My name is Sainy Rathod, a second-year student of International Tourism Management at SAMK. In autumn 2024 I participated in an Introduction Day from project Tour4Youth after hearing about it during classes. The idea was to complete an online course about career management, take part in some events and ultimately do a four to eight weeks of internship in a Tourism related company.
There was also a ready-made list of companies providing internships from Tour4Youth project, that I could have been matched with, but I wanted to also practise applying for jobs in Finland on my own. I got an amazing opportunity to do my internship at Hesburger in Mikkola Pori. The idea came to me one day when I visited the place for lunch. I noticed that one of the workers there was not Finnish, and I thought that maybe I could also ask if they accept interns. Luckily, they told me yes – and that is how the path to my internship started.
From language learning to teamwork
From the very beginning, the most important goal was to improve my Finnish language skills, especially because customer service requires it to some extend. At the same time, I wanted to experience how a professional kitchen works in Finland. Learning in a real work environment gave me a chance to understand Finnish culture better and gain useful professional skills like time management and teamwork skills. I also learned how important punctuality and work-life balance are in Finnish working life.
The internship went smoothly – The staff was very kind and supportive, which made it easier to learn. I was able to practice many new things, and I really enjoyed being part of the team.
Participating to the project Tour4Youth, gave me tools to workplace skills and networking. Besides internship, participants had the opportunity to take part in various events. For example, together with some university friends I joined an event called International Food Day, organized by the project and vocational school WinNova Pori in cooperation. We prepared some traditional Indian dishes like Paneer Tikka Masala & Roti, Masoor Dal and Gajar Halwa in the WinNova teaching kitchen, and offered tastings for the guests, mostly from the tourism and catering field.
I believe that experience from the internship and the different steps of the project will be useful for me in the future. It gave me more confidence to work in Finland and showed me that I can adapt and grow in a new environment. Would I recommend this kind of internships to others? Absolutely yes. It is a good way to learn, not only about the job itself, but also about the people and the culture around you.