Elin's HR internship in Austin, Texas

"As I was visiting Austin the summer of 2018, I got the opportunity to meet someone who happened to work for an international company in Austin. She was their HR Manager - and it turned out we were both interested in the same kind of expertise - I had finished my bachelors degree in HR and had just started my masters! She offered me an internship and I was absolutely thrilled.

But where would I start? I had no idea what to do - this was completely out of my comfort zone. That's why I contacted KILROY, the company who would save my life (life meaning time, energy, frustration and paperwork). They were professional, calm and experienced. I was worried that I had to go to Stockholm to do a language test - but it was fast and easy done through a phone call with one of their administrators. They also sent me all the paperwork prior to the embassy meeting, so I had every single paper without having to do any of the work or research myself. Thanks to them, I'm finally here."

"So what do I get to do, you ask? A day in the life of me as an intern with Walks LLC typically starts out at 7 am (I'm one of those early birds). I drive to work while the sun is rising (yes, your license is valid throughout your whole stay. Thank God, I wish I knew that - I've been trying to get a hold of the DMV, which turns out is not the easiest thing to do). I assist with the hiring and recruiting, so I usually have phone interviews with potential candidates together with my manager and mentor while in training."

"Right now, I'm in charge of recruiting 6 new people - for both Austin and Dublin! That includes reviewing resumes and corresponding with candidates. At the same time, I'm creating and developing policies and other administrative tracking. I'm also in charge of planning events - like our Quarterly Social Club or our Sister Holidays which is really fun."

"In my freetime I do some sightseeing with my roomates or colleagues, trying new things to eat and meeting people. Next week we are going to the Enchanted Rock to climb, and then to Fredericksburg to get some lunch. We are also planning for a roadtrip to Houston - and let's not forget about the beautiful Hamilton Pool Reserve (Insert heart eyed-emoji here)."

"One of the things that I thought was a bit stressful was getting somewhere to stay. At the moment, I'm living in a house together with 3 other roommates. I was lucky getting a room. I found it through a friend of a friend who knew someone that was looking. I would recommend joining a bunch of roommates/renting facebook groups - that got me in touch with several people. I would also recommend joining AirBnB, asking the hosts if they could accept having someone staying longer and what they would charge for that."

"And please, don't be nervous about the embassy meeting. I was really nervous, but as long as you get there with the right paperwork you should be fine. And it's okay to have your phone with you, they'll just take care of it for you while you are there. You'll get it back, don't worry.

So are you still you on the fence with deciding if you should get out there? Don't be. It's easy and you will never regret it.

Good luck,

Elin"