Collaboration between Norwegian University College and World Unite!
Since 2016, the Department of Social Work (ISF) of Volda University College, Norway, has collaborated with the organization World Unite! in Tanzania, Zanzibar and India to facilitate internships in social work at various local destinations. The program is designed for students pursuing bachelor's degrees in social work and child welfare education.
This year, ISF has assigned 14 students to internships in Tanzania and Zanzibar, and 3 to India, and excited students began their first day of work in Zanzibar, the Kilimanjaro region, and Jaipur last week.
The partnership involves World Unite! arranging with relevant social work organizations to receive, support, and supervise the students during their internships, which span the entire fifth semester. The organization provides students with a cultural orientation upon arrival in Tanzania and India and offers practical assistance with housing and visas, among other support services.
Each year, faculty from Volda University College visit the students at their internship locations and consider World Unite!'s local knowledge and student support as essential for the students' learning and safety.
Visiting Volda to Further Strengthen Collaboration
For the first time, one of the most local team members of World Unite! had the opportunity to visit Norway and Volda University College. Recently, World Unite!'s Country Coordinator for Tanzania, Adelina Michael, visited the Department of Social Work to share her experiences from the collaboration with Volda University College.
Adelina Michael found Volda students to be knowledgeable, curious, and well-prepared for their internships. The meeting discussed the knowledge students should bring to their international internships, the expectations for learning outcomes based on Volda's academic frameworks, and ways to further develop the collaboration.
Michael believed that students return home with multiple layers of learning from their semester in a Tanzanian cultural context—not only in social work, but also about other cultures and people's living conditions in different social and cultural environments.
"This knowledge and competence provide a deeper understanding of important concepts such as poverty, equality, and minority issues. It is crucial in social work practice," Michael emphasized.
Better Prepared for the Workforce
University lecturers Ann-Iren Høgalmen and Malene Øvrelid are responsible for supporting the students during their internships in Tanzania. They report that students feel better prepared for a multicultural workforce after a semester in Tanzania.
"The students return home with a greater understanding of how minority groups in Norway might feel, more experience with cross-cultural communication, and they have been challenged in many areas, truly feeling the cultural differences," say Høgalmen and Øvrelid.
Adelina Michael was highly impressed by Volda University College and its natural surroundings. She was particularly moved by the invitation from the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences and History, Jorunn Sem Fure, for a lunch visit to Stadtlandet, a peninsula located in the western part of Norway, in the Vestland region, which included a wade in the shallow waters of the beach in Hoddevika.
By: Per Straume, September 3, 2024
