{"id":87498,"date":"2018-06-01T09:02:06","date_gmt":"2018-06-01T07:02:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=87498"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:23:00","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:23:00","slug":"vluchtelingen-vinden-stage-dankzij-rotterdamse-studentenorganisatie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2018\/06\/01\/vluchtelingen-vinden-stage-dankzij-rotterdamse-studentenorganisatie\/","title":{"rendered":"Rotterdam student organisation helps refugees find internships"},"content":{"rendered":"

Six years ago Ous Haidar fled the war in Syria. The law student from Damascus travelled via Turkey before ending up in Rotterdam where he quickly completed his master\u2019s programme. But as a 32 year old refugee with a significant gap in his CV, finding an internship after his studies proved to be very difficult. Until the Rotterdam-based chapter of the international student organisation AIESEC offered a helping hand.<\/p>\n

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During his studies the Syrian specialised in transfer pricing<\/em>, the way different arms of a multinational company mutually adjust prices. This subject matter is very international in character and is primarily a common activity among accountancy firms such as Deloitte & Touche, EY and PwC.<\/p>\n

Haidar tried arranging an internship on his own. He attended an informal dinner where candidates could get acquainted with the firms and speak with their representatives. \u201cThat went pretty well and I was one of the last candidates for an internship position with Deloitte, but I didn\u2019t make the final cut.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reflecting on why he missed out on the internship, Haidar doesn\u2019t consider factors such as a lack of understanding or discrimination. \u201cI\u2019ve never encountered that. It\u2019s simply more difficult for people who come from countries where there is less expertise in your profession. Compared to the Netherlands, the level of the market is lower in Syria. The problem isn\u2019t the fact you\u2019re a refugee, your qualifications just don\u2019t always match. Sure, you can explain the gap in your CV. While your background as a refugee says a lot about your personality and ability to persevere, it\u2019s still tough getting your foot in the door.\u201d<\/p>\n

Free suit<\/h2>

The Foundation for Refugee students (UAF) brought Haidar into contact with the Rotterdam chapter of AISEC. \u201cI had a really good meeting with two AISEC students,\u00a0Charlotte Tossings and Isabelle Kolen (see photo, ed.), and through them I was able to get a spot on PWC\u2019s transfer pricing team. AISEC gave me the opportunity to take the first step in my career\u201d, says Haidar. The organisation contacted PWC and also arranged a business suit for him with help from Suit Supply. I\u2019m very grateful for that, even though the suit doesn\u2019t really fit anymore because I\u2019ve lost 13 kilos\u201d says Haidar with a laugh.<\/p>\n\n\t

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More about the refugee shelter on campus<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t