What did you like about the Master’s programme and why?
Growing up as a bilingual, I have a fascination for languages from an early age on. Studying International Business Communication (IBC) for my Bachelor's has provided me with invaluable insights into the complexity of communication. Through the study I learned to view communicative interactions from different angles, gained a deeper understanding of cultural nuances & language variations, and effective strategies for engaging with diverse audiences. Further, the degree opened the Hispanic market for me, in which I am still active today.
Where do you work now and what does your job entail?
After finishing a Master's degree where I further focused on navigating cross-cultural interactions with confidence and proficiency, I found a job where almost all study aspects are intertwined. Nowadays working in the International Office at a university in Germany, I am in close contact with partner universities worldwide.
The university I work for has a different concept than most universities. We have over 50.000 students all over Germany, because we teach in 32 different cities. Most of our students study part-time because they have a full time job, so a "classic" semester abroad is not possible for them. We offer short-term stay abroad (between one week - three months) to still give the students an opportunity to realise a stay abroad.
I am responsible for the cooperation with the UCAM in Murcia, Spain; the University of Sopron in Hungary; the University of San Diego in the USA and the phd programme in Sopron. In detail, I take care of the marketing of the programmes (for example giving info sessions to the students, explain the options of module crediting), I need to make the financial calculations, update the contracts with the partner universities, in some cases plan the housing and group activities, exchange information with the partners, sometimes coordinating the teaching staff, communicating grades to the students and making sure the crediting goes right and so on. Basically, I am a coordinator of the programmes; I am the first person to contact for the students, teachers and of course the partners of the above-mentioned programmes.
This also means I visit the partners when a new group of students start their stay abroad to ensure everything goes well during the first days. Further it is meant to exchange with the partners directly for a long-lasting cooperation.
Next to this, I am also taking care of the general marketing of the International Office by preparing content for social media, organising the bi-monthly mailing for the students, attending & organizing events for new students to inform about the stay abroad options, introducing the International Office to new employees and updating all colleagues in Germany regularly (e.g. new destinations we offer).
I am really happy that this job has crossed my path, when I did my Erasmus at Radboud short after Covid I became aware of the job as such in general - but I never thought that I would be able to start in this position. It may sound a bit cheesy, but my dream became kind of true!
What did you learn during your studies that you now use in your work?
The comprehensive and enriching education at Radboud university has given me sufficient knowledge and confidence to enjoy working with partners, students, and teachers. Especially with my Spanish colleagues we have created stay abroad programmes where I indirectly can pass on some communication knowledge to the students.