I interned at Ideale in Vallendar, a small village in Koblenz, Germany, between November 2021 and December 2021. Joining Ideale was my first internship after finishing my university courses, and it was everything I could wish for, in the best way possible. I learned a lot of new skills and learned how to work in different ways to improve a project. I worked a lot with the CEO, Ankle Hollatz, and aside her professional work ethics, she appeared to be interested in assisting women start their own businesses and overcoming the various professional and personal challenges they face.

While interning at Ideale, I had the opportunity to attend one of the women’s workshops organized by “Family and Beruf”, where I also developed the business model for my project.

On the other hand, I had the opportunity to attend meetings of a project called “Return 2 Work”, where I met amazing people who are trying to help businesses affected by the pandemic through the provision of free consultation sessions. I shared my project with them and received feedback from the team of experts which was extremely beneficial to me because they compelled me to think outside the box.

Finally, I had the honour of giving my first ever Guest Lecture at the University of Koblenz-Landau during a workshop for some selected female high school students. I shared with them what keeps me motivated, how I came up with my project idea and a general power-talk to empower them as young girls to reach higher in life.

My stay in Germany has been one of the finest experiences of my life because it was my first ever trip to Europe. Even though adapting to the winter weather was difficult at first, it was such an ideal time to visit because I was able to experience the typical German Christmas holidays, especially, the famous Christmas Market.

During my stay, I also visited some places including the Koblenz Castle, Deutsches Eck, Koblenz-City Center, and had the opportunity to dine in some of the finest restaurants and enjoyed some European cuisines as well.

Overall, these wonderful experiences would not have been possible if it wasn’t for the opportunity given me by the Key Competences for Practice (KC4P) project between The University of Koblenz-Landau and The University of Rwanda. The organization of my stay, communication, and the patience from the team at KCP4P is second to none. I could get any help I needed, and that was one of major reasons why I enjoyed my stay in Germany.

I’d like to conclude by affirming that, this is one of the best programs I would recommend to any student because it aids in practical learning, networking, sharing innovative ideas, receiving feedback, learning how others work, providing inputs, and, most importantly, having fun!