Sterre in South Africa

Participant

Sterre

Programme

Internship

Country

🇿🇦 South Africa

Duration

5 months

Short bio

I’m Sterre, I’m 23 and I study Leisure Management at Breda University of Applied Sciences. In the third year you could choose whether to do an internship abroad or in Holland. Of course I didn’t have to think about that for long; an internship abroad it is!

How satisfied were you with the support from Holland?

The support from Holland was great. Before I went to South Africa I knew what
to expect and what I would be doing there.

My story

“Every weekend we got a fun little group of people together and went off on another road trip. That was maybe the best part of my internship!”

Sterre · internship in South Africa

South Africa had always been high on my bucket list, and when I got the chance to do an internship there, of course I couldn’t say no. I came into contact with The Power of Sports – United Through Sport through my university. The work and the internship assignments appealed to me straight away, because the combination of sports events, children and travel sounded really cool to me. After sorting out the visa, which was actually quite tricky, the time had finally come! My adventure in South Africa could begin. I was really looking forward to my internship and all the new memories I would make.

The bond you build with the children is indescribable.

When I arrived at United Through Sport, the accommodation was a bit of a shock. A shared room for 5 months felt like quite a lot. Luckily I shared the room with really lovely girls and it all worked out fine. During my internship I organised, among other things, the Holiday Camp, a soccer mini league and friendly matches for the JSE kids. It was nice to do my bit for these events. The tasks were fairly simple and we only had two office days. On the other three days we had the chance to help with coaching in the townships of Port Elizabeth. I found this a very special experience and definitely one I’ll never forget. The bond you build with the children is indescribable.

I’ve made friends for life and I’m so grateful for that.

At United Through Sport no two days are the same and you meet so many new people. It’s remarkable how quickly you can build a close bond with strangers. Of course you’re all abroad on your own, far from your familiar surroundings. I’ve made friends for life and I’m so grateful for that. With your new friends you’d go on a trip every weekend. United Through Sport organised outings, but those were more like day trips. We were looking for more adventure, so we preferred to make our own plans and hired a car. That way we saw much more of the area and the country. Every weekend we got a fun little group of people together and went off on another road trip. That was maybe the best part of my internship! The country was a lot safer and more accessible than I expected beforehand.

In short, I felt that the internship at United Through Sport didn’t always match university level. But the memories and the new friends I’ve made are worth it twice over.