Upon arriving, my position and responsibilities were loosely defined and I was asked what I would like to learn/accomplish during my time there; felt the tasks and projects I was assigned, while not critical, were important and useful to the company; was exposed to hands-on field work (construction project) in addition to desk work; learned two new FEA software packages; my mentor struck a good balance between providing guidance and letting me work on my own; gained experience working within the limits of European construction and engineering standards; co-workers were energetic, interesting; improved my knowledge of the local language; laid-back work environment
What I wish was different
I would have liked to begin work earlier in the summer so that I could have been involved in more projects. (The start date was entirely dependent on me - not on the company)
Advice
If coming from outside of Latvia, start practicing and learning applicable vocabulary early. It took me longer than I had expected to be able to have a fluid conversation about engineering principles.
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Summer Intern
May - July 2018 • Riga, Riga
What I liked
It was my first time working in an office setting, which I believed helped me get ready for what is to come this upcoming summer. The office environment was laid-back and the hours were flexible. Working abroad also helped my foreign language skills improve and helped prepare me for this semester abroad in Italy.
What I wish was different
I wish that the job was more demanding. There were times when I was told to leave early, even on my last day of work because they had nothing for me to complete or check for grammatical errors.
Advice
If you speak Latvian at an advanced level or higher, I would go about contacting the American Latvian Association for a stipend to work in Latvia for two months. Take advantage and build a network, even if you do not plan on returning the next summer, because referrals might become helpful in the future.
