International Internships in Spain, Belgium and Italy - All Fields
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BEST will find you an internship in virtually any sector or major. We work with a data base of over 300 firms but if we do not have one in your area of interst, we will prospect it for you. We would also be happy to approach any specific company which you might be interested in. In this way we offer you value with a la carte service starting every Monday year long.
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Internship Program: Introduction

The Study-Intern Program was conceived for the many people who are passionate about European culture and wish to improve their Spanish, French or Italian while making social and professional contacts for the future in Italy, Spain or Belgium for two to three months.
It is an economic solution for those who wish to combine exposure to people, life and pleasure with something more practical:
- The chance to gain an international professional experience for your resume.
- Exposure to the customs and protocols of Italian, Belgian and Spanish organizations.
- Exposure to the techniques and business vocabulary in an international arena for a global perspective.
- The opportunity to apply theory to real world situations.
- First time, or a new and different work experience.
- Foment your communication ability in Italian, French or Spanish, self-confidence, responsibility, maturity – all factors which we can consider as important as, if not more, than a good academic background.
- Improve your job perspectives.
What distinguishes us:
This program is organized by a mixed team of Spanish university professors and Americans living for years in Europe who are have been the onsite source providers for many other programs marketed worldwide. This benefit is passed on to the program's participants by lowering costs and maintaining higher value. You will be given all the advantages for becoming bilingual and improving yourself professionally in a practical setting while living for 2 to 3 months in one of these great program destinations:
- Spain: Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Malaga, Marbella
- Belgium: Brussels (for speakers of French)
- Italy: Turin, Genoa, Bologna
Internship Program: Program Features
Academic Features
The internship program provides an intensive language course in a centric specialized language academy upon your arrival. This course will prepare you for cultural immersion socially, linguistically and professionally.
Professional Features
Following the language course you will begin your internship in your chosen sector. We work with around 300 participating firms, both medium and international sized, in all fields of interest. Each one offers a unique and memorable opportunity. See the section Fields and Firms for examples of companies and NGOs we have worked with in the last year.
Cultural and Social Features
- The cultural services provided by this program include membership in a popular free time activities club in Madrid. Almost every weekend there are excursions at student prices which most participants take advantage of. You will find out why Spain is the most visited country in the world for long-term tourism and why Spain has so many monuments listed by the United Nations as World Heritage sites.
- In Brussels there is an extensive cultural activities program where you will have the opportunity to make many friends.
- Besides the organized activities program we can also recommend you read these guides to help you prepare for what to expect culturally on this program: Turin, Genoa, Bologna.
- Many of the cultural activities are free: concerts, walking tours, interchanges, lectures, exhibits. etc. BEST Language Services has very close ties with the worlds of art, music and travel. These afford us inside information which we regularly pass on to our Intern Program participants.
Internship Program: Language Course
Before the commencement of the internship program you will attend an Intensive Spanish course which consists of:
- 20 hours of Spanish classes (2 weeks from de 9.30am-1.pm Monday to Friday). There is a maximum of 8 students in each class, average 5. All teachers are native Spanish speakers, educated to at least degree level and with specific teaching qualifications.
- Cultural and Social Activities Program, which is aimed at improving your knowledge of Madrid itself (through our walking tours of the city and visits to world-famous art museums) and also the culture and customs of Spain. This program also involves evenings, where you can enjoy food and drink typical of Spain, whilst making friends with other students from the school. Some events are free and others have a small charge.
- Our school is centrally located in an up-market neighborhood of Madrid. It is a fully-equipped, specialized language schools for internsive language courses in Spanish.
- There are plenty of opportunities to participate in class conversations and to get to know your classmates from all over the world.
- See list of legal holidays which cannot be made up.
The school provides:
- Placement test
- Orientation pack
- Free access to the internet from 8.30am until 9.30pm school's computer terminals and wifi.
- Library service
- Conversation Exchange with native Spanish speakers
- 24h emergency number
- End of course certificate
Internship Program: Lodging
BEST's housing policy exists to assist the participants of its programs. BEST recommends that the candidate arrive in Madrid on the Saturday or Sunday before the commencement of the program to look for lodging which corresponds with your needs. However, if this is not convenient for you, at no extra cost, we will find you a shared apartment with other participants, a deluxe apartment rental or Spanish roommates.
These are the options we make available:
1. You can sign up for a shared student apartment at all our program locations. These are normally flats with shared bathroom(s), kitchen and a common area with 2 to 4 bedrooms. Cleaning and upkeep are sometimes provided by the owner. They are fully equipped and centrally located. Sometimes there is Internet. A private room costs approximately 500 Euros/month (approx. $670) and a room shared with a friend costs approx. 300 Euros/month each (approx. $400), sometimes payable in advance. The shared room option is only for participants who sign up to come together.
2. In Spain you can sign up for a deluxe apartment, through our partner Friendly Rentals. These can be a loft, a studio or one, two, three bedroom apartments with full services within a converted townhouse or historical building. The decoration is nicer, there is Internet connect, better security. All expenses and cleaning are included. All centrally located. Ask for specific details and photos. Prices range from 60 Euros a night for double occupancy. For this reason this option is normally popular for visiting parents and relatives.
Note: All quoted rent prices can fluctuate according to the exchange rate and the individual landlord's requirement.
3. Room with a Spanish, Belgian or Italian family with either breakfast or half board.
Examples of Costs:
Madrid:
Single room + breakfast only: approx. 160€/week;
Single room + half board: approx. 195€/week
Barcelona:
Single room + breakfast only: approx. 135€/week;
Single room + half board: approx. 170€/week
Note: Exact costs depend on individual owners and can continually fluctuate according to season and demand.
4. You can elect to arrange your own lodging.
Internship Program: Fields and Firms
Examples of firms and NGOs we have worked with in the last year. We do not have a preestablished list of available internships. Each internship is personally prospected for you according to your interests, capabilities, time and duration of participation. If we do not have any positive response with the companies or NGOs already in our data base, we will info-mine a new company for you and pitch you to them.
Italy
- Dall'Olio Costruzioni - Finance
- DLP Service - Chemicals
- Bertolotti Pietro & Figli - IT
- Vitagraph - Communications
- Ricambi Lancia Cavalitto- Antique car parts
- Aermec 83- Aeronautics
- Com.mer - Commerce/Import
- Chemigas - Shipping Agent
- Accenture - Engineering, Consulting
- Cooperativa sociale socità dolce - Education
- Uniaudit - Finance, Auditing, Statistics, Mathematics
- G:D - Packaging, Machinery
- Generale Industrielle S.p.A. - Human Resources
- CRIF S.p.A. - IT
- Sint S.p.A. - Marketing
Spain
- Acción Directa – Furniture Design
- Always Traducciones - Translation
- Amnesty Internacional - NGO
- Autonomous Cargo Systems - Logistics
- Barcelona Business Centre – Business Services
- Blanca Soto Gallery – Art and Photography
- Broadsheet – Publishing and Marketing
- Comisión Europeo de Ayuda al Refugiado - NGO
- Club Ivy – Education
- Dreams and Adventures – Travel
- EMI Music - Publishing
- Esprit – Fashion Design and Marketing
- Fiesta Fácil – Photography and Marketing
- Guide Out - Publishing
- Habitat – Fuiorniture Design and Marketing
- Hotel Urban – Cuisine Arts
- In Madrid - Publishing
- Interacting – Theatrical Production
- Intered - NGO
- International House Language Schools - Marketing
- Lofts Apartments – Real Estate
- Molinare – Post Film Production
- Politours - Travel
- Quality Office Management – Business Services
- Red de Deporte y Cooperación - NGO
- Sampere – Law
- Save the Children – NGO
- Sid Moskitia - NGO
- Spectra Media – P.R.
- Studio-X - Architecture
- Tandem Internacional – Marketing
Brussels
- Aide au Développement Gembloux - NGO
- Amnestia Internacional - NGO
- Avocats sans Frontieres - Law
- Blueprint Partners – Public Affairs, Consultancy
- Brussels Fairs and Exhibitions – Events
- Caritas Europe – NGO, Communication Department
- Clealy Gottlieb – Law
- Climate Action Network – NGO, Ecology
- Deutsche Bank – Finance
- ERTICO – Transportation Systems
- Eurochild – NGO, Children’s issues
- Eurocommerce – NGO, Trade
- Eurojuris – NGO, Law
- European Policy Centre – NGO, Think tank
- European Woman’s Lobby – NGO, Woman’s rights
- Forum Europe – NGO, Think tank
- Handicap International – NGO
- Human Rights Watch – NGO
- Kiddy Classes – EFL, marketing
- Media A – Graphic Arts and Web Design
- POLIS – Trade, Commerce
Most popular fields:
Marketing – Paid Internships in English Teaching and Business – Physical Therapy – Informational Technology and Web Design – Logistics – Finance – Law – Journalism – Business Administration – Engineering – Import-Export – Hospitality – Tourism – Design – Medicine – Graphic Arts – Advertising – PR – Internacional Relations – Humanitarian Organizations in Brussels or Spain , among many more.
Our method is to hand pick the firm and pitch you to them according to your qualifications and language level. We negotiate an unpaid training post for 4 hours a day, 5 days a week. If longer dedication is required a small scholarship is requested from the company. Often there are perks offered such as transport passes, clothing, meal tickets, etc. These are unpromised.
In non-profit organizations the internships have a two-fold objective: to satisfy your social conscience while you also gain professionally. So that you can benefit from an international on-the-job experience while you volunteer, the posts in non-profit organizations are not usually at the grass roots level but in the administrative divisions. For example, we can place journalism majors in the Press Department of a humanitarian organization to fuse the linguistic, career and volunteer needs of that candidate. Read about the other reasons one pays for a volunteer position in an association or organization here.
The Marketing internships are in a wide span of companies dealing areas as diverse as human resources, logistics, advertising, journalism, EFL graphic arts, public relations, teaching, consulting, finance, etc.
Internship Program: Terms & Fees
Pay 2009 prices for 2010! All our internship programs will maintain the same great prices as in 2009.
Included Program Features
- Tuition in one of our centrally located, up-market, fully-equipped language schools for an internsive language course Monday to Friday for 2 weeks. Class hours are 45 minutes from 9:30 to 1 pm (or similar) and there is a half hour break after every 90 minutes of class.

- The class size is between 6 and 10 students. This means that there are plenty of opportunities to participate in class conversations and to get to know your classmates.
- Absolute beginners can only start on the first and third Monday of each month. Students with previous knowledge can start any Monday. See list of legal holidays which cannot be made up.
- Intern placement in your pre-selected area of interest. We have hundreds of firms in our data base but we will approach new companies for you if there are none for your field. We will also pitch you to the companies of your choice.
- Screening of all companies.
- Optional housing offers.
- Reservation and screening service for inexpensive or free lodging.
- Limited bureaucracy in the processing of your application.
- Tutor for academic and professional affairs.
- Level testing, certificates, taxes, materials, texts and limited free Internet access while studying.
- Airport pick up.
- Full coverage health, accident and travel insurance in Spain, Belgium and Italy.
- A local phone number, fax and e-mail data will be provided for you to use to make contact with us in case of need.
- Helpful and extensive online information about your destination in Belgium or in Spain.Our new Italy Guide is coming soon.
- Orientation Guide Online: includes tourist and city information, transportation and communications details -- including a map and explanation of the Metro and much more (for Madrid in paper format and in electronic format for other locations).
- Membership in an international friendship club -- a Membership Card will be waiting for you in their Madrid offices (only). This includes Activities program and many free services such as discounts at weekly interchange discos in a famous Madrid palace, discounts on all excursions, etc...
- Rental SIM card and phones to buy or rent; everything you'll need to stay connected, while abroad through our partner www.pixccellwireless.com/best Note: By using this link you will pay only 25 USD of the cell phone rental or sim card instead of the 40 USD charged directly via the Pixccellwireless website.
Prices
Madrid & Seville:
- 1520 Euros ($2044) for 2 months (includes a 2 week language course)
- 1680 Euros ($2260) for 3 months (includes a 2 week language course)
Madrid workshop / intern programs (Physical Therapy, Health Sciences, Cuisine Arts, BA seminars):
- 1980 Euros ($2900) for 3 months (includes a 2 week language course and 4 to 6 hour seminar or workshop. Inquire about group offers and this program's content without the internship for people with shorter availabilty)
Barcelona, Brussels, Italy & all other locations:
- 1740 Euros ($2340) for 2 months (includes a 1 month language course in Barcelona and Brussels, 2-weeks in Italy)
- 1890 Euros ($2540) for 3 months (includes a 1 month language course)
Seville Credit Program:
- 1740 Euros ($2340) for 2 months (includes 2 weeks language course in Madrid and airport retrieval in Madrid and Seville)
- 1890 Euros ($2540) for 3 months (includes 2 weeks language course in Madrid and airport retrieval in Madrid and Seville)
A non-refundable deposit of 300 Euros is payable by credit card online here with a minimum of 8 weeks before your desired commencement date. Last minute placements can be made for a 100 euros rush fee.
Other payment methods are by international bank transfer or Western Union.
The application fee is due before BEST begins to work on and process your documentation. This amount will later be deducted from your final bill.
Payment in Euros. Dollar amounts will fluctuate with the exchange rate.
Internship Program: Applying
To apply you must have:
- Ability to commit for 3 months minimum (2 months in the summer).
- Intermediate language level (unless placed with an English language company)
- 18 years of age or older
- Clear professional track
Easy steps to follow:
- Fill in the application form online.
- Collect the necessary documentation:
• a copy of your passport.
• a passport photo.
• Resume and cover letter to the company in English and in Spanish, French or Italian (depending on your country of choice.) If you would like help we have selected a few resume samples and cover letter samples in pdf. files.
Note: We will translate your English resume and cover letter for 30 Euros/page. Send us the documents by email and we will return them to you by email.
- Send the documents by Email attachment in Word and jpg files to our main offices in Madrid with the deductible registration fee of 300 Euros. Easy and safe online payment is possible by credit card. Otherwise, see payment methods here.
- Set up a time for an telephone interview. (optional)
- You will receive confirmation on your language classes and information on your internship in a host company.
- You will receive confirmation on your accommodation.
- Make final payment of BEST fee and arrange flight for weekend previous to beginning of language course. (Courses start most Mondays throughout the year).
- Arrival and transfer from the airport to your accommodation.
Internship Program: Application Form