（PUTRI ANANDA /OSIPP M1）

2023.2.22

Ms.PUTRI ANANDA（OSIPP M1）interned at the Indonesian Embassy in Doha, Qatar in September 2022. This is a report on that experience.
（photo：Mr. Ridwan Hassan（Ambassador H.E.）and Ms.PUTRI ANANDA(right side)）

Internship organization： The Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Doha, the State of Qatar

Time Period of internship：September 2, 2022 ～ October 2, 2022

<Preparation>

1) Why did you select this particular organization for your internship?
Did your supervisor, friend or a third person introduce it to you?

Because doing an internship at the embassy of the Republic of Indonesia relates to my future career goals.
No, I applied by myself to get the internship agreement from the embassy.

At Diplomatic Reception

2) How did you gather the information on your work during the internship (job description)?

I worked at some departments at the embassy such as the Political, Consular, Economic, and Socio-Culture Department. Each department has a diplomat as a leader, my task is to help a diplomat’s work. For example, gather information from online newspaper such as Gulf Times, Peninsula Qatar, and Qatar Tribune.

3) How did the organization decide on Terms of Reference (TOR) of your work during the internship?
Did you tell your requests to the organization? If so, how much did they consider your requests?

During the interview, I said that I wanted to learn all about the activities at the embassy, so they decided to get me involved in many activities from some departments.

4) How was the time period of your internship decided?
How much were your requests for starting /ending date and the length of the internship considered?

During the interview, I requested to do the internship during my summer break at Osaka University, which was two months, but because I registered internship summer course at OSIPP, so I decided to do the internship for only one month.

5) How did you prepare for trip and life (ex. accommodation & transportation) in that country? Is there any advice especially on security?
If there is something you were distressed or would have done differently in the process of preparation, could you tell us about it?

I have some friends in Qatar, so I gather a lot of information from my friends. I also do some small research about Qatar through the internet. Qatar has earned the number one rank for “Safest country in the world” on the Numbeo crime index, so I think it is safe for foreigners.

<Work contents on your internship>

1) Did your actual work differ from what you had been told before the internship?
If so, why do you think the differences occurred?

Overall, it was the same with the job description, but because the embassy had various events, I also had to get involved in event preparation such as diplomatic reception, medical check-ups, coordination meetings with all the middle east embassy delegates, etc.

2) What kind of instruction did you get from supervisors? Were their instructions concrete and clear?
When you had a problem, did your supervisor listen to your story and was their advice useful?

Mr. Ambassador, all home staffs (diplomats), and all local staffs were very nice to me, and all the instructions were very concrete and clear. I did not have any problems or pressure during my internship.

With all staff (diplomats)

3) Were you able to mingle with other professionals outside of the internship organization?
Were those interactions beneficial for your future career?

Yes, I was able to get a great conversation with Mr. ambassador, all the diplomats, all the local staff at the embassy itself and with all the guests at all events during my internship.

4) Regarding the life in that country, how did you adapt yourself to the new environment?
Were there any difficulties?

I have many friends in Qatar, so I did not have any difficulties to adapt with the environment.

<Self-evaluation on your internship>

left side：Mr. Ridwan Hassan
（Ambassador H.E.）

1) Did you express your appreciation to your internship organization? If so, how? (Ex. thank-you letter)

Yes, of course. On my last day of the internship, I requested to meet Mr. ambassador and his wife, all the diplomats, and all the local staff to say thank you for all the good experiences during my internship.

2) How do you evaluate your experience and interactions with people through the internship?

I keep in touch with some diplomats and local staff at the embassy. I think doing an internship at the embassy is one of the good experiences in my life to get networking that may help my future career goal.

3) Do you think your internship will have a positive effect on your future career? If yes, how in particular?

Yes, because I want to be a diplomat in the future. After graduating from OSIPP, I am going to take an examination to be a diplomat called the national civil service examination carried out by the state and Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia. There are some types of diplomats. One of them is as a foreign service officer which works under the supervision of an ambassador who gives them directions. They travel to other countries to make observations, gather information, and analyze data. Then they report back to the ambassador and senior government officials to share key updates and relay important details.

4) What special qualifications are necessary as an intern at a multicultural working place and intercultural environment? Please write some advice to students who will participate in an internship program in the future.

I think doing an internship at the embassy does not need any special qualifications. My advice is to just try to send an email by attaching your internship request letter and CV to one of the diplomat’s emails from the embassy’s official website.