Sophia Atshipara

At work

As a graduate student in Environmental Health Sciences, working for Elsa Mifroma offered me an opportunity to learn new concepts in the food industry, concepts I am positive will help me in my future endeavours. The first three weeks were a trial and run for me, I had no idea about what was expected, and Prof Rudolf delivered training that was very significant. Prof Rudolf (mentor) together with Mrs Deborah-Rollier (line manager) was of great help, they ensured that my colleague and I grasped the concept of what was expected from us by the end of the internship.

When my colleague and I finally understood what was expected, we began our research which was proving to be difficult, but with the help from B360, Mr Rudolf and our Line manager, the road became easy. The working days were always stated on a positive note, especially the motivation from the B360 team who were on calls with us every single day of the three months in the morning, they made sure we were doing fine and ready to kick start the day.

Overall, the working experience was fascinating, my line manager and mentor were very understanding and patient with me. I have learned a lot from them especially punctuality when it comes to attending meetings, the importance of communication (they always had time to attend to questions and give constructive feedback) and ways of finding useful and reliable research.  The meetings that were held on a daily kept us on track as we would always give updates on where the job stands and how we are coping with the job.

Cultural Exchange

During my three months of internship, I was fortunate enough to have the Amhof family as my host family. The Amhof family were welcoming and were very forthcoming with cultural practices and norms of the Swiss people. We shared a lot of wisdom between us from educational advice and encouraging words especially now that I am facing the job seeking market.  Through constant communication between my family and I came to understand the cultural disparities between Namibia and Switzerland from the weather to cultural norms.

Highlights and lowlights

The Swakop trip and activities undertaken when we were there was one of the highlights, followed by the networking event. The new job that I undertook was also a highlight from the internship. Lowlights included internet connection that was poor at times, one of us was always sick either with flu or a cough. Finding literature for my research was also very difficult as there was no literature on the internet. Miscommunications between colleagues and experts were also a lowlight. Working in a team was also proving to be difficult as some colleagues were always not meeting deadlines and they were not taking accountability for their actions but in the end, we worked it out and provided the best final presentation for B360.

My Future Plans

I am looking forward to enrolling for a master’s degree in public health and hopefully find a job in a good working environment that will appreciate my efforts and allow me to make changes in the community as per my job description of an Environmental Health Practitioner.

Personal Message

I would like to thank the entire team of B360 education partnerships for coming up with the initiative of virtual internships. Through B360 I got the opportunity to work with Elsa Mifroma and its magnificent team. I have really learned a lot from B360 and Elsa. I will forever be grateful for the opportunity of working with them.