A learning experience in The Netherlands

For University of the Philippines computer science student Shannon Bering, the world is the limit when it comes to learning.
Bering landed a six-week internship with Dutch web developing company Secure Design Webdevelopment in Leiden, Netherlands.
Instead of preparing coffee or running errands, like what most interns do, Bering was given “real work.”
“The tasks they give me are never the same, which is pretty exciting. I got to multi-task major assignments and it helps me learn how to be really efficient, something I never did too well in school,” she said.
Her job is to add certain functionalities to their clients’ websites, such as DentalCharting.com, a web application that helps local dentists organize their dental records for their patients.
“The company has a lot of work on their plate. DentalCharting is just one of them. There are days when I’m assigned to integrate recurring PayPal payments on one tab, and making a discount code-generating function in another,” she added.
Among the challenges for her is the language barrier, since many of the content of the websites she’s co-creating are in Dutch, but she manages with online translators.
Sven Versluijs, owner of Secure Design, said although the six-week internship is short, they are all helping Bering learn different skills involved in information technology (IT) development.
“Shannon’s performance has been good. She’s a quick learner and has done well so far, although there is always room for improvement,” Versluijs commented.
He cites the difference between the IT curriculum in the Philippines and the Netherlands as a challenge, but says Bering manages it well, and adapts to their regular pointers fast enough.
To Bering, these are things computer science students can learn outside tons of homework and hours of discussion.
“Being in another country teaches you to adapt to various situations which you will never encounter while cramming for an exam or being in the four walls of the classroom,” she said.
As a young mind with a free spirit, she believes the best part about having an internship outside Cebu is discovering a new place, learning about other people and understanding the nuances of a culture she has never experienced before.
She’s mesmerized by the architecture, the Dutch’s mad appreciation for bicycles, and the homey brick features of many of their storefronts and public buildings.
Although she has fallen in love with Leiden, she misses the Philippines and is excited to return next week, just in time for a new semester to begin in UP Cebu, where she is an incoming 4th-year Computer Science student.
“These opportunities are everywhere—on the Internet, on the newspaper. Do some research, find a sponsor, book your flight, and have your visa processed. Opportunity does not knock twice, or at all, so when you have the chance, work hard to make it happen,” she said.