“Over the summer, I had my privilege to have an internship at the United Bulgarian Bank (UBB) bank for 2 weeks. I worked in the sector of European Projects & Financial Institutions Directorate where they provide funds for businesses that might need financial support.

My first task as an intern was to understand what about the Vienna Initiative 2.0. They gave me a very thick stack of papers for me to read while explaining this is one of the examples of how banks work. The Vienna Initiative is a framework in order to create a more stable economy in Europe. 

At their request, I gave a PowerPoint presentation, which became another learning experience for we normally use Google Presentation at AAS. Since I was the newest along with the youngest on the UBB expert team, I wanted to do my best ability. Finally, I finished the presentation within two days, without knowing how fast people here can create and finish such types of projects. 

This opportunity gave me a chance to present myself to an international group of professionals. My task was to create a presentation about my country, South Korea, and talk about our culture and traditions but also comparing their banking system to Bulgaria. The presentation went very well and different sectors of the company started asking for a copy of the presentation.

In the end, Mr. Velitchkov, the Directorate of the European Projects and Financial Institutions was very impressed and forwarded the presentation to the entire team. I was elated and proud that they gave me the recognition. By the way, this was the first internship task, which I was assigned. In reflection, I learned no matter of a person’s age or experience, great effort and perseverance will eventually shine through.

Overall, I was very content with my internship at UBB. It gave me a better understanding of what I want to do later on in the future. In addition, it helped me gain experience as a worker in an environment outside of school. I recommend internships for any student hoping to find to discover and learn more about themselves and abilities.
Special thanks to Mr. Christof De Mil, Chief Financial Officer at UBB and Mr. Reynolds, my IB Business Management teacher for directing and assisting me with obtaining a summer business internship. Again, I highly recommend an internship for any highly motivated student. “
Dabin, Grade 12