VUC students and Indian tutors exchange cultural experiences

This year’s social work students undertaking their internship in Mangalore, India.

The students are hosted by 4 different institutions run by local NGOs; the Kripa Foundation and Link De-addiction that organizes drug rehabilitation programmes, Sanidya which is a boarding school for "differently abled children" (i.e. childred and youth with mental and cognitive disabilities) and Dharma Jyoti Social Centre that runs social programmes in the local communities.

Gerd Skjong (VUC) opens the plenary session and introduces Hallgerd Conradi (VUC) as the main speaker. In the middle, International Coordinator at the School of Social Work, Joselyn Lobo. 

Intern and Tutor Seminar

Assistant professors at the VUC Social Work Department, Gerd Skjong and Hallgerd Conradi, visited the internship students in Mangalore last week. The institutions hosting the students commented that the are happy with the interns and that they inspire to new thoughts and perspectives in the workplace. The VUC students and the local employees exchange knowledge, skills and thoughts in their daily work. The students face a situation in which differences in academic, cultural and social situations and expectations continuously cause challenges in their work.

 
Internship tutors Lydia Lobo and Sharel Tauso.

Volda University College has held an annual seminar for internship students, tutors, and faculty members at the School of Social Work. This year, more than 30 participants took part in the seminar to discuss cultural differences and tutoring. Hallgerd Conradi held a plenary lecture before the participants split into groups for discussion and sharing of experiences. The participants got to interact in small groups and this resulted in new understanding of how cultural differences are expressed and how they influences the social work sector.

VUC offers a Bachelor's degree and Master's degree in Social Work, and several continuing education programmes within the social sciences.