My three-month stay in Cape Town was one of the most transformative experiences of my life. Not only did the Connect-123 staff find me the perfect internship prior to my arrival, they also made sure that my stay in South Africa was filled with exciting opportunities. From the weekend trips, social events in the city, and volunteer offerings, the Connect-123 staff was there for every step of the way. While in Cape Town, I interned with an NGO that specialized in promoting entrepreneurship and economic development in the city of Cape Town and surrounding Western Cape region. When I first arrived I didn’t really know what to expect. However, within the first week I had become accepted as one of the team members and had taken on a role to assist with the complete redevelopment of the business model and strategy for the organization. The chance to take on such an important task that contained real world implications was a rewarding opportunity that I had not expected out of the internship. Under this project I had regular meetings and phone/email conversations with executive council members who were based in Johannesburg. My time with this organization allowed me to grow professionally in ways that I had not anticipated. I am now able to transfer the skills I learned during my time in Cape Town to future projects in my professional and academic career. I can’t thank Eimear and the Connect-123 staff enough for working with me to find the placement that best matched my interests and skills, all their work definitely paid off! I encourage everyone to take part in an international experience and there is no better company to do that with than Connect-123!