And this is one of the most discussed subjects among universities worldwide. Where should i do my internship. Where can i find the internship i want? Is it necessary? Should i invest more money and time to do my internship.
Interview with Pavlos Elenis Ceo of Algoos.
Mr Elenis Should young people do an internship?
Doing an internship it is definetely a must for young students nowadays. Once upon a time it was sufficient to know how to read and write to find a good job, then it was necessary to have finished highschool, university, tghen masters and now we are in the age where 1 or 2 masters is something normal to find but employers need also previous experience. When employers talk about previous experience to young graduates they do not mean a full time job but they mean if they have done an internship. That shows motivation and willingness to build a career.
Where students can find and internship?
Well that is a big subject for discussion generally students should make their cv and start submitting to every possible organization till somebody accepts them. Once that is done then they should do the interview and wait for the decision.
Should students look for paid or unpaid internships?
Well, it is obvious all students would like to find a paid internship but that might not be possible. Most of the fields they do not pay the internee because they do not consider them important part of their teams. They simply hire them to fulfill lets say their social part.
So do you mean that unpaid internships do not matter?
Well statistically it shows that unpaid internships are not taken seriously later form the employers. The salary and the chances of finding a job between somebody who performed a paid internship with somebody who did an unpaid internship they are very different.
What are the main skills students get by doing an internship?
The most important skill is to understand their role in the society, they understand how an organizaiton work and that the world does bnot wait for them to start moving. The World is like a train and students need to chase it.
Do you believe students are ready to work in large organizations?
Well it really depends, it differs from student to student. But for instance how do we understand a student is motivated is by looking his cv and the work experience he/she had during his study years, the erasmus internships he/she did. A person that spend his summer working is definetely a person that it worth having a serious look.
Would you like to tell us a few things about algoos study work and travel?
Algoos study woprk and travel inc started many years ago as part of Algoos consulting a company focusing on creating succesful hotels. At some point we noticed the marget gap about new talented young professionals in tourism and hospitality and we decided to form a company that we will supply hotels with young internees so they can get experience and create bonds with the hotels so we can make tommorow’s professionals.
So what do you actually do?
We actually travel all over Europe during the winter, we perform presentations to universities like the one attached below and we ask people to declare their interest. We then interview them and supply them to our hotels.
How many students do you accept any give year?
More than 800 students.
What are the top Counties?
Definetely, Poland and Greece are our best countries. But of course we have many people from Lithuania, Latvia, Finland, Hungary, Slovakia,Finland, Ukraine, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia and so on.
From which country the students are the most prepared?
Well the students are more prepared from Greece, Poland, Latvia and Slovakia because we also have partnerships with schools that teach them exactly what our hotels need. But honestly all students are hard working.
You don’t think your way to creative work. You work your way to creative thinking.
Can you name some of the hotels you work with?
Certainly, we work with Spain Iberostar ghotels, Hoteles Lopez, Villa Madeira in Portugal, Atlantica hotels in Greece, Golde Hotels, Kanika hotels in Cyprus, Meydan hotels in Dubai. Marriot hotels, Hilton hotels, Cezar Ritz hotels and many others.
There are similar companies like yours? What students should take in mind before choosing?
There are some companies which do the exact same thing and have the exact same partners. The good thing with Algoos is all our hotels and partners are unique that is why we are no 1 in Europe. Students should always pay attention to the small letters and never ever believe the slogans FREE SERVICES, there is no such a thing as free dinner they shouldnt be naive. Everybody is there to make a living. So i guess they should read the contracts, the stricter they are the better for them.
Mr Elenis thank you so much for this interview, would you like to say something to students?
Students take advantage of your time while you are young and do what you wont be able to do after graduation, travel and intern.
