Written by Rachel Faykus, (Elon University), CET Prague, Fall 2023
While abroad in Prague for the semester, I chose to do an internship in addition to my studies. As my time in the Czech Republic starts to end, so does my time as an intern. I thought this would be the perfect time to share my internship experience. As a Strategic Communication major at Elon University, I am required to complete an internship during my four years of college. Because I want to live and work abroad sometime in the future, I figured this semester would be the perfect time to accomplish this requirement.
My internship is with Manifesto Markets, a food market hall with fifteen different restaurants and bars. Manifesto is a smaller company under the organization, reSITE, a nonprofit that works to make urban areas more livable and lovable. Prague is home to just one of their market halls, along with Berlin and Dublin. My role in this company is as a public relations and marketing intern.
At the beginning of the internship, I was a public relations intern, but my supervisor went on maternity leave halfway through, so I switched departments and became a marketing intern. As a public relations intern, my tasks included media research, editing interviews, drafting blog posts, and writing press releases. My time in the marketing department has been spent updating menus and event calendars, but in the next couple of weeks, I will also be shooting content for their social media.
where I do most of my work
As far as office life goes, mine has been very different than the other CET Prague students doing internships. Instead of a typical workplace, my office is in the local WeWork building, so there is a lot more space to do work other than Manifesto’s designated office. Working in the communal space of this building has allowed me to observe more of the Czech work culture.
Throughout my internship, I have noticed a difference between American and Czech culture, especially when it comes to work. One of my most surprising days as an intern was when someone brought their dog to the office and left them in the communal area for a few hours. Since then, this has happened many times, and no one around seems to bat an eye. Personally, I cannot see this playing out the same way if the office was in America.
Going into this internship, my biggest worries was balancing the typical study abroad life with an internship and navigating the language difference. When I started, I was glad to learn that Manifesto’s founder is American, so everything spoken in the office or sent on our communication platform is in English. However, not being fluent in the native language has introduced a couple of challenges. One of the most prime examples of such challenge occurred when writing press releases and blog posts. Everything I wrote had to be translated from English to Czech before being released to the public, and unfortunately, I found that many words and phrases in English cannot be translated into Czech. This meant I had to be extra careful on while writing pieces.
Overall, my experience as an intern has been a very positive one. I have plenty of time to travel and spend time with my friends, while also working for a foreign company. This opportunity has allowed me to further immerse myself into Czech culture, which at the end of the day, is what studying abroad is all about.