After four years in undergrad I realised that not only was I not ready for graduate school, but that I also had very little experience for a career in science, despite a double major in Zoology/Human Biology. Luckily I happened upon an internship at home in Canada which gave me training in scientific publishing and literature research, but I still needed experience working with animals in some form.  After some searching I found Connect-123’s website, and I decided to take the chance at an internship in Cape Town.

From the very start the agency went above and beyond my expectations. They answered my tentative inquiry email promptly, and from there everything went very fast. They not only found me an internship outside of their usual placements, but helped me find a place to stay at Stellenbosch University for two months, and even placated my mother when she became nervous about me going to and staying in South Africa all by myself.

During this internship, I not only gained a wide set of skills needed to become a real researcher of marine biology (a childhood dream), but also got to experience campus living for the first time, I learned how to cook rice properly from a mycology professor and quiche from my ecology supervisor, and indulged in the best pasteries ever whenever I wanted. The end result of my internship, which I worked hard and happy at, was a successful chance at  continuing it as a Masters of Science project at the University of Cape Town come this September (2012). In addition, I received the references necessary for a summer post as Assistant to the Curator of Amphibians & Reptiles and Curator of Mammals at the Toronto Zoo in Canada.

Connect-123 provided me with a very rare chance to intern with lovely people within my chosen profession, and realise that it would actually be possible to be a Marine Biologist. Although the people at Connect-123 had to make special arrangements for me for nearly all aspects of my 2 months in Cape Town, they did so without fuss and made me feel incredibly welcome and safe. They were with me every step of the way, checked on my progress often, and took a real vested interest in how and what I was doing.

I highly recommend this program to all hard-working (yes, I even worked on weekends and loved it) young folk that want to realise the possibilities offered in other countries. Stellenbosch was a jewel of a place to study and research and I felt properly apart of an academic community. The surroundings were beautiful and the people were always cheerful and polite. I really can’t wait to be back in South Africa, this time for 2 or more years.