Meet Isabella: Exploring Urban Planning and Heritage Conservation in Ho Chi Minh City

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    Isabella Ryan is an incoming graduate student at the University of Southern California, pursuing a dual master’s degree in Urban Planning and Heritage Conservation. After earning her undergraduate degree in English Literature from La Salle University, Isabella took a career-changing leap into urban development. Her passion for hiking, camping, and road trips is matched by her curiosity about global infrastructure, which led her to an exciting CRCC Asia internship in Ho Chi Minh City. Isabella embraced the vibrant café culture, formed lasting connections, and gained hands-on experience in sustainable urban development! 

    Here’s her Ho Chi Minh City experience in her own words:

    1. Please introduce yourself and tell us a bit about your background.

    Hi! I’m Isabella Ryan, I’m an incoming graduate student at the University of Southern California in a dual master’s program of Urban Planning and Heritage Conservation. I did my undergraduate studies in English Literature at La Salle University, but after some gap years decided to change my career and begin a new journey. Besides studying and working, I enjoy hiking, camping, and road tripping.

     

    2. What motivated you to join the CRCC Asia program and select your specific host location? 

    I found CRCC Asia through their scholarship program while searching on Google for internship opportunities in my field in Asia. Once I saw that the scholarship program’s host location was Ho Chi Minh City  in Vietnam, I immediately applied. A lot of work in urban development in Vietnam is being launched in HCMC and they are working towards climate infrastructure to keep the cities in Vietnam cool. I was interested in seeing the infrastructure and development first hand and that is why I applied for the scholarship in this location

     

    3. Please give us some snippets of your internship tasks- What were the skills you learned and applied, and what were some of the most rewarding aspects of your internship? 

    Through warehouse ESG visits and audits, I was able to visit different provinces in the south to see the warehouses. Creating posters and doing graphic design plus working on the template for the board report. These tasks aided me in understanding what business on the C-suite side could look like and understand what it takes to run a startup. 

     

    4. What was your experience like living in your host location? Was it your first time away from home for an extended period? 

    While not my first time living away from home nor living in a foreign country for a while, HCMC was amazing! I really enjoyed experiencing the sites and exploring all the different cafes in the area! I really enjoyed exploring the city with other interns. I also was able to travel after the internship and see more of Vietnam and really enjoyed all that I saw.

     

    5. What were your favorite experiences outside of work? Did you participate in any cultural activities or events? 

    My favorite experiences outside of work were hanging out with the other interns! Even if it was just at the accommodation, I really enjoyed talks by the pool. I also really enjoyed cafe hopping and visited over 20 different cafes during my time in HCMC (yes, a bit extreme), but it was so much fun! I really loved all the different coffee varieties and enjoyed the difference in cafe culture. 

     

    6. Did you form lasting connections with other interns or professionals during your time with CRCC Asia?

    Yes! Other interns and I are already planning our visits to each other! I also connected on LinkedIn with many of my co-workers and have kept in touch with them! 

     

    7. What advice would you give to future interns on making the most out of their CRCC Asia experience? 

    I would say dive right in! One thing I like to do is take my normal morning routine at home which is to go to the gym, get a coffee and maybe some breakfast, and replicate it in the new host city and maybe try a couple of different spots. If you’re nervous to do it alone, talk with your fellow interns! You’d be pleasantly surprised how eager everyone is to chat with each other and hang out!  Also Google stuff beforehand and have places bookmarked that you are going to want to see! Museums, restaurants, cafes, and even small towns nearby! The internship will be what you make of it, if you sit inside all the time and don’t try to venture out, you won’t get the full flavor of your host city! This internship is about expanding your comfort zone! Go out there and explore!

     

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