Name: Matthias Schmitz
Nationality: German
Destination: Qingdao
Accommodation: Homestay
Programme details: 5 months, homestay experience
University: RWTH Aachen University
Year: 2018
Matthias recently completed a 5 month homestay with a local family in Qingdao, while taking part in an Engineering internship.
“I wanted to experience life in China as a Chinese person, not as a foreigner, and to improve my language skills on a day to day Chinese basis, and not just from a professional point of view during my working hours.”
The family host foreign interns for several reasons, including helping to expose their son Micky to new cultures and languages.
“We hope Micky can get to know some different cultures of other countries. By being a host family, we can also learn new languages. Micky’s English has improved a lot, this is why we choose to be a host family.”