Mireille during her internship in Sao Paulo, Brazil

Type of Internship

E-commerce Consultant Project

What did you think of the city?

The last time I was in São Paulo, I stayed there for a week. I loved it so much that I decided to go back for a longer period (10 weeks). Secretly, I was already thinking about settling there for a longer time. However, living somewhere is different from being a tourist. The quality of life in São Paulo is quite low compared to European cities: there is air pollution, corruption, public safety is lower than in Europe, and the city itself is not particularly aesthetically pleasing. Brazil is also relatively expensive compared to other South American countries; it’s actually about as expensive as the Netherlands. There are always traffic jams, and during rush hour, traveling can be quite frustrating simply because there are too many people.

As for public safety, I actually found São Paulo much safer than I had expected. You do need to watch your belongings, but it’s certainly not the case that you could get mugged at any moment, so to speak.

In summary, I couldn’t see myself living there permanently. However, the people are super kind and helpful, and because I started skateboarding there, I had an amazing time with my skateboard friends at the skatepark. I wouldn’t have missed it for anything. Also, in Vila Madalena, there are a lot of great nightlife spots.

What did you think of the internship?

The internship sounded like a great challenge: helping to launch an online store in the pet market. Due to my experience in e-commerce, the company was eager to work with me. However, in practice, it wasn't as great: I was the one telling them what to do, while they taught me nothing. I had a meeting with them once a week, but other than that, I never spoke to them; so my Portuguese didn’t improve through them either. I also found them quite unprofessional: they had no idea what they were doing, and decisions were made without any research. Perhaps this is a cultural difference: a colleague explained to me that Brazilians don’t necessarily want to be the best, they just want to participate (in this case: they’d rather have an online pet shop than aim to have the best pet shop). All in all, I did learn a lot about the Brazilian e-commerce market, and I found it very interesting. E-commerce in Brazil offers a lot of opportunities, and there’s plenty of work for anyone who wants to work in e-commerce here.

What was the most special experience you had?

Learning to skateboard from some really cool skateboarders! I went to the skatepark every day after work and quickly got to know all the people who also came there daily.

Do you have any tips for students?

Live close to your work. Also, look for a company that has knowledge in your field so that you can be sure you’ll learn something from them. Doing an internship on a tourist visa creates a lot of uncertainty because there’s no contract.

What rating would you give your experience?

City: 6, because it’s just too big, and the city itself doesn’t offer much.
Overall experience: 8, because of my amazing skateboarding experience and because I discovered a new culture + the Brazilian e-commerce market.
Internship: 6, because I didn’t learn anything from the company itself.