Sizheng Chen over zijn stage bij Tetem

Tetem biedt studenten een stageplek. Als organisatie vinden we het belangrijk om bij te dragen aan de ontwikkeling van jonge mensen én we raken graag geïnspireerd door de nieuwe ideeën en gedachten die jongeren met zich meebrengen. De komende tijd loopt Sizheng Chen Armstrong stage bij Tetem. Sizheng komt uit China en doet de Master New Media en Digital Culture aan de Universiteit Utrecht. Ik vraag hem naar zijn eerste indruk, zijn ervaringen tot nu toe en wat hij hoopt te leren bij Tetem.

Sizheng wil graag stage lopen bij Tetem, vanwege het brede werkveld waarbinnen Tetem actief is. “Through my research, Tetem seems to play a leading role in the new media field, not only in Enschede but also beyond in the region and even on an national level. Compared to other media labs, they have a broader and interesting business, such as educative workshops for children and teenagers.”

Sizheng wil tijdens zijn stage vanuit een interdisciplinaire invalshoek zijn vaardigheden verder ontwikkelen en verbreden. Hij wil op een meer innovatieve manier leren denken en problemen oplossen. En werken aan zijn skills op het gebied van samenwerking en netwerken.

Inclusiviteit
Ik vraag Sizheng naar zijn eerste indruk. “As a media lab, Tetem holds an open mind on the utilization of cutting-edge technological tools, from 3D printer to VR/AR goggles. Moreover, it’s diverse range of services benefits the local community, showcases operational sustainability and self-affordance. The team is very international friendly. I appreciate the inclusivity offered by every team member as even at a casual coffee moment chat, colleagues will switch their speaking language to English only if there is an international team player on site.”

Sizheng’s eerste project binnen Tetem was helpen bij de opbouw van Liquid Dreams, de tentoonstelling van Annika Kappner. “One colleague suggested me to go for Annika’s project and ask for some missions. Then I start putting myself in the Expo room as a video device checker. Basically the task is to check the format and equipment used for the videos in the exhibition to ensure they can be played smoothly in the desired manner.”

Sizheng gaat ook ondersteunen wanneer kunstenaar Laura A Dima binnenkort start met haar ontwikkeltraject bij Tetem. Sizheng kijkt er naar uit. “For me it’s an interesting chance for a dialogue with an expert in the multimedia field. I look forward to the collaboration as I happened to see her work ‘Future Affair’ in an art fair in Amsterdam last summer.”

Cultuurschok
Sizheng vertelt me dat er een groot verschil is tussen de Aziatische en Nederlandse manier van werken. “I am in adapting to this team's continuous freshness. I still remember my unrest during my first week of work when my personal shift conflicted with the seasonly team meeting. Despite the colleague who sends me notifications and invitation email state that attendance was not mandatory. However, my background from an East Asian society is based on collectivism traditions and Confucian ideology. Not participating in any important team activities could be seen as being unsociable (not being a team player), which is not a positive or expecting comment to an employee because it could subtly affect one's professional development within an organization. However, here the values of individualism, equality and respect seem to be well-practiced within the company. Just yesterday, as an intern, I was invited to participate in a discussion scan diversity and inclusion (more like an evaluation about working environment ), which is almost unimaginable in Asian companies that emphasize hierarchical and order cultural norms under Confucianism.”

Sizheng kijkt uit naar het vervolg van zijn stage. “My major is called New Media and Digital Culture. I think the key adjective ‘New’ means you need to be more open-minded to new changes and new environments. So I'm looking forward to my summer at Tetem. I hope that my internship will be a good starting point for me to further my experience to European workplace culture!”

~ Maika Eggink interviewt Sizheng Chen Armstrong over zijn stage bij Tetem.