00:07Hello everyone and welcome to the SAM Conversations. I am Jiya Srivastava and today we'll be talking
00:13about cross-border internships, student mobility and regional opportunities for young people
00:19across South Asia. Joining me today is Tawansh Mahat, an independent writer based in Kathmandu,
00:26Nepal, whose recent article for South Asia Monitor, South Asia Needs Cross-Border Internships,
00:33Not Only Degrees Abroad, explores the need for greater opportunities for students to learn and
00:39work across the region. Tawansh, it's a pleasure to have you with us. Thank you so much, Miss Jiya.
00:45It's a pleasure to be here sharing this platform and talking about my own article.
00:51Thank you so much. So let's begin with the questions. Like we often associate international
00:57exposure with pursuing a full degree abroad, right? What made you argue that South Asia should look
01:04more seriously at shorter cross-border internships and work placements?
01:10Well, if I have to be honest regarding this, it really just starts with a simple question,
01:15you know, when a student like around me talks about getting an international exposure,
01:21you know, the conversations that almost immediately become something about going to
01:27countries like Australia, Canada, the UK or the US for a degree. And there's nothing wrong with that.
01:34But then I started thinking that we have all of these countries right next to us in South Asia.
01:40So why are opportunities to actually work and learn across those waters still so uncommon?
01:47And like, why couldn't a student from Kathmandu just spend a couple of months interning in Dhaka or Delhi?
01:54Why does the international experience have to begin with a degree of kilometers away? And why should it
02:01not start from something more practical, like an internship perhaps, so that you could study and work on
02:08something that's meaningful at the same time?
02:12Right, that's a great point. And that brings us to the question of what students actually
02:17gain from these experiences, like beyond simply adding an opportunity to their CV?
02:23I would say that the concept of global citizenship has become something that people talk about a lot.
02:30And not only does it help for the students to, you know, expose themselves to a more wider audience,
02:37it also gives them a little bit of cultural blend that would help them get more exposed into society.
02:44I think it would also greatly boost their self-esteem and also the way that they see the world from
02:52a different perspective.
02:53Right. So you suggest that these experiences can offer students something beyond professional skills.
02:59So what can a young person learn by actually working and living in another South Asian country
03:06that they may not necessarily learn through a classroom or a conventional degree abroad?
03:12I would say that the learned experiences that they often gather,
03:17that is something that you cannot really learn from a classroom setting.
03:21You cannot really learn, like the learned experiences are something that you need to experience yourself.
03:27And you cannot, you know, like go through a certain set of narratives or a certain set of guidelines
03:33or, you know, textbooks and all of those that could really divert the entire attention of the individual as well.
03:41So I would say that something that, you know, like learning a lot of individuality
03:47and also gaining a lot of exposure to various different types of materials from the classroom setting,
03:54as well as your external settings, as there are various factors that would influence the students' experiences.
04:01Right. Right. Absolutely.
04:04So when I was reading your article, your article points to shared challenges across South Asia.
04:09So, like, how can cross-border student projects around these issues to contribute to a better understanding of the region
04:16and of how different countries approach similar problems?
04:21Talking about challenges, Misjia, I think that there are definitely some practical problems that we have.
04:28Like, first of all, it just starts with expense because that is the center point of the article as well.
04:33Like, who pays for the travel? Like, where does the student stay?
04:37Does the university recognize the internship or academic credits?
04:40Or, like, how are organizations selected?
04:43And there are visas and also administrative questions as well.
04:47And, but I don't think that we need to solve regional mobility for millions of students before a beginning.
04:56Two universities could start with 10 or 20 students.
04:59So, it's basically, like, start small enough that failure is also affordable while you are still able to learn from
05:08it and then expand.
05:11Of course. Like, these, creating these opportunities is very easier said than done.
05:17Yeah.
05:17So there are also several practical barriers that students and institutions would have to navigate for sure.
05:22So, you also highlighted, like, practical barriers such as visas, funding, accommodation, insurance, and credit recognition.
05:31So, what are the biggest changes universities and institutions would need to make to turn cross-border internships into opportunities
05:40that students can realistically access?
05:45Hmm, students can realistically access.
05:47I would say, I think a really good approach from university side would be to select a couple of badges
05:56of students.
05:57Like, they don't have to open the program for a massive audience at the very beginning of the state.
06:02They don't have to do that.
06:02Maybe if they select a couple of individuals, maybe a couple of applicants who are actually applicable in order to
06:09pursue the degree, I think if university starts with small badges, it could definitely give a little more realistic view
06:18of what the other students can also, you know, can also consider or can, they can also get a little
06:25bit of a more practical knowledge about what they are trying to get into.
06:28So, the biggest challenge, of course, is, okay, giving an example, I would say a university in Nepal could partner
06:38with an organization in Bangladesh or in India and create six to eight weeks of internship opportunities.
06:46Well, universities also need to make these opportunities affordable and recognize them academically because if a student has to delay
06:57their degree or spend a huge amount of money to participate, then it defeats the main purpose of the degree.
07:04And I think that universities need to communicate these opportunities better.
07:08Where, as you know, like students, they can't apply for something that they don't know exists.
07:14So, yeah, for me, the three biggest changes would be these.
07:18Okay, so like, let's say, so if these barriers can be addressed, so the next question is like, how such
07:24opportunities could actually be organized on a larger scale across the region?
07:28Like, you give the example, like you give the example, that first start with a smaller scale, right?
07:33Now, if some university wants to start with a larger scale, what do you think?
07:37How that could be possible?
07:38And which are the possible countries that could make it this way much easier?
07:46Well, I think once the smaller university partnerships, they prove that the model actually works, if you need to move
07:57into a little more mass audience or, you know, like bigger audience, I think maybe that is something that could
08:08actually target a huge amount of people, a huge number of people.
08:11Also get there rather than just every university trying to build everything very separately.
08:15I believe universities and, you know, companies, NGOs, or any research organization across South Asia could join one shared program
08:24where they offer a certain number of internship positions each year.
08:27So that students could then apply through their own universities.
08:32And there could be common standards for things like duration, supervision, and also academic credit.
08:39Well, I would also encourage the governments to focus on these aspects as well, because governments could help by making
08:49short-term student mobility and visas easier, while universities could handle the academic side.
08:55I also think funding is important, because if students have to personally cover flights, accommodation, and everything else, these opportunities
09:03will still only reach a very small number of groups.
09:07And, you know, I wouldn't try to make it massive immediately, but we could like start with a few institutions,
09:14maybe in Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and there are multiple South Asian countries.
09:19And we could see if it works, and we could expand it your way.
09:23So the goal should not be to build a system that can grow, but it should rather be for trying
09:28to create a huge system from day one.
09:32Absolutely. And like this perhaps brings me to the larger idea behind your article, like not just creating internships, but
09:40creating a stronger connection among young people across South Asia.
09:45And like, finally, if South Asian students had more opportunity to study, work, and collaborate across their neighborhood countries, how
09:55do you think that could change the way young people understand both their own countries and the region as a
10:02whole, like South Asia as a whole?
10:05And like, students understanding their own countries, but I believe, okay, maybe this could be answered from a more cultural
10:15perspective.
10:15I think that the ethnicities and the diversity that people are normally exposed to in such a massive level, I
10:25think that could really put their insights into a blended learning system.
10:30So they don't just carry forward with what they have learned initially, but they can also have a shared experience
10:36where ideas are open for credibility.
10:42Right. Thank you so much, Shavansh, for joining us and for sharing your perspectives on cross-border opportunities, youth mobility,
10:49and regional collaboration in South Asia.
10:51We are really glad to hear your views. And thank you to our audience for tuning in to SAM Conversations.
10:57We'll see you till next time. Thank you.
