First and foremost can you introduce yourself?

My name is Furkan Öztürk. I’m 22 years old. I am a third year student in department of International Trade and Business.

How did you benefit from the Erasmus program?

I did my Erasmus internship in Warsaw, Poland in July 2021. I did an internship at Relentless Enterprise company under the name of business management for 72 days. #How did you decide to apply to the Erasmus + Internship program? I saw the internship mobility e-mail sent to students by the foreign relations office of our school in the spring semester of 2021, and immediately applied for the internship mobility.

#Which part of the application process was most challenging for you?

I did not encounter any problems during the application process.

How was the process picking where you wanted to do your internship ?

I looked at the ads on the ErasmusIntern website and saw the ads located in Warsaw, and then I sent an email to the company. I didn't send an email to any other company because I was accepted by the first place I applied to.

What advice would you give to people who want to benefit from the Erasmus internship program about receiving an invitation letter?

Your motivation letter and CV should be short and concise, hundreds of motivation letters and CV come to the human resources office of the company you are applying to, so there is no need for you to prepare long documents. At the same time, during the internship interview, they ask you questions about yourself rather than detailed questions, so relax.

How many places did you send an application to and from how many did you receive a positive answer ?

I only applied to one place, and got a positive response back.

What did you do during your internship? Can you walk us through your normal day?

Since I went during the pandemic within the first week of the internship, an email came from the company about the coronavirus restriction, and they said that the branch in Warsaw and the branch in Ireland would temporarily be closed. A friend of mine whom I met during the Erasmus process due to the virus had started doing their internship remotely like mine. The company had an educational platform called Platzi and in the process they gave me a free account which I can still use. There are many lessons in it that are not only related to my department. At the same time, they gave a free account for another site, which was also like Platzi. I attended the trainings they gave. I was studying online 5 days a week, and at the end of August they had us take a small exam, and my internship began to continue remotely for the rest the time. They need to give you a mentor for internship mobility, at first they didn't give me a mentor, and then one of the founders of the company said, “at least let me be your mentor," and he helped me out a lot with training and told me about different trainings from which I can get a certificate. The most difficult part during this period was the temporary closure of the company's branch in Warsaw, but I can still say that I trained with very valuable people.

Did you have any challenges about accommodation?

I arranged my accommodation through a site I found on the Internet. I rented a room for 3 months and it was 900 zlotys per month, I was very satisfied in terms of the fee and the quality of the room, only the website had taken a commission of 100 euros, which was the extra cost.

Can you talk about the features of the city that you went to?

Frankly, Warsaw is really a stylish, orderly and international city, it is possible to see people from all of the world in this city, and these people can live together in Decency. At the same time, it is very difficult for you to get lost in this city, because it has organized streets rather than complicated ones. I can say that the young people in Warsaw are helpful, and some people in the city know when they need to study and when they need to have fun, you can see 40-50 year-olds dancing. From an economic point of view, I can also say that, because Poland uses its own currency, the exchange rate difference was not much different at the time, so I can say Poland is an economic country.

Can you evaluate your Erasmus experience in the country that you went to ?

To be honest, I can't say that it would have been better if I had done the internship in another city because I did Erasmus in the capital of Poland, I was happy with Warsaw in terms of networking and from an economic point of view it was not a very expensive city.

How was the profile of erasmus students where you were?

I saw more Spanish students, but there were German and Turkish students, although not as many.

Can you tell us about the friend environment you created during your stay?

I met people from every country. Such as American, Spanish, German, Polish. In the friendly environment, everyone got together very quickly and formed a very friendly environment, no one was judging each other and we were all sharing our cultures with each other.

#What was the hardest part of living in a foreign country?

Since Polish is the main language of Poland, I can say that there were not many people who knew English at the place where I stayed. I was forced into this direction.

What was the best part of living in a foreign country?

The experience of living alone in a foreign country increases the self-confidence of a person. You can hear yourself say I will survive in other countries as well, and I can say that this was the best part of my Erasmus process.

What have you done during this process that you've never done before?

From the time I had left from my internship, I started traveling to different cities. My confidence had started to increase because I was getting out of my comfort zone.

We know this question is hard to answer, how has the erasmus internship experience benefited you?

First of all, I can say that it added self-confidence because I was alone in a foreign place where I didn't know the language and people, and it was a nice experience. At the same time, although they did not contribute much to the network, I am still in touch with some of my friends who were foreigners from Erasmus. Finally, I would like to go abroad again right now because I would be more comfortable because now I will have had previous experience.

Was the grant that was given enough? Did you spend any extra money?

The grant given was enough for last year. Of course, I spent extra money, but I didn't spend a lot.

Is there any information that you found useful to you, that you would like to recommend? 

I’d say get an ESN Card before going to Erasmus, because it can make your erasmus experience cheaper. You can take advantage of the discounts.

Did you have any information about ESN in the country that you went to?

Unfortunately, I do not have any knowledge of the ESN in Poland.