Name: Baylor Freeman
Class Year: 2025
Major: Biology
Hometown: Tulsa, Oklahoma
Internship Organization: IES Abroad - Vienna
Internship Title: Biolution Summer Intern 2024
Location: Vienna, Austria
What's happening at your internship? We would love to hear what kind of work you are doing!
All interns participating in the IES Internship Program(s) are placed with companies within the city of their choosing based on their interests. Although my top priority interest of working in the public health industry was attainable in the short time frame IES had to place me before the program started, they were able to connect me with Biolution, a company that consults researchers on their grant proposals. There, my primary task was organizing and editing the submissions from a cohort of 10 physicians/scientists.
Why did you apply for this internship?
Since obtaining this internship was kind of like going on a blind date with a friend of a friend, my reasoning for applying was not as straightforward as a desire to advance my skillset for a future career (although that did happen along the way). Instead, I reasoned that it was important for me to spend more time outside of my hometown the summer before my senior year of college, and that there will be very few opportunities in the future to completely uproot your life to move to another country. In participating in this internship program, I wanted to gain more confidence in myself as an individual.
Was there anything special about how you found this internship?
My hell-great aunt participated in this program last year, and spoke very highly about her experience.
What has been your favorite part of this internship?
By far the highlight of my internship was the location. Being able to explore the city of Vienna on the weekends, or travel to nearby countries via the train/bus, allowed me to see a lot of sights that had been on my bucket list for a long time.
What is something you have learned from your internship that you didn't expect?
You can find camaraderie with people all around the world, regardless of what your backgrounds might be. My coworkers were both in their 40s, and their willingness to welcome a 20 year old they had just met was really heart-warming. Because of their support, I felt more confident in my ability to write scientifically.
Can you talk about the skills you are learning and why they are important to you?
Project management was the primary skill that I learned and utilized during my internship, which I think will be incredibly helpful in my future career as a Nurse Midwife.
What is most rewarding about your internship?
Meeting students from other schools across the country, and (randomly) hanging out with 5 other Â鶹ÊÓƵ students in my year.
Can you give us three adjectives and three nouns that describe your internship experience?
Adjectives: Challenging, Rewarding, Navigating
Nouns: Communication, Travel, Self-Discovery