Melisa Adigüzel and Julia Veber, German and English Studies students at the Ruhr University Bochum, Germany, have just completed a six-week internship in the Luke Wadding Library on SETU’s Cork Road Campus.
As Library interns Melisa and Julia undertook various editorial and German translation work. On 14 November 1985, Professor Mike Cooley, the Irish aerospace design engineer, champion of human-centred innovation and trade union activist gave a lecture series at the University of Bochum. The German lecture series titled: ‘Environment, workspaces, health’ has been translated into English by Julia and Melisa, making the lecture series accessible to SETU students.
Welcoming environment
Outside of the workplace, they explored all that the sunny south east had to offer. Melisa discussed how she had never visited Ireland before. “It quickly became clear that I wanted to do an internship and explore this beautiful country. Working at the library opened my eyes to a career in this field.
I am really thankful to the staff at the Luke Wadding Library, who welcomed us with warmth and joy. It was wonderful to chat and work with all of them. I am incredibly grateful that Terry O'Brien helped us to make all of this possible. We couldn't have wished for better co-workers.”
For Julia, working at SETU and connecting with people played a key role in making her trip a success. “It helped Melisa and I both feel secure and welcome in Ireland. This allowed us to fully immerse ourselves in exploring everything the country had to offer.”
Capturing their experience
Melisa and Julia made the most of their time in Ireland, taking the time to explore Waterford and beyond. Capturing their experience, the students used their creativity to keep a scrapbook of sketches, polaroid pictures and souvenirs to commemorate their time in Ireland.
Julia describes how she was “deeply fascinated by the variety of regions that Ireland has to offer. We especially loved visiting the museums in the Viking Triangle, along with places like Dunmore East, Dungarvan, Kilkenny, Cobh, and Dublin. If I could take one thing with me, it would be the beach in Tramore, where I loved going for walks.”
During her internship, Melisa filled two sketchbooks with drawings, Polaroid pictures, and random things like receipts and leaflets. “Documenting the journey in a creative way was not only helpful to process all the good things that happened, but it also sparked a new creative joy in me. Going back home to Germany, I will continue to focus on my studies, but also take some of Ireland's creative inspiration with me to make more art than ever,” she said.
