Internship and Federal Volunteer Service

As part of my Bachelor's degree in "Politics and Society", I did a voluntary two-month internship at Europe Direct in the Danube Office Ulm/Neu-Ulm.

My main tasks included creating social media content such as information posts and event reports for the Instagram and Facebook channels of the Europe Direct. I was also allowed to develop my own concepts for thematic series and do a lot of independent research and work.

Another big part of the Europe Direct work are school projects. I was allowed to accompany these and was even able to spend a project day at Lake Constance. As part of an international school exchange project, I was able to develop my own concept for a project day on the topic of European foreign and security policy. I also carried out some research and took part in meetings, so I was able to deal intensively with European topics.

As the International Danube Festival took place during my internship, I was also involved there. I answered questions from citizens and artists at the information stand and in the office, supported the flag painting campaign at the festival and created social media material for the Danube Office in advance. The implementation of such a large event was a very special experience that gave me exciting insights into the organisation of events.

I really enjoyed my time at the Danube Office. The team welcomed me warmly and I always felt taken seriously. I can highly recommend the internship, especially if you enjoy organisational and administrative tasks and are interested in European issues.

With regard to my federal voluntary service in the Danube Office, I was able to get an idea of what the tasks of the Danube Office include in a total of 12 months.

On the one hand, I was allowed to support the project work in my job and got a real insight into how projects can be organised and also implemented. And how much hard work is behind a project.

Especially after school, you are not used to working independently and freely, or to prioritise which work should be done by when, or to organise a project independently. In addition, my tasks also revolved around the website of the Danube Office and the projects. I also created social media content and maintained the social media channels of the Danube Office.
However, the main part of my work was reflected in the preparation or the work during the International Danube Festival. The preparation for the International Danube Festival was sometimes a bit complicated, but there is nothing better than implementing what was planned. Above all, it was pleasant to work with the whole Donaufest team.

Finally, I would like to thank the team of the Danube Office, which I was able to accompany during this special year. I can only warmly recommend this placement, as I learned a lot in this one year with regard to my future career.

As part of my Bachelor's degree in Southeast European Studies and Human Geography, I was given the opportunity to complete my compulsory internship at the Danube Office in Ulm/Neu-Ulm, which I was particularly pleased about because the institution is the only one of its kind in the German-speaking world that not only has a connection to my rather rare course of study, but the Danube Office's areas of work also reflect my interest in issues of regional development.

During my internship, I gained valuable insights into almost all fields of activity of the Danube Office - from event management to public relations - but primarily, as I had wished in advance, my tasks were to provide diverse input for the ongoing transnational projects. Transdanube Travel Stories, Danube Guides Action, as well as the docking project sustainable mobility in Ulm/Neu-Ulm. This also answered many of the questions I had asked myself during my studies about project work in general and transnational cooperation in particular.

In addition, I also got to know the internal processes and the general office routine. And even though this was certainly different due to the Corona measures in force, so that I even had the office to myself at least sporadically, I never felt left alone and could always reach my colleagues for questions without any problems despite the special circumstances.

Thank you very much for the experience I was able to gain through the internship, the excellent supervision even in the midst of a pandemic and last but not least for the very enjoyable, if almost a little too short, time at the Danube Office! I would have loved to stay longer!

As a public management student at the University of Public Administration and Finance in Ludwigsburg, I completed my internship in the area of service administration at the Danube Office in Ulm/Neu-Ulm.

During the internship, I was able to work on EU project work as well as event and public relations work.

Since the two EU projects "LENA - Local Economy and Nature Conservation in the Danube Region" and "Transdanube.Pearls - Network for Sustainable Mobility along the Danube" ended on 30 June 2019, I was able to help here mainly with the final work of the projects.
It was particularly interesting to see how the various project partners from the Danube riparian states work together and how an EU-funded project is implemented.

In addition, I was also used for event and public relations work. I was allowed to represent the Danube Office at trade fairs and other events.

I was also entrusted with the preparation and implementation of the "Danube Day".

I was allowed to work independently on all the tasks I was given during my internship at the Danube Office. If I had any questions, the staff were always happy to help me.

My internship at the Danube Office was very interesting and I had a lot of fun. I immediately felt very comfortable and was also perceived as part of the team. Many thanks to the entire team of the Danube Office for the wonderful time.

During the practical phase of my studies in "Public Management", I completed a 4-month internship at the Donaubüro Ulm/Neu-Ulm. Here I was able to gain an insight into the activities of a non-profit limited company, which was very interesting and varied.

I was allowed to work on my tasks very independently. For example, I organised an event with 24 participants together with a colleague. For example, I was allowed to create the online registration form for the participants, organise the catering, prepare the press release and create a feedback form, which I then evaluated after the event and presented in the debriefing. Fortunately, the feedback from the participants was very positive.

It was very interesting to be involved in the whole process, from the organisation in advance to the event itself and the follow-up, and to see how the event is received by the participants.

I was also able to contribute to the preparations for the International Danube Festival 2020. For example, I updated the address lists for the invitations and the travel information for the programme booklet and translated the info sheet for the call for helpers into English and created an online registration form in English.

Finally, I would like to thank the entire team, who welcomed me and involved me very warmly. I can absolutely recommend an internship at the Danube Office.

As part of my studies in "Public Management" at the University of Public Administration and Finance in Ludwigsburgen, I spent three months at the Danube Office in Ulm/ Neu-Ulm.

I was mainly assigned to project work and I did some smaller tasks for the mobility manager and the EU project "Transdanube Pearls - Network for Sustainable Mobility along the Danube". It was very interesting for me to see how the implementation of an EU-supported project works and what has to be taken into account in terms of organisation.

My main tasks, however, were in the second EU project "LENA - Local Economy and Nature Conservation in the Danube Region". My main focus was on the preparation of the pilot concept "Danube Guides" and its practical implementation, as well as the follow-up of the events in Ulm and Tuttlingen. During this time, I was able to learn a lot about the cooperation between the Danube riparian states, but also to grow beyond myself and take a lot with me for my future professional life.

I was able to take on both organisational and planning tasks and work very independently and on my own responsibility. This made me feel like a full member of the team right from the start, the working atmosphere is super pleasant and I really enjoyed my time at the Danube Office. Many thanks to the whole team for giving me the many insights and the unfortunately far too short but very exciting time!

I am studying "Public Management" at the University of Public Administration and Finance in Ludwigsburg and spent four months here at the Danube Office in Ulm/Neu-Ulm as part of the practical phase of my studies.

Organisationally, I was primarily assigned to the project work team and the mobility manager in the Danube Office Ulm/Neu-Ulm and took on very many tasks related to the two EU projects "LENA - Local Economy and Nature Conservation in the Danube Region" and "Transdanube Pearls - Network for Sustainable Mobility along the Danube". These included organisational tasks, public relations tasks, but also actual project-related tasks and support for the staff in the conceptual implementation of the projects.

I was excited by the transnational cooperation between the different project partners of the Danube riparian countries, and it was very interesting to see how an EU-supported project is worked on and implemented.

I was allowed to work independently on the tasks I was assigned at the Danube Office in Ulm/Neu-Ulm. After consulting the respective staff members, I was able to organise my time and prioritise the tasks myself. In the beginning, I was given rather simple tasks, but the degree of responsibility and independence increased over time. After a while, I felt like a fully-fledged employee in the Danube Office Ulm/Neu-Ulm.

My time at the Danube Office Ulm/Neu-Ulm was very exciting and intensive, and I really enjoyed working there. I felt comfortable in the young and dynamic team right from the start, so I would have liked to stay longer. A big thank you to the entire team at the Danube Office, who gave me all the insights and made the entire internship so wonderful.

I completed my internship at the Danube Office in the course of my studies in Public Management in the specialisation area of performance administration.

In the three months, I got to know a lot of exciting and new things. I had the opportunity to gain an insight into many areas, for example event management. I was able to actively contribute in many different ways, be it in advertising, planning or following up on an event.

During my internship at the Danube Office, I really appreciated the fact that I was always given many tasks to complete. What I find exciting about the Danube Office is that the focus is on different events and topics every season. Therefore, it is always worth doing an internship at the Danube Office, because it never gets boring here!

I am studying "Tourism and Regional Planning - Management and Geography" at the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, where I have mainly been working on the question of Sustainable regional development through soft tourism employed. After the third semester of my Master's degree, and before starting my Master's thesis, I did a three-month voluntary internship at the Danube Office Ulm/Neu-Ulm from April to June. My goal was to link the previously very theoretical and scientific study content with practical content.

During my internship at the Danube Office, I primarily supported the project work. The Danube Office is currently a partner in two EU projects: Transdanube.Pearls and LENA, so I was able to learn about regional development and international project work on a transnational, European level.

My activities mainly comprised research tasks on specific, project-relevant topics as well as supportive additional work. My main focus - project-related - was primarily on the following topics sustainable mobility and tourism, nature guide training, Communication strategies of national parks. I was particularly intensively involved in the planning, organisation and implementation of the kick-off event for the Transdanube.Pearls regional workshop series. My tasks were always very varied and I was able to contribute my own interests and skills at any time.

During my internship at the Danube Office, I felt like an equal team member from the very beginning. This had a very positive effect on my motivation and I always had the feeling that I was needed. The internship helped me a lot in my later career choice and prepared me well for my future everyday life in the office.

As a supplement to my International Relations studies, I was given the opportunity to complete a voluntary internship at the Danube Office Ulm/Neu-Ulm. Since I had only been able to deal with many topics theoretically and there were few opportunities to apply my acquired knowledge, it was important for me to gain practical experience and thereby expand my knowledge. When I landed on the website of the Danube Office in search of an internship, I was immediately attracted by the versatile fields of work. After my (unfortunately only) 4-week internship, I can now say that my expectations were exceeded.

During my time at the Danube Office, I was able to gain many exciting insights into project and public relations work and valuable insights into everyday office life. My tasks were very instructive and always varied. We interns were often allowed to work on tasks independently and contribute our own ideas. Besides taking care of the social media pages, writing press releases and newsletters, as well as creating and distributing promotional material, I was able to participate in several interesting meetings and a workshop on public relations and PR. During my internship, the action day "Ohne Auto-mobil" and the Ulm/Neu-Ulm Culture Night took place, where I was able to work together with the other interns. In the run-up to the event, we were allowed to take on many organisational tasks and prepare activities for the day of action.

The internship at the Danube Office was a very enriching experience and I learned a lot both professionally and for my general working life. Because we were also given challenging and important tasks, I felt like a valued member of the team from day one. The working atmosphere was great and if I got stuck, the other employees were always very helpful.

I completed the last internship in the course of the practical phase of the study programme "Bachelor of Arts - Public Management" at the Donaubüro Ulm/ Neu - Ulm. It was clear to me that I wanted to do an internship in the field of public relations and event management. Not so easy to find in the world of administration. By chance, I came across the Danube Office on the Internet.

When I started my first day at the Danube office, I didn't really know what to expect. But one thing was certain: I would feel comfortable in my new working environment.
A lot of new information and new impressions hit me right at the beginning, but they took a lot of time to explain the processes to me and so I quickly found my way around the world of the Danube.

A lot of emphasis was placed on assigning me tasks from my areas of interest. So, during my time at the Danube Office, I did tasks from event management and maintained the Danube Office's presence in social media, wrote press releases or edited the website. I was allowed to accompany the staff to exciting meetings and got a generous look behind the scenes of the project agency. I was also assigned tasks by the staff from the human resources department. New, exciting and educational tasks presented themselves every day, which made the day seem insanely short.

Due to the (small) size of the project agency, I gained deep insights into almost all areas of the office. From the beginning of my internship, I felt like a fully-fledged employee of the administration. I always considered the tasks I was assigned to be responsible and meaningful. I was given the feeling of being needed.

From mid-March to mid-April, I completed my six-week compulsory internship at the Donaubüro Ulm/Neu-Ulm. As it turns out in the course of the internship, it was exactly the right decision to do my internship at the Danube Office.

My activities were very diverse and there was always something to do; from running errands to participating in preliminary meetings of events, I was allowed to take part in everything as an intern. I learned a lot of new and interesting things during my internship, which I would like to build on in the future, as this internship has shown me what career path I would like to take.

A large part of my work was concerned with public relations. Here I was partly allowed to work on tasks independently, I was also allowed to contribute my own ideas and was always supervised and had a lot explained to me.

Working in the Danube office was a very interesting experience for me, as I was allowed to do a lot of work, but always had a contact person I could ask questions to. It was exactly this combination of working independently and learning new tasks that made my internship so special.
The working atmosphere in the Danube office was also always very pleasant, as the team is small but works together very harmoniously and effectively.

Thank you very much for this great internship!