“What did I get myself into?” was the first question Aaron asked himself as he stepped off the plane in Ghana, Africa. After the initial culture shock, this senior Management Information Systems (MIS) major from St. Louis soon discovered that his internship at Cocoa Processing Company Limited (Cocoa), a chocolate factory in Ghana, was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
For eight weeks, Aaron was able to help establish some of the groundwork for transforming the paper-based accounting system into an electronic format for Cocoa, a major chocolate exporter to U.S. companies such as Nestle and Godiva. Some of his daily responsibilities included troubleshooting, jump-starting computers and assisting the head MIS officer in resolving problems. In addition, Aaron was able to use the skills he acquired in the classroom during his internship.
“I primarily used Visual Basic during my experience,” he said.
Aaron says the most memorable part of the internship was the people in Tema, a township in Ghana. “They were so hospitable and grateful to have me,” he said.
Aaron advises students to get a head start on internship hunting and to use the resources at Southeast as methods for seeking out internships. Aaron was the only student from Missouri chosen to participate in the International Business Internship Exchange in Ghana, a program funded by the State of Missouri. More information on international internship opportunities can be obtained from the International Business Programs
office in Dempster 246.