On January 13th, Italian language students from the 1st and 3rd semesters of the IBM (International Business Management) and IEM (Industrial Engineering and Management) programs at Carinthia University of Applied Sciences embraced a challenge that transported them into a real-world Italian environment.
Senior Lecturer Elisa Borella and Part Time Lecturer Stefania Squadrito invited Italian Infineon Technologies’ employees from Villach and Graz subsidiaries to answer the students' questions about their professional career and their life as expats – an invitation which was accepted with enthusiasm.
The pilot project was designed not only to offer the students the opportunity to practice their language skills, but also to expand their Italian professional network and to gain direct insights into the world of Infineon Technologies, a leading semiconductor manufacturer and a key economic driver and employer in Villach, Carinthia and South Austria.
Bridging the gap between Italian language learning and Business
In class and at home, the students prepared a list of questions appropriate for their level of Italian to ask the employees. Organized in onsite and hybrid teams, they interviewed the guests, took notes and deepened their understanding of both Italian language and culture. Since the Italian participants come from different regions, have different accents and hold different positions at Infineon on a Management and Technical level, it was a unique holistic learning opportunity.
“I liked the activity because we could speak with different people and know them better. It was very interesting to know different stories and cultural experiences. Everyone was different. […] I think I could relate to them with the cultural shocks.” says Foram.
“The interviewees were very nice, spoke very understandably, showed some interest in us and empathy, they were very kind, spoke slowly and sometimes switched to other languages. I have learnt how not to be afraid of speaking and be more confident in Italian.” adds Nelli.
For Infineon employees as well, interacting with CUAS local and international students was an experience both enriching and rewarding. In fact, they didn’t miss the chance of interviewing our students back, promoting a dynamic and interactive exchange.
Celso says: “Si è anche provato ad uscire da ciò che si era preparato, improvvisando domande su argomenti spontanei, indicando curiosità ma anche voglia di sperimentare con la lingua e interagire meglio. Questa idea va considerata come un plus per gli studenti, da continuare sicuramente.” (There have been attempts to go beyond what had been prepared, improvising questions on spontaneous topics, showing curiosity as well as a desire to experiment with the language and interact better. The idea of this project should be considered as a plus for the students, something that should definitely be continued).
Cosimo remarks: “Grazie ancora per questa possibilità, perché è sempre bello poter essere utile, ma soprattutto condividere e testimoniare qualcosa di te ad altri. La mia opinione è che va fatto più spesso, anche per consentire agli studenti di avere qualche contatto con cui poter parlare italiano.” (Thank you again for this opportunity because it is always nice to be helpful, but especially to share and tell something about yourself to others. In my opinion this should be done more often, also to allow students to have some contacts with whom they can practice Italian).
We are deeply thankful to Ilaria Renna (Senior Project Director Sensor Products and Head of Project Management), Cristina Sabitzer-Corizzo (Senior Specialist Wafertest), Celso Accoto (Chip Architect), Cosimo Lamacchia (Senior Staff IC Designer), Filippo Rosetti (Application Marketing Manager), and Luigi Grimaldi (Principal Electrical Engineer) for their inspiring, patient and enthusiastic participation!
This successful initiative further underlines the commitment of our university to create meaningful real-life learning experiences for our students in cooperation with local professional partners such as Infineon Technologies, fostering stronger connections between the academic and corporate worlds in the Alpe Adria cross-border region.
