How Do I Prepare?

Read through this information carefully when preparing your internship abroad:

• Preparing for Departure
• Apply for a visa
• Accommodation
• Prepare for a crisis and do a notification of travel
• Read the information for travellers of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs
• Keep Informed about Global Events
• Insurance
• Register as Present at Hanken Before You Leave

Preparing for Departure

Familiarize yourself early on with the needed arrangements for working in your destination country, so that you can concentrate on getting most out of the internship period and feel safe during your stay.  

It is also important to prepare by reading the information the Ministry for Foreign Affairs Opens in new window  publish about global events (political instabilities, epidemics etc). Make sure you are aware of the security situation in your host country. You should also make a notification of travel (reseanmälan/matkustusilmoitus) before you leave for your internship destination. More information about this below.

Apply for a visa

Some destinations may require that you apply for a visa. The embassies usually also have useful information on their websites. Sometimes the embassies require that you personally hand in your visa application, so prepare for this, in particular, if you don't live close to the embassy. 

The visa application procedures may take a long time, so please start the process in time.

Accommodation

Hanken is a partner of HousingAnywhere.com Opens in new window , the international student-to-student housing platform. Before leaving Helsinki for your study abroad, exchange, Erasmus or internship program you can safely rent out your room to an incoming exchange student. In this way you can avoid paying double rent and ensure that you have your room available at your return. Housing Anywhere is free of charge by using your student e-mail address. Before renting out a room via the platform, make sure you have informed your landlord. Housing Anywhere has over 125+ partner universities worldwide. You can easily find and book your room in more than 500 cities in the world.

Prepare for a crisis and do a notification of travel

Please check the health and security situation in your host country by reading the country specific information (matkustustiedotteet) on the Ministry for Foreign Affairs Opens in new window  web pages (in Swedish and Finnish). Always follow the Ministry's advice. Prepare for a crisis Opens in new window  and do a notification of travel Opens in new window . By doing a notification of travel the Ministry can contact you if needed. You can also check the information given by organisations mentioned below under Keep informed about global events.

Finnish citizens: Please note that all students that are Finnish citizens or permanent residents in Finland who are going abroad are recommended to do a notification of travel (matkustusilmoitus/reseanmälan) to the Foreign Ministry. This means that you give the ministry your personal details, contact details abroad, and other details about the trip. This way the ministry can contact you in case of an emergency or crisis situation. Your personal details will never be given to anyone except necessary authorities.

It is very easy to do a notification of travel as it can be done online or by sending a SMS message with your mobile phone. For further instructions please see Registration of Finns abroad Opens in new window .

You can find the network of Finnish missions here Opens in new window . Also follow the information on Facebook of the embassy Opens in new window  at your destination.

Please note that it is also extremely important that you register with the authorities in your host country. 

Foreign citizens in Finland:
Please contact the embassy of your home country to check what kind of notification of travel they have and follow their instructions.

Please also check the contact information of the embassy of your home country at your destination and notify the embassy of your stay in the country (dates for your stay, contact details etc). Also follow the information on Facebook of the embassy at your destination.

Please note that it is also extremely important that you register with the authorities in your host country.

Read the information for travellers of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs

Read the information for travellers Before you travel abroad  Opens in new window and When travelling abroad Opens in new window  on the web pages of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Finland. Read also the brochure Ulkoministeriön palvelut matkailijoille Opens in new window  (available in Swedish and Finnish).

Keep Informed about Global Events

Keep informed about global events such as political instabilities, epidemics and natural disasters and check the Finnish and foreign authorities' recommendations concerning different countries. You should assess the situation in your host country and determine whether you want to go there as an intern. Here are some useful links:

1. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs Opens in new window
For information about the situation in foreign countries and what recommendations the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland gives, please visit the website of the ministry Opens in new window  and choose the country you wish to check (only available in Swedish and Finnish). Please follow the instructions given!

2. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health Opens in new window

3. The National Institute for Health and Welfare Opens in new window

4. World Health Organization Opens in new window

5. Foreign and Commonwealth Office Opens in new window

Insurance

Before departure, make sure you have a valid insurance with sufficient coverage. Should you perform an internship as the obligatory semester abroad during your Bachelor level studies, you will be insured by Hanken for health and accident insurance. However, Hanken does not offer liability insurance, which is required if you travel to an EU country for internship. In many cases the employer offers it, so it's good to check with them first. If not, you need to personally make sure that you have a liability insurance. You can start by checking with your insurance company. Suomen Ekonomit (The Finnish Business School Graduates), also offers the s.k. KylteriPlus extra service package, which costs you a little bit, but will include among other things a liability insurance. 
In the case that your internship is your obligatory semester abroad, Career Services will send you your insurance documents by post once you have uploaded your Grant Agreement to the Mobility Online portal. 

In the case that you are not performing your internship as your obligatory semester abroad, you, or alternatively the receiving organisation, are responsible for your insurance. Please note that a travel insurance usually only covers a period of 3 months abroad and doesn't include liability insurance. If you are in an employment contract with your internship provider, you may already be insured by the company. 

If you are covered by the EU social security coordination and will be temporary working in any of the 28 EU countries, Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, it is recommended to also apply for an European Health Insurance Card. 

Register as Present at Hanken Before You Leave

Remember to register as present in Oili before you leave! Everyone going on exchange or internship abroad must be registered as present.