Name: Kyjan van der Veen
Age: 22
Nationality: Dutch
Degree/specialization: Social Educational Care
Internship period: 2.10.2017 – 7.7.2018

During my time in New Zealand I interned at Spectrum Care. I was placed at an aspiration center in Auckland for the first 5 months of my internship and in Wellington for the remaining 5 months.

Upon arrival in New Zealand I was picked up from the airport by Mia, my internship supervisor. She brought me to my accommodation where I would live during my internship period. Two of my housemates where from the Netherlands also, and there were two Danes and one German. I found it easy to socialize since everyone had a similar field of specialization. The team I worked with at the aspiration center was very helpful. They would always provide me with feedback and advice when I got stuck or didn’t know how to handle a certain situation.

Due to a growing demand of social care in the Wellington I was offered the opportunity to switch locations and continue my internship on the other side of the Island. The Wellington center opened only one week before I arrived. The transfer provided me with more and new opportunities educationally. I was motivated to create new activities and was given the opportunity to help develop procedures etc. It was great experiencing, the growth of a newly opened service paired with the chaos, impulsivity and open-mindedness that came along. During the end of my internship the service provided a great variety of daily activities for people with disabilities.