PRIMUS TELECOMMUNICATIONS, INC.
Ju-Young Lee

One of many interns from Kyungpook National University in Daegu, South Korea, Ju-Young Lee also attended the University of Texas in Dallas. She was majoring in electrical engineering, and her graduation project involved optical modulation for digital frame/packet transmission. Ju-Young worled in the past as a volunteer at a welfare center, and she was head of the Math Club on campus as well as class president. She applied to the Washington Internship Program on July 8, 2005, and in late August both she and another KNU student – Yun-Woo Lee – were placed by WIP at Primus Telecommunications, a company with headquarters in Mclean, Virginia that was founded by a man whose family came to the United States from India and whose daughter (a WIP intern years ago) received a paid internship at Points of Light Foundation. Her dad was so impressed with the Washington Internship Program that he subsequently accepted young people from all over the world as interns within his multinational corporation. In the fall, Ju-Young began a year-long internship there.

At the same time, another intern from Korea – Taesu Kim from Korea University in Seoul – was also placed by WIP at Primus Telecommunications for six months, during which time he worked in the Translations Department as a routing and database administrator handing route changes in VOIP, software, and Nortel GSP. Taesu was trained to help with fault-finding routing and translation errors, and Taesu did so well that he was moved to another department at Primus Telecommunications to learn more. Therefore, Taesu applied and received a visa extension to stay at this internship for a total of eighteen months. Taesu lived at one of the apartments in the Summit Hills complex that is furnished and operated by the Washington Internship Program; he shared a room with another KNU intern: Ji-Hoon Jeong. These young men learned English from their other roommates while becoming close friends.

When Ju-Young was at her internship, these two other Korean students worked there as well in different departments. Below are remarks from Ju-Young about her experience.

“I was sick and tired of school when I found a notice about the Washington Internship Program on the KNU website, and I felt something lurch in my heart. I applied for the internship program, had an interview, and was accepted. My expectations grew over the coming months as I excitedly anticipated applying in the ‘real world’ what I had learned in college.”

“I did research about Washington, D.C., and my plans began to take shape. However, facts I found on the Internet gave me some fears about Washington. I learned that the District of Columbia has one of the highest crime rates of all cities in the United States, but I did not give up my dream of going there. I applied to Primus Telecommunications and kept studying English in Korea, but the upcoming phone interview made me tense because I never experienced a professional interview in the past. However, the interview went well because I prepared extensively and was asked questions I expected. Soon, I became an intern at Primus Telecommunications.”

“I came to D.C. two months later than I originally planned, but I used the extra time to get ready for my new life in the United States. I arrived in Washington after twenty-four hours in the air. It was horrible. I was supposed to stay with friends until I found my own place, but the next day I went to work at Primus even though my supervisors wanted me to begin several days later after recovering from jet-lag. I was filled with excitement and curiosity. I never hesitated to ask questions and did my best to be positive. I found accommodations in Virginia that were very close to my workplace.”

“At Primus Telecommunications, as at all such companies, customers complained about the inconvenience of being disconnected. I checked dissatisfaction reports and then called people to check if their services worked well. It was simple work, but I felt interested because it was the first time for me.”

“I also did volunteer work at an organization I found on the Internet that provides meals for the homeless. I met many good people there. However, I felt that my English was not improving as quickly as it should because I was living in Virginia, so I moved to Washington, which is much livelier.”

“I did more volunteer work at the Red Cross headquarters. The work was easy because I could go whenever I was available. I felt comfortable around the people there and had lots of chances to talk in English.”

“In addition, I traveled all across America – to the Western, central, and Eastern states. I saw the differences between the “wild” West and the more old-fashioned and cultured East. D.C. was more formal in terms of clothing than the casual West.”

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