Asia Internship Program

This company is a complete nightmare! They cost me thousands! I have just returned from a 6 week internship in Bangkok with this company. From start to finish, I was provided with no support. Once you pay this company, they don’t bother with you at all! I feel they are a scam! Airport pick-up means that they book you a taxi, who you need to get into contact with to meet you. There is nobody there on arrival to settle you in. I was under the impression that I would be living with other interns. This is not the case. The accommodation I had payed for was a hostel, down an alleyway. I was greeted at the ‘reception’ of the hostel by a group of men, all interested in where I was from, and how long I was staying. Although I appreciate the culture is different (I am British), and I stand out in an Asian country, this made me feel uncomfortable. I was followed up to my room by two of the men, who watched me type the code to my room. I don’t blame AIP for this situation, however the way they handled it was appalling. I sent multiple messages to my mentors, clearly upset, they were slow to respond, and didn’t seem to care (yet they were actively responding on the group chat with other interns). I did not feel safe at all staying in this accommodation, and so I left. They didn’t once offer to help me find another place to stay, in fact they didn’t even ask me where I was staying, the whole 6 weeks. They are not ‘there to look out for you’. I was given $200 refund for the hostel, which was a fraction of what I had payed them to provide me with accommodation. I then had to pay for 6 weeks in a hotel out of my own pocket. This company cost me thousands! On a positive note, the company I was interning for were amazing! The owner had told me that the previous intern had similar issues with AIP, and had also complained about them. My internship company toured me round other hotels, and also tried to reach out to AIP on my behalf, they outdid themselves with kindness, and turned my 6 weeks into an amazing experience. But having been told by my boss that the previous intern also had big issues with AIP, I really think my negative experience was not just an anomaly. They promise group dinners and activities. I was there for 6 weeks, and didn’t meet a single other intern. I was once given the contact to another intern and told to contact them myself. I was only taken out for dinner once (on my third day there) with my ‘mentors’, after writing a formal email comparing about the lack of support I had been given. I also never got a response from anybody about the email I sent whilst I was out there. I don’t have a single positive thing to say about AIP. My time in Bangkok turned out to be a great experience, and I would highly recommend interning abroad, but do not do it through AIP!

i had an amazing experience with aip!! after deciding between university and other options i settled on an internship and aip helped streamline the entire process allowing me to have an amazing internship in japan!

Had a great experience with AIP in Singapore working on biotechnology and soil regeneration. I learnt a lot and it's a very safe country. AIP helped to set me up with a great organisation that aligned with my interests.