Participant Profiles of Career Israel Internship Program

Meet Jared Zaifman, from Canada, who interned in Tel Aviv at The Dancing Camel Brewery

Through Career Israel, Jared Zaifman has found an amazing internship working at a local Tel Aviv bar and brewery, Dancing Camel. Being the only American staff there (other than the owner), Jared says that both the best and worst things about his internship are his Hebrew interactions: "On the one hand, I get to learn a lot of useful Hebrew everyday. But on the other hand, it can get really nerve-racking. When you are dealing with customers with money in a high-paced environment it’s easy to second guess if you really understand what the customer is saying".  

Jared originally hails from London, Ontario, Canada. He graduated from the University of Western Ontario with a degree in Political Science in 2008. Like most political science majors after they receive their degree, Jared decided to work for his family's real estate development company for a few years. During that time, he realized he wanted to do more-- so much more that he ended up running for city council. He came in close as the second place candidate. Although the loss might have thrown Jared off temporarily, he didn't waste any time. At a New Year's Eve gathering, he found out about Career Israel through a friend and decided to apply. The rest is history.

"Before coming on Career Israel, I was a little hesitant as to whether I should be on a program after being so removed from programs like this for a while. Now I think that if I decided to come here on my own, I would have completely regretted it. Career Israel provides you with a really amazing "home base", essentially, because it’s not so easy to get used to the Israeli lifestyle and culture. To have people around to help you along and guide you through a temporary period of living here is really helpful.”