Field report: Practical semester in Tirana, Albania

Mirjeta Rama, a student of sustainability and social policy, completed her practical semester at the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung in Tirana, Albania, in the summer semester of 2021. She received help with her application and financial support from the "Get Balkanised" internship programme.

In her experience report, Mirjeta Rama summarises her impressions of her time in Albania and describes the insights she gained for her studies and also about herself:

I completed my practical semester in the 6th semester of the degree programme in Sustainable Social Policy at the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung as part of the "Get Balkanized" internship programme. The "Get Balkanized" internship programme gave me the opportunity to plan a longer stay in Southeast Europe. Above all, the financial support you receive through the internship programme reinforced my decision to go to Southeast Europe for my practical semester.

In the summer of 2021, I spent three months as an intern at the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung's branch office in Tirana, Albania. Due to the coronavirus situation, I spent the first two months working from home in Sankt Augustin. I then spent the last month in Tirana. I deliberately chose the FES branch office in Tirana because I find Albania a very dynamic and interesting country and the Foundation's tasks support me in my interests.

The work tasks of my internship included research tasks on the political situation in Albania, parliamentary elections, democratisation processes, sustainability strategies and also on Albania's EU accession negotiations. In addition to my individual work, my day-to-day work was characterised by weekly team meetings, as well as regular workshops and seminars on topics such as social and ecological transformation. For example, we organised a seminar with the political youth association JUSOS from Hamburg on the topic of Albania's EU enlargement. The most informative and exciting seminar for me was the workshop on social democracy. Here, lectures were given by selected professors, actors and international institutions from the social sciences on topics such as social inequalities, democratisation processes, social policy, the welfare state and sustainable development. Ultimately, the focus of my internship was on political enlightenment and education. Today, however, the focus on the political level always goes hand in hand with a certain socio-political approach. In addition to my intensive individual work, the seminars and workshops created an ideal balance between individual work and collective collaboration.

Even outside of my internship position, I repeatedly encountered socio-political topics and issues. It is well known that the socio-economic situation in Albania is anything but good. This was also evident in my everyday life in Albania: I was already confronted with social problems such as poverty and unemployment on my way to work. The Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung gave me a certain amount of freedom in my work, which meant that I was always able to deal with potential issues such as these.

A big surprise for me was the working culture within the internship centre and the city. A few examples: As I didn't have a personal key for the office at the beginning, I had to organise my working hours around those of my colleagues. As a result, I no longer started work between seven and eight o'clock, but only between nine and ten. On the way to work, I noticed that the cafés were already very busy before nine o'clock. This reflects the serenity of the people, who make sure to start the morning with a hearty breakfast. People have a "casual" attitude to work. Here, work is seen as something that supports people in developing their abilities. In this way, the people in Tirana seem more relaxed and content. Their understanding of life also gave me a certain sense of calm.

The practical semester gave me the opportunity to put the skills I had acquired during my studies into practice. Overall, the internship was very enriching for me. I found the combination of newly gained professional experience and everything else outside of work, such as getting to know a "new" culture in another country, very enlightening. For this reason, I can only recommend doing an internship abroad to anyone: The Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung's field office in Tirana is a little more manageable, but I was given comprehensive insights into the various areas of the foundation's work. There is a wide range of events that provide many new insights into social issues. Last but not least, I had many new encounters with institutes and stakeholders and also learnt to look at things from a new perspective. new ways of looking at things.

The internship in Albania not only helped me with my studies, but also with my social skills: I learnt a lot about interpersonal communication and also a lot about myself. The internship put me in a new position where I question things differently and don't take resources such as water and electricity for granted. I have learnt to be more patient and calm.