Changing lives for 70 years – outcomes of traineeship exchangeOlga Legacka, MA/M. Sc., IAESTE

The International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience

Knowing

W H Y (av. 4.1)

Knowing

H O W (av. 3.9)

Knowing

W H O M (av. 3.6)

Career CapitalDevelopment Model

I A E S T E C H A N G E D M Y L I F E

References:S. Arabiat, B. Baeyens, O. Legacka, Internationalisation and the Enrichment of University Curricular Through the IAESTE Exchange Programme, Internationalisation of Higher Education. EAIE Handbook, Volume no. 3, 2013M. A. Shaffer, M. L. Kraimer, Yu-Ping Chen, M. C. Bolino, Choices, Challenges, and Career Consequences of Globa,l Work Experiences: A Review and Future Agenda, Journal of Management, Vol. 38 No. 4, July 2012T. Jokinen, Development of Career Capital Through International Assignments and Its Transferability to New Contexts , Thunderbird International Business Review Vol. 52, No. 4 July/August 2010

Scale: 0 – not at all,1 – to a small extent, 2 – to some extent, 3 – to a moderate extent, 4 – to a great extent, 5 – to a very great extent

6 722

61

198

2,0% 2,4%7,5%

20,7%

67,3%

0,0%

10,0%

20,0%

30,0%

40,0%

50,0%

60,0%

70,0%

80,0%

0

50

100

150

200

250

1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience increased your willingness to work abroad and travel across the world?

6 722

61

198

2,0% 2,4%7,5%

20,7%

67,3%

0,0%

10,0%

20,0%

30,0%

40,0%

50,0%

60,0%

70,0%

80,0%

0

50

100

150

200

250

1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience increased your willingness to work abroad and travel across the world?

4 515

48

104

118

1,4%1,7%

5,1%

16,3%

35,4%

40,1%

0,0%

5,0%

10,0%

15,0%

20,0%

25,0%

30,0%

35,0%

40,0%

45,0%

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

0 1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience helped you to understand what things do you value in your life?

3 6

29

68

106

82

1,0% 2,0%

9,9%

23,1%

36,1%

27,9%

0,0%

5,0%

10,0%

15,0%

20,0%

25,0%

30,0%

35,0%

40,0%

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

0 1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience helped you to understand your personal strengths and weaknesses?

3

22

37

63

93

76

1,0%

7,5%

12,6%

21,4%

31,6%

25,9%

0,0%

5,0%

10,0%

15,0%

20,0%

25,0%

30,0%

35,0%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

0 1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience helped you to define your career interests and aims?

3 3 9

30

85

164

1,0%1,0% 3,1%

10,2%

28,9%

55,8%

0,0%

10,0%

20,0%

30,0%

40,0%

50,0%

60,0%

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

0 1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience improved your ability to handle new situations, problems and obstacles?

3 7 9 15

95

165

1,0% 2,4% 3,1%5,1%

32,3%

56,1%

0,0%

10,0%

20,0%

30,0%

40,0%

50,0%

60,0%

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

0 1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience improved your ability to work with people from other cultures?

6 418

39

82

145

2,0% 1,4%

6,1% 13,3%

27,9%

49,3%

0,0%

10,0%

20,0%

30,0%

40,0%

50,0%

60,0%

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

0 1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience motivated you to seek additional information to understand why people from

other cultures behave as they do?

14

25 28

65

8577

4,8%

8,5% 9,5%

22,1%

28,9%26,2%

0,0%

5,0%

10,0%

15,0%

20,0%

25,0%

30,0%

35,0%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

0 1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience help you to improve your foreign language fluency?

14

25 28

65

8577

4,8%

8,5% 9,5%

22,1%

28,9%26,2%

0,0%

5,0%

10,0%

15,0%

20,0%

25,0%

30,0%

35,0%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

0 1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience help you to improve your foreign language fluency?

2 1

19

35

99

138

0,7% 0,3% 6,5%

11,9%

33,7%

46,9%

0,0%

5,0%

10,0%

15,0%

20,0%

25,0%

30,0%

35,0%

40,0%

45,0%

50,0%

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

0 1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience helped you to develop your social relationships?

4 7

38

62

104

79

1,4%

2,4%12,9%

21,1%

35,4%

26,9%

0,0%

5,0%

10,0%

15,0%

20,0%

25,0%

30,0%

35,0%

40,0%

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

0 1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience improved your ability to obtain information from different sources/people?

1018

33

75

86

72

3,4%6,1%

11,2%

25,5%

29,3%24,5%

0,0%

5,0%

10,0%

15,0%

20,0%

25,0%

30,0%

35,0%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

0 1 2 3 4 5

To what extent did your traineeship experience helped you to develop your professional relationships?

8

24

43

107

54 58

2,7%

8,2%

14,6%

36,4%

18,4% 19,7%

0,0%

5,0%

10,0%

15,0%

20,0%

25,0%

30,0%

35,0%

40,0%

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

0 1 2 3 4 5

Do you have contact with people whom you met during your traineeships?

The International Association or the Exchange of Students for the Technical Experience IAESTE A.s.b.l. 51, Rue Albert Ier Luxembourg, L-1117 R.C.: F1180, iaeste.org, iaeste.net, @: board@iaeste.org

ASPIRATION TO WORK INAN INTERNATIONAL CONTEXT (4.5)

SELF CONFIDENCE (4.3)

SOCIALRELATIONSHIPS (4.2)

QUICKER ACCESSTO INFORMATION (3.6)

PROFESSIONALRELATIONSHIPS (3.4)

DEVELOPMENT OF WORLDWIDENETWORK (3.3)

RESPONDENTS GROUP

GLOBALMINDSET (4.3)

INTERCULTURAL ANDINTERPERSONAL SKILLS (4.2)

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FLUENCY (3.4)

PROFESSIONALSKILLS (3.3)

ASPIRATION TO WORKABROAD & TRAVEL (4.5)

CRYSTALISED VIEW OFVALUES AND IDENTITY (4.2)

UNDERSTANDING OF PERSONAL STRENGHTS AND WEAKNESSES (3.9)

CLEARER CAREER INTERESTS AND AIMS (3.5)

Flexpatriate; 6; 3% Student; 8; 4% Short term int. assignment ; 12;

6%

International Business Traveler;

23; 11%

Other; 24; 11%

Global virtual team member; 26; 12%Expatriate; 54;

25%

Global domestic employee; 61; 28%

WHAT IS YOUR CURRENT JOB INTERNATIONAL WORK EXPERIENCE?

The research has found that traineeships abroad provide opportunities to develop knowing why,knowing how and knowing whom career competencies.

Professional & cultural experience during traineeship abroad enhanced mostly the aspiration to work in an international context, work and travel abroadand helped to crystallise the view of values and identity

Increased self confidence, global mindset and intercultural and interpersonal skills development were reported as the significant outcomes of the traineeship abroad

Social relationships established during the traineeship were reported as one of the main outcomes of the international experience

294 respondents from76 countries

95% have been on the IAESTEtraineeship

Traineeships were between6 and 52 weeks long

Traineeships took place in86 countries

between 1970 – 2017

73% respondents work nowin the international environment