Host families are great! Living with them can be a truly amazing experience. Think about it. You get to stay in a real home where you will be welcomed by family members and looked after for the length of your stay. You’ll get to benefit from your family’s knowledge, gain a unique insight into the local culture and discover the soul of your city! You’ll enjoy home cooking, fresh linens, great conversation and an amazing cultural experience – what’s not to like?
Want to improve your language skills quickly? There’s no better option than staying with a host family then! You will have to communicate every day with family members who won’t know your own native language – you’ll be forced to learn, and learn quickly! Living with a host family is an immersive experience and is the best place for you to hone your skills. Your family will help teach you, work with you on your technique and give you a real world study of how language is truly used on a daily basis. You can’t get better opportunity!
Don’t know who the local sports teams are? Not sure where the best place to get food is? Know who the coolest bands around are? By the time you leave your host family you’ll know the answers to all of these questions and many more! Living with a host family gives you the best opportunity to live like a local. You’ll learn the local dialect, become immersed in the culture and learn more about your city and its people than any tourist would. It’s the ultimate insider’s guide!
Interestingly a host family, for all its great benefits is actually often a cheaper option than private accommodation – bet you didn’t think that would be the case! When you think about having your own room, fresh linen, healthy home cooked meals and often other perks then it starts looking like a pretty great proposition. 
Whilst in some cases you might have to spend a little more on transportation, with the other benefits you should still be in a brilliant financial position!
We’ve all been there. Those times when you’re away from home and you miss your friends, your family and your pets. Being abroad, possibly for the first time can be tough. Speaking a new language every day is not easy! No matter how mature or well-travelled you think you might be, there are times when things might get a little overwhelming. This is when having your host family there is an amazing safety net. They are there to support you, to help you if you need them and to give you the reassurance you might need. They will become a home away from home and you might well be very happy to have them!
If you’re a family that would like to open your home to an international student then register with us today and become part of our global host family community!
This experience have been really positive for me. I have learned how to live independently, how to value a lot of things (a job, a weekend, to do the shopping, to save money, to spend money in a responsible way, etc.). I also have demonstrated to myself that I am a professional and that I enjoy teaching a lot. Now I know that I am qualified to be a teacher in a different country with a different language. I recommend this programme for everybody because it is fantastic!
Réaliser un stage à Cork a été une opportunité extraordinaire pour booster ma future carrière! Le stage répondait à mes attentes de A à Z, j’ai eu l’occasion de travailler au sein d’une équipe dynamique, et j’ai énormément appris, aussi bien d’un point de vue professionnel que personnel. De plus, l’Irlande est un pays magnifique, il est impossible de ne pas tomber sous son charme! Si j’ai un conseil à vous donner, c’est de faire confiance à Partnership International pour votre stage à l’étranger!
With my internship, organised by Partnership International, I got to visit many different Irish companies and was involved with introducing international students to them. I was also involved with inductions and orientations for foreign students. My work also included office administration. My colleagues were really nice so the working experience was very good. And I got to see a bit of Ireland while there. I’ve been to the Cliffs of Moher, a whiskey distillery, a falconry and many places more. So, overall it was a great experience and I would totally recommend it!
First of all, I really love Cork! The people are very nice and friendly. My placement was with a very cool and friendly company as well. I enjoyed the time with my cool colleagues and boss! My work was familiar to me because I translated documents like I am learning in Germany. I would recommend an internship in Cork for every student because it is worth it. You improve your language skills and learn the culture. The Irish accent is also very cool but funny as well! So, I really enjoyed my time here. Thank you Partnership International!
So after all, I have to say it was an absolutely great opportunity to get to know a new country/city, people and to make an intercultural experience. I am lucky that Partnership International organised everything so well and that they were hands-on to their students the entire trip. Thanks very much for everything and keep doing what you are doing! It will definitely not be my last time in Ireland and you helped me to open new ways! Cheers!
Me ha gustado mucho realizar unas prácticas de 3 meses en Cork. De hecho, voy a quedarme aquí otros 3 meses más (¡la empresa donde hice las prácticas me ha contratado!). La ciudad es muy agradable y todo el mundo es muy atento, amable y con una mente muy abierta. Lo peor, como español, es el tiempo y los precios. Mi inglés ha mejorado mucho y he viajado por esta magnífica isla, así que creo que esta experiencia ha sido perfecta. Tomé una gran decisión al animarme a hacer las prácticas con Partnership International. La bienvenida tanto de Partnership como de la empresa fueron excelentes.
My internship has given me the opportunity to learn a lot and to improve my professional skills in a foreign language. It was a great opportunity for me to gain practical skills and work within a professional team. The lessons I learned as an intern are still with me today and I’m thankful to all the team of Partnership International who were a real pleasure to deal with. I would recommend an experience like this to everyone.
