Daniele Gadler is a Computer Science bachelor student at unibz. As such he was selected by the internship provider CRCC Asia among more than 400 Italian participants for a one-month internship with scholarship at an IT company in Beijing. An “unrepeatable experience” and a great opportunity to grow – “from a professional and a personal point of view”, Daniele says.

Daniele, why did you decide to apply for an internship in China?
Daniele Gadler: Well, I was already taking a Chinese course organized by the university’s Language Centre out of personal interest. I am deeply fascinated by China: This country is at the forefront of innovation, yet it has a millenary culture and history.

What do you expect from your stay in Beijing?
I am very interested to see how the future and the past mingle in today’s Chinese society, while at the same time getting a first-hand impression of what it is like to work and live in such a faraway environment, with its different standards and values.

Studying at this faculty you are really pushed you to leave your comfort zone and get to know what lies beyond the ordinary.

Is there also something that worries you when you think of living there?
Well, I am definitely not very happy with the incredible pollution of this city and I wonder how living in a megalopolis with a 20-million population will be, but I cannot say that I am worried or afraid. My curiosity to get to grips with something new is much stronger. This is the first time I will leave Europe and I am really convinced this is an unrepeatable experience. It might lead to much more in the future.

How did you come to know about this quite unique possibility?
I got to know this opportunity thanks to unibz’ Career Service. They organized an info session, where CRCC Asia presented their internship and scholarship programs for China. I immediately thought that this could be a great experience! I believed that the chances to be selected were slim, considering in the past year 800 people had applied for the same scholarship. But I decided to give it a try.

I will definitely take an anti-pollution mask with me!

How was the selection process?
There were only 3 days left before the deadline, so I stayed up all night to prepare the four motivation letters and the CV for the application, sent everything, and never imagined to hear back from CRCC Asia. Some time passed, and, to my great surprise and gratification, I received the notification that I was among the 30 finalists. At that point I needed a reference letter, and prof. Barbara Russo very kindly wrote me a splendid one. Then I had one last phone interview, and after a week I was informed that I had been selected. You cannot imagine how happy and thrilled I was…

What do you think was decisive in CRCC Asia’s decision to select you?
The trilingual model of unibz certainly played a key role. I also reckon that my previous international experiences had a positive impact in the evaluation. And I am sure that Prof. Russo’s recommendation letter was also crucial.

I believed that the chances to be selected were slim, considering in the past year 800 people had applied for the same scholarship.

So, your unibz experience helped you in undertaking this new adventure?
Absolutely. Studying Computer Science means dealing with a discipline that is in constant expansion and development, training us to welcome challenges and to be open to new possibilities. China with its huge growth in the last few decades is the perfect demonstration of these endless possibilities. Furthermore, studying here in Bolzano means that you get to nourish your passion. Getting involved in projects and research already at the Bachelor level kindles your intellectual curiosity, as well as your self-confidence. On top of this, in our faculty students are constantly in touch with people coming from all over the world, bringing their own peculiar stories with them. So, I can say that in this environment you are really pushed you to leave your comfort zone and get to know what lies beyond the ordinary.

What do you think you will gain from this experience?
I am sure I will grow both from a professional and personal point of view. Above all, I hope I will gain a broader vision of the world surrounding us. I can only hope I will collect a lot of happy memories of the places I will be visiting during my time in China and of the people I will be meeting – and that these people will have happy memories of me

Studying Computer Science means dealing with a discipline that is in constant expansion and development, training us to welcome challenges and to be open to new possibilities.

What will you take with you – apart from your laptop?
Abstractly speaking, a willpower that will push me to discover a new culture, enjoying every moment of my time there and trying to make the most out of it. More concretely, definitely an anti-pollution mask!

Finally, what advice would you give to other students?
Believe in your dreams and do your best to make them come true. Be curious and grab the opportunities you are offered, no matter how remote they may seem.