During the official academic opening ceremony on Wednesday, September 23rd, students shared the lessons learned from their internships and studies pursued outside HELHa's walls. Recurring keywords such as resourcefulness, organization, maturity, confrontation with real-world challenges, and learning underscored the value of these experiences.
Armelle, a nursing student, emotionally recounted her intercultural internship in Morocco: 'We were confronted with death. But we lived those moments with the people there. We were truly integrated. It's not a bad memory. We just grew.'
In total, 9 students shared their stories from experiences in Morocco, Réunion Island, Greece, Spain, Quebec, and Japan. Among them, Julie COLETTE (Animal Technology Bachelor's) conducted research on dolphin populations in Greece, while Simon CROHIN (Energy Engineering) is pursuing a double degree in Canada.
Stéphane POPPA (Industrial Computing) was in China for Worldskills 2026, and Diego PINTO DE QUIEROS (Communication) is currently in Canada for an internship. Other students completed internships in Senegal and Japan.
This international policy, developed over the past two years, aims to strengthen partnerships and enhance the language skills of the HELHa community. Prior to the ceremony, staff participated in English conversation tables and discussed the benefits of train travel and hosting international interns and collaborators.
The International Office is working on integrating non-EU students and preparing all students for intercultural challenges, leveraging the institution's existing strengths.
