Alumni Voices: Expanding Horizons Beyond Expectations

Eihab Ballor was one of 50 interns given the opportunity to participate in the Kiron Virtual Internships program in 2021, thanks to a collaboration with SPARK, the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), and the Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development (ISFD).

Kiron is an organization committed to providing high-quality educational and development opportunities for refugees and underserved communities. As part of this project’s focus, refugees from Syria, Palestine, and Yemen located in Lebanon were offered a remote internship to upskill and enhance their employability.

Before exploring remote opportunities, Eihab had limited work experience in his desired career field, digital marketing. He was knowledgeable about the core fundamentals of digital marketing but wished to develop skills as well as gain additional work experience in the field. Whilst searching for opportunities in data research analysis and digital marketing with a tech-based company during his final year at Damascus University, Eihab found Virtual Internships. Through the program, Eihab was granted the opportunity to intern remotely for a tech start-up in India called Dolta, an experience that would expand his horizons in a global working environment. 

As a digital marketing intern, Eihab assisted with marketing projects that supported the company’s key objectives. As he merged into the global working environment, Eihab took the initiative to research India’s work culture. This gave Eihab the ability to use cultural fluency and enhance his communication skills with his colleagues. Throughout the internship, Eihab’s supervisor supported his development by sharing useful resources and marketing courses to enhance his skillset. In addition, as part of his experience with Virtual Internships, Eihab received support from Nadya –his assigned Internship Coach– who encouraged and motivated him throughout this journey.

“The internship program has given me the opportunity to be a part of our global working community, and to be honest, without this internship, it could’ve taken me years, and a lot of missed opportunities to learn what I did in only two months with Virtual Internships.” – Eihab Ballor

At the end of his internship, Eihab was delighted to receive an employment offer from Dolta. Alongside this, he gained new perspectives on global community connections and a desire to expand his career in the global workforce. Eihab’s experience triumphed over his expectations and demonstrated the possibilities of remote work; he now feels confident pursuing new career opportunities. 

If you’re interested in learning more about how Virtual Internships can aid and accelerate your career, enroll now!

Reading this as a company?

Good news. We are looking to increase our refugee participation in 2022 to support more people like Eihab in the workplace. If you would like to support our refugee programs, get in touch with Virtual Internships’ President, Ed Holroyd Pearce at ed@virtualinternships.com