Social Impact — Asian Internships

Programs for Social Impact

TGS has opportunities in Malaysia, Cambodia and Vietnam for students to engage with local communities in a rural or remote setting on a project that aims to improve the lives of the people within the community.

Not only do the students utilize their knowledge or practical skills through their contribution to the program, but they also enjoy a rich cultural experience through the immersion in village life.

Program hosts welcome the opportunity to share their current way of life and traditional practices including agriculture, sustainable fishing, cultural dance and favourite foods.

Participants enjoy outdoor activities such as rock climbing or hiking, a visit to local places of interest including a local market, and an introduction to local wildlife (such as Orangutan in Borneo).

Talk to Jan

Examples of past programs

Improvements to an early learning center

In this student residence leadership program, students fundraised to change an empty classroom in a poor village into a vibrant learning centre through provision of an outdoor play area, and painting and decorating the interior, including the purchasing of learning resources.
Construction of a village Learning Centre

Students fundraised and assisted the villagers to build a centre for English and indigenous language acquisition outside of school hours. Some of the funds were used to purchase books in English and fun learning equipment.
IT 4 Social Impact

Students travelled to a remote community to develop a website for the village homestay program. This project was particularly challenging as the students were required to develop the website with limited access to the internet, requiring them to adapt formal class learning to overcome the technical limitations
Construction of a performance center in a school

TAFE apprentices worked with local tradesmen to build a community art and education center for use by an NGO that provided resilience training for a rural school.
Biz 4 Social Impact

Students undertook a program to develop a digital media marketing strategy for one of the previous IT4SI programs to send traffic to the website.
Art for Social Impact

We currently have opportunities for visual arts and design in Borneo, working with social enterprises run by women in rural villages, with a view to developing a wider market for their products outside of Malaysia.

“Immense, based on my experience of a similar project at Uma Belor, Kampung Asap, Beluga. Students learn that computers work can be for real people not just highly technical work for business. The students are presented with different challenges, have their eyes opened to a different culture and enjoy wonderful hospitality.”

— - Rob Allen, Swinburne University. Program Coordinator