Stay abroad in Plymouth, Michigan, USA

Field report by Carina B.

As part of my dual study programme, I had the opportunity to do a 10-week internship with a cooperation partner in Plymouth in the USA. Plymouth is about 30 minutes west of Detroit. During my internship, I lived in a flat in Ann Arbor with a couple from France who were also in the USA for an internship lasting several weeks. ELHA took care of organising the internship and selecting accommodation. My trip to the USA started with a direct flight from Frankfurt to Detroit. After landing in Detroit, I was picked up by Ralf, an employee of our cooperation company, and taken to the flat in Ann Arbor.

I was picked up by Ralf on my first day at work. We travelled together to Plymouth to Alfing, my internship company. An office building and a warehouse and assembly hall are part of the Alfing site in Michigan. This site is shared with other companies. A desk with a PC was prepared for me. I was greeted very warmly by all the employees and familiarised with the new situation. After a few days, I was even provided with a car. My tasks included creating presentations, revising various documents in German or English and visiting customers together with a sales representative. In addition to commercial office work, I also had the opportunity to familiarise myself with Alfing machines and to be involved in spindle repairs and revisions and to lend a hand.

In addition to my internship, I used the time to get to know Ann Arbor and the surrounding area. Together with my flatmates and other friends, I did lots of things, such as canoeing on the Huron River, went to a Detroit Tigers baseball game and spent pleasant evenings in Ann Arbor and the surrounding area. In addition to various leisure activities in the vicinity of Ann Arbor, I visited several cities in the USA. I particularly enjoyed my visit to Chicago on a long weekend. I spent two weekends in Troy with friends who were very welcoming and showed me a lot of the area. After completing my internship and before flying back to Germany, I still had time to go on a city trip. My first destination was Washington D.C. with many well-known sights such as the White House and Washington Monument. This was followed by a five-day stay in New York and a visit to Boston. Compared to the hectic and exciting New York, Boston seemed very quiet and idyllic to me. At the end of my city trip, I visited Niagara Falls. Visiting these cities and their sights was very exciting and an absolute highlight of my stay. My stay abroad in the USA was a great enrichment for me. I gained an insight into the American way of life and was able to improve my English. I would recommend a stay abroad to anyone.