An interview with Ban Srey Pich, agriculture intern in Israel to-be

Since 2008, the Royal University of Agriculture has been sending about 200 Khmer students to Israel, each year, for the Agrostudies program. The goal? Providing an opportunity for practical experiential learning in modern agricultural methods. One of our students, Ban Srey Pich, was selected for this 11 month internship program. "Mazel tov"!

Can you introduce yourself?

I’m BAN Srey Pich, I’m 22 years old and I’m from the first promotion of Happy Chandara School. I’m a third year Agroindustry student at Royal University of Agriculture. 

Why did you choose that major?

I'm good at chemistry, biology. I'm interested in food, and I wanted to learn more. My major is more related to food engineering. I study food safety, and how we create food. My favorite topic is nutrition: it's about how food help our health and how we can conserve the benefits as long as possible.

What is your dream job?

I would like to work in a laboratory and conduct research. I would also like to create my own business, with my own products. I want to create new food, my own new products for our country!

You'll leave to Israel soon, for an internship. How was the selection process?

My university announced that students in year 3 could apply for the internship. The students must have at least 3.0  GPA (Grade Point Average). I applied online and I had an English exam to test my reading, listening and writing skills. After that, I had an interview about my job, my goals, what I will learn during this 11 months. In total, we are 163 students selected this year in Cambodia.

What will you do during this internship?

I will have class one day per week, and I will be in on site for four days. They will divide us in different farms (mushrooms, orange, flowers, etc.) to learn about agriculture techniques. We could also do our internship in factories, to learn about final products's packaging. They haven't told us yet specifically what we’re going to do and in which city we will be.

What do you expect from that journey?

I hope to learn more about new technologies in agriculture. I want to grow and learn from that multicultural experience: there will be people from Israel, but also from Thailand or Malaysia. I hope to discover new things from them. I also want to learn about Israel: I just know it’s a country with war history, but it’s good in agriculture. People here are better in innovation than other countries, so I could learn from them.

How do you feel about this new adventure?

I feel nervous, excited and proud. I don't really have the words to explain it. I already had that feeling, when I’ve been for one month to France and England with Happy Chandara. But this time it's for 11 months! There will be nobody from Happy Chandara here, I will be alone and I’ll work and learn by myself. My family was a bit worried at first because they've heard about conflicts in Israel, and they are scared about war. But they’re happy for my new adventure. I will have an insurance, and a good salary which will cover our school and rent fees. This internship is a great opportunity.

What do you want to tell your friends?

If you have a big dream, you will achieve it one day. Try to not stop in the middle and go all the way, try your best and don't stop believing in yourself. If it's not today, it will be tomorrow and you will reach your objectives.

And what do you want to tell to our sponsors?

Thank you for supporting me since grade 2, until now. I had so many good opportunities in my life, thanks to them. I could not imagine what I would be without their support or who I would be today. I’m really thankful.

Congratulations again Srey Pich, we wish you the best!