Intern Abroad

• Medicine
• Austria, Vienna
• Universität Wien
• 03/2023 – 07/2023

1. Application/Internship search
My journey began 2 years ago, when I considered doing a tertial of my practical year abroad. I had already done an internship in gynaecology in Vorarlberg and really liked the system and the friendliness. Vienna was also not completely unknown to me from visits and so I decided to go to Vienna. Also, because it was a perfect fit with German as the national language and the hospital system is of a similar standard to Germany. So, I was able to find my way around quickly in my first few weeks and had no problems with a language barrier.
Now, it should be noted that you should plan early if you decide to go to Vienna. Places are in high demand and, with around 600 students a year from MedUni alo

Schönbrunn Palace
© Lea Victoria Eckstein

ne, they are quickly filled. So, I started looking for a suitable hospital with the help of an online website and the PJ list of my state examination office. Ideally, it should already be recognised and a teaching hospital of the University of Vienna. That’s how I found the Franziskusspital Margareten, the former Hartmannspital. Maybe not outstanding in terms of size, but with its very own charm. I applied for a place in surgery, as this was one of the compulsory tertials in our PJ and relatively easy to complete abroad. I received positive feedback and was really looking forward to my time in Vienna.
The waiting time seemed long. Especially because the last information and documents were only sent shortly before the start. Not to mention that there were still problems with the recognition, because the “Landesprüfungsamt” requires a separate document for foreign tertials, which the University of Vienna does not sign. Instead, they issued a different document, which fortunately was recognised after a few exchanges of emails from the university PJ coordinators. Now, hopefully, nothing stood in the way of my stay, and I thought about suitable accommodation, travel health insurance and my financial situation. Since the practical year is generally not very well paid, I looked for options. I found an online article about the possibility of applying for an Erasmus+ scholarship, which was to be awarded specifically for internships. So, I tried my luck, and it took quite a bit of written arrangements, various emails and 2 application processes, but it was worth it. In January, 2 months before my stay abroad, I received feedback that my internship would be funded by the Erasmus+ programme of my university and that the University of Vienna also accepted my application within this framework and enrolled me as a temporary student.
This meant that I could register as a student in Vienna and received benefits such as the semester ticket, which allowed me to use public transport at very low cost from February to June. I was in contact with the International Office, which was very friendly and helpful. In Vienna itself, I made an appointment to clarify the final formalities. Beforehand, the entire application process and the document transfer took place via an online portal. This was uncomplicated and accompanied me until the end of the internship.

2. Accommodation & cost of living
Now the search for accommodation began, which I started relatively late, as a previously arranged accommodation through friends was not available in the end. In retrospect, this turned out to be fortunate. Just over a month before my trip, I started looking for a suitable room in a shared flat for the limited period. I simply used “wggesucht.de”. At first, it seemed quite difficult. There were a few ads, but only rarely did anyone respond to the request. But I was lucky, and a flat-sharing community contacted me. It was in the 3rd district and my job was in the 5th district. I could walk to work in half an hour or even faster by bus or tram. This seemed perfect and I was happy when I got an acceptance letter. Moreover, the price for the 10m^2 room with bunk bed was only 316€. It must be said that there is a much larger proportion of social housing in Vienna, which the city has subsidised and where the rents have remained cheap. That means you could get a bargain or two. However, the “normal” prices of the shared rooms tended to be much higher, around 500-600€.
On top of my rent, I had to pay my own monthly costs for various insurances, mobile phone tariffs and Spotify, as well as my old-age provision. That added up to quite a lot every month (about 280€).

Votiv Church
© Lea Victoria Eckstein

And of course, there’s food, which is already more expensive here in Austria than in Germany. Inflation has made it even more expensive, but it was still a bit of a shock for me when I went shopping at Hofer/Aldi and spent about €50 on a normal weekly shopping trip instead of €25 (before inflation, admittedly). So, I spent about 200-250€ a month on food. All in all, I spent about 900€ a month. Then there were the leisure activities, and especially the months when visitors came, the monthly expenses were already over 1000€. All in all, Vienna is average, I would say, if you can find cheap accommodation. But the leisure activities can increase the expenses quite a bit, depending on how much you want to indulge yourself and how much you can. I also had a loan as a backup that I could fall back on. That’s something everyone must decide for themselves. Even though I would have liked to do without it altogether, I also needed the security to bridge the intermediate phases of the tertials.

3. Everyday life/internship
In March 2023, I started my journey with the DB to Vienna, whereby I planned some lead time for the bureaucratic things. I planned the registration with the city about 2 weeks before the trip and reserved an appointment. The same went for the International Office. That way, I was able to work through everything smoothly during my first few days in Vienna. I received a warm welcome from my shared flat and was able to settle into my room and explore the area very quickly.As my internship, I typically started my workday at 7am with the morning meeting. This meant I had to get up at just before 6 to get ready and get going on time. My way to work took me past Belvedere Palace, through long house canyons and across a playground to my hospital, which is integrated in the middle of a house block. There I was assigned my respective task in the morning. At the beginning, this consisted mainly of assisting in the operating theatre. But since the team was small overall, I was able to be a 1st assistant very often and learned how to sew in my time. I usually worked alone with a senior doctor at the table or also with a 2nd assistant. Otherwise, I worked on the ward and made admissions, went on rounds, helped the residents, and talked to the patients after the operation. On days when I didn’t have a fixed schedule, I was also able to go to endoscopy or special outpatient departments. Despite the small surgery, the spectrum was relatively broad because of the many affiliated doctors who came to the hospital to operate. There were orthopaedic, neurosurgical, and ophthalmic surgeries, for example, in which we worked rather subordinately. But there were also mamma operations and thyroid operations in addition to general surgery. So, I gained a relatively broad insight into surgery. Even though, of course, major operations and trauma

Laxenburg Castle
© Lea Victoria Eckstein

surgery were missing. However, this was made up for by the atmosphere. For me, the official end was at 1 pm plus a half-hour lunch break and 1 hour of self-study. Here in Austria,  an hour of self-study is part of the working day for students. However, there were also days when I stayed longer in the operating theatre to help with an operation or to take some pictures on the ward. Afterwards, I went straight to the city or back home.
The team was very nice overall. I was integrated immediately and got my own phone, a locker and someone was always ready to explain things or let me try things out myself. In the operating theatre, the staff were very courteous and the atmosphere during the operations was relaxed to humorous, depending on the day. You could go to all the senior doctors at any time and especially to the head medical secretary in charge, who always had an open ear and with whom you could also talk about wishes for days off or holidays without any problems.

4. Free time/tips
In addition to work, there was also plenty of free time, and sightseeing was not neglected. Vienna is simply a beautiful city. Everywhere you look you see house facades with stucco or ornaments. The city simply has its very own flair. The big buildings like Sissi’s Hofburg, Schönbrunn Palace or St. Stephan’s are the most typical tourist destinations. But through my longer time in Vienna, the beautiful parks also won my attention. When winter gave way to spring, everything started to blossom and for such a big city, Vienna really has a lot of beautiful green spaces and parks all over the place. Even from my flat you had a view of a smaller park from the balcony. However, my personal highlight during my time was the Danube Island. I was particularly taken with it, because it is simply a very long island in the middle of the Danube surrounded by water and yet the big city. A piece of dysentery in the middle of the stress. It can even be reached by underground line U1 and is especially popular at weekends for cyclists, hikers, walkers, families, and students. It offers small restaurants, paved paths, access to the Danube for swimming, volleyball courts and barbecue areas. And of course, there is a lot of meadow and sunbathing areas where, in good weather, the most diverse groups spread out on blankets, but also individuals who just want to enjoy the sun. During my stay, the annual Danube Island Festival also took place where I could hear Felix Jaehn and Silbermond live. Apart from that, Vienna is just incredibly diverse. There is so much gastronomy and especially coffee houses, which are very popular and where you can eat typical Viennese specialities. The famous “Sachertorte” at Café Sacher or an Esterhazy slice at Gerstner’s? I recommend the Sacher cake at the “Hofzuckerbäckerei Demel”. It’s a little more tart and chocolaty to my taste. But everyone has their own taste:)
As for entertainment, there is so much to choose from that I often couldn’t decide what exactly I wanted to see. The many museums, but especially the theatre performances/the ballet/the musicals/the operas really appealed to me. With the Ticket Gretchen app, I was able to register as U27 and benefited from many offers and incredibly cheap tickets. For example, I was able to book a ticket for the Burgtheater and the Volksoper for €10-12 on certain dates in every seating category. I sat in the balcony with a direct view of the stage for a Shakespeare play or in the second row in front of the orchestra pit for a musical. Concerts in St. Stephan’s Basilica or dance evenings could also be attended at low cost.

Schönbrunn Palace
© Lea Victoria Eckstein

As soon as I had visitors, I always went either to the State Opera, the Volksoper or to some other event. I wanted to experience most of the cultural offer. And it was worth it and can be recommended for anyone who is U27.
In May, the Vienna Festival Weeks started, with fairs, festivals and wine/beer festivals lined up on the weekends. There was not a weekend without a programme. And in some cases, admission was completely free, and you could just stroll through and enjoy.

5. Conclusion
Overall, I had an incredibly wonderful time in Vienna. And I would do it again every time. Both the work was fun, but also the city won me over. Seeing how summer comes to Vienna, how the parks become greener, how you can explore nature and the hiking trails in the surrounding area and still be able to enjoy the advantages of a big city with all its culinary and cultural offerings was a dream that I was able to fulfil. Thanks to the Erasmus funding, among other things, I was able to enjoy a few things without having to turn over every euro. I am very grateful for that.