Thinking about doing your co-op term in Europe? What do you think about an internship in Germany with a $6000 CAD scholarship?
Let me tell you all about the DAAD RISE program, their internship opportunities, and the funding they have for undergraduate students!
What is the DAAD?
Founded in Heidelberg in 1925, the DAAD - Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst or German Academic Exchanging Service in English - is the world’s largest funding organization for the international exchange of students and researchers to Germany.
They not only offer scholarships and research grants for study and research abroad in Germany, but also have many opportunities to study abroad, research abroad, and gain professional development through internships in Germany.
These internships are offered through the DAAD RISE Germany program.
What is the DAAD RISE Germany Program?
The DAAD RISE Germany program aims to promote student exchange to Germany in the fields of natural science, engineering, and life sciences. That includes:
Biology
Chemistry
Computer Science
Physics
Earth Sciences
Engineering
or a closely related field
In pursuit of this goal, they offer summer research internships in Germany for undergraduate students from the US, Canada, Great Britain, and Ireland. Students that apply for an internship are carefully matched with doctoral students and researchers from German universities of applied sciences.
These internships can be as short as 10 weeks and as long as 3 months. Undergraduate students who are currently enrolled in a Canadian, American, British, or Irish university, have completed at least 2 years of a 3-4 year degree, and will continue to be an undergraduate post-internship, can apply for the RISE program.
Testimonials
Curious what it's like on the program?
Let's hear from one of my close personal friends, Meg Takazawa, as she talks all about her experience on the DAAD RISE Germany Program this past summer!
I was fortunately matched with a post-doc mentor at the Institute of Sensor and Actuator Technology (ISAT) at the Coburg University of Applied Sciences. My project was focused on developing a device that can perform free-flow electrophoresis. While I had studied the applications of the devices before, I never engineered one. The learning curve was quite immense.
Over time, my confidence gradually increased, and even when my first few device iterations failed, I never gave up...My daily perseverance allowed me to finally create a successful device in the last month of my internship – my proudest moment to this day.
I truly admire how ubiquitous science is. It connects people from divergent cultures and encourages us to brainstorm together. I think it’s especially important for scientists to establish these international connections to have a more holistic perspective on the global challenges we face today.
For those who are worried about applying to DAAD-RISE or studying abroad internationally, your fear is completely valid. But, remember that there are many hidden gems around the world and discovering them can be such an empowering experience!
To hear more of Meg Takazawa's story, check out Episode 36 of the Coffee Connections podcast!
For testimonials from all fields of study, check out all the student reports on the DAAD RISE website.
Funding
If you're concerned about the financials of an internship abroad, fear not, as there are about 300 scholarships available each year for the RISE Program.
When accepted, students will receive a monthly stipend of €934 (~$1402 CAD), and are invited to a 3 day RISE Germany meeting in Heidelberg, where they will receive €160 (~$240 CAD) for traveling to the meeting. The DAAD also provides health insurance, accident and personal liability insurance.
For Canadian's specifically, you NEED to apply for the Mitacs RISE - Globalink Research Internship Scholarship.
Students, who qualify, will not only have health insurance, accident and personal liability insurance through the DAAD, but also receive $6,000 CAD (~€3994) from Mitacs to support their travel costs and living expenses instead of the monthly stipend.
To see if you're eligible, head on over to the Mitacs website.
FAQ
If you have any questions and concerns, they may be answered in the drop down menu below.
FAQ
If you have any questions or concerns that were not answered in this blog post, or need clarification on anything mentioned, check out the links in this post for more information, and/or head on over to the DAAD's contact page and the DAAD RISE FAQ page.
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