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EECS alum interns in Finland through IAESTE
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Justin
Hsiao (left), at a 2003 IAESTE dinner, says his internship
was a great opportunity to brush up on communication skills
and make international contacts.
PHOTO COURTESY JUSTIN HSIAO |
Justin Hsiao (B.S. ’03 EECS) had such a good experience
studying at Sussex University in England the summer after his
sophomore year that he wanted to do it again. But with the rigors
and requirements of his EECS major, he couldn’t take time
to study abroad without delaying his graduation.
In a search for international opportunities that would not hold
up his graduation, Hsiao encountered the Berkeley chapter of IAESTE,
the International Association for the Exchange of Students for
Technical Experience. IAESTE Berkeley is one of 21 chapters of
IAESTE United States, the nation’s only professional society
dedicated to providing international experiences for science and
engineering students and technical professionals with global interests.
After graduation, Hsiao began a 16-week IAESTE internship with
Helsinki Polytechnic University in Finland, where he investigated
the remote detection of breathing problems and emergency medical
conditions such as sleep apnea and chronic asthma using wireless
technology.
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IAESTE
matches interns to paid positions lasting 12 weeks to 12 months
in more than 80 countries, including Norway, where these three
IAESTE interns traveled in 2003.
PHOTO COURTESY IAESTE |
“Given Finland’s specialties in excellent health
care and wireless technologies, the internship helped me a lot
with research experience, in addition to my previous research
at Berkeley,” Hsiao says. “It also helped solidify
my choice to pursue a career in bioengineering.” In fact,
his experience was so successful that he will be returning to
work for his Finnish employer this spring for another six months
before pursuing his Ph.D. in bioengineering.
Hsiao is one of more than 6,000 students IAESTE U.S. has placed
in paid technical internships in 86 countries worldwide since
it was founded in 1950. As part of a reciprocal exchange organization,
each chapter is responsible for generating local jobs for international
interns, and for each of those, the chapter gets to send a student
member overseas.
“IAESTE internships are mutually beneficial exchanges for
both interns and employers interested in connecting with the technical
global community,” says David Hodges, EECS professor emeritus
and former dean of engineering. Hodges is Berkeley IAESTE faculty
advisor and an alumnus of the organization; he did an IAESTE internship
in Norway in 1960. In addition to offering engineering students
paid international internships and opportunities to work on the
local committee, Hodges says, IAESTE can help professors seeking
to host international interns to perform research.
IAESTE recently introduced professional membership to help forge
connections between technical professionals and students who want
to become leaders in the global marketplace. It also sponsors
regional, national, and international conferences and symposia
for both student and professional members.
For more details, see Berkeley IAESTE on the Web at www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~iaeste/
or the national chapter at www.iaesteunitedstates.org.
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