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Historically, many FMT students choose to do their first summer stage (13 weeks duration) further afield 鈥� with six working in Alberta and Saskatchewan for the summer. Four of the six are young women. This article will describe some of their experiences working away from home and how they have personally developed over the past few months. The goal of the internship is to gain a better understanding of the management of an agribusiness and develop hard and soft skills through work experience.

Sara Bohemen 鈥� Vermeer鈥檚 Dairy Ltd

Originally from a tie-stall herd, Bernalea Holsteins, in Ormstown (QC), Sara Bohemen is working at Vermeer鈥檚 Dairy Ltd in Camrose (AB). The farm, the largest in Alberta, milks approximately 535 cows in a rotary parlour, and is owned by the Vermeer family. Bohemen鈥檚 responsibilities include calf care, cleaning, herd health, milking and a variety of tasks. 鈥淚鈥檝e learnt a lot about new technologies and what it鈥檚 like managing a bigger herd, as well as different types and methods of management. I realized how important record keeping and organization is for a big enterprise and it gives me a lot of motivation for my own family farm,鈥� she wrote in her mid-term internship report.

When asked if she had personally changed since starting the stage, Bohemen said: 鈥淚 became a lot more confident than before. I鈥檓 not as afraid of asking questions or performing certain tasks like giving needles.鈥�

鈥淸The internship] has been extremely rewarding; I鈥檝e already learnt so much and it made me step out of my comfort zone. I never would鈥檝e thought I鈥檇 handle the distance so well 鈥� I definitely know I鈥檒l remember this journey for the rest of my life鈥� she added.