As part of the End-Session Roundtable series, the last group of Session A students congregated at FUSIA to go over their final evaluations and internship experiences on Friday, July 2. The previous groups have already attended the roundtable sessions conducted at the Flushing YMCA on Wednesday, June 23.
The Friday's roundtable consisted of three parts. During the first part, Elizabeth Kay, the group director, reviewed the overall comments from host companies with the students. According to Kay, she had discussions with most host companies in the program. Most host companies were impressed by the students' performance, especially their dedication and hard work.
In the course of the second part, students were asked to share their gains from the seven-week internship. Most students felt challenged in their new environment. Interning in New York City opened their eyes to the cultural similarities and differences between the East and the West.
Additionally, quite a few students mentioned the emphasis on soft skills in the US. "It’s the other way in Asia. The work environment here is really different. Companies here focus a lot on teamwork and results," said Hoi Ling (Rachel) Yeung, a Hong Kong Polytechnic University student.
Last but not least, Kay shared some common issues with students and asked them to share their suggestions.
Wing Sum (Sandra) Ip, a Chinese University of Hong Kong student said, "I think it is important to manage the students' expectations. Taking me as an example, my company stresses on soft skills. It is not so much about working but I like it a lot and was expected. During the interview, I was given two choices, one for soft skills and the other for hard skills. I had a good idea of what was expected."
Chun Yiu (Samson) Lee, a Hong Kong Polytechnic University student, suggested that students be broken into smaller groups at orientation. "Asian students tend to be more conservative. It would be better to have us in smaller groups so we can speak more freely."
