Exploring Careers Abroad

By Bridget Aymar

While his fellow Carlson School business students sought internships at corporations such as Target and Best Buy, one student tapped an opportunity in government to pursue his passion. Entrepreneurship management senior Dale Braegelmann completed an internship at the U.S. Embassy in Bucharest, Romania, this spring. Administered by the U.S. State Department, the internship was the perfect venue for Braegelmann to apply his 18 years’ experience in the real estate industry and test drive his dream career of working overseas.

Braegelmann first realized the demand for business-minded professionals in the government sector when he visited the U.S. Consulate during an international course in Australia. It was then he began applying for government internships overseas, and chose to take a semester off to work abroad. He thanks the Undergraduate Business Career Center for pointing him in the direction of the internship.

“This experience confirmed my choice to change careers,” he says. “When I graduate this year, my goal is to work for the State Department and get placed overseas.”

In 2011, Braegelmann enrolled at the Carlson School to complete his undergraduate degree after a decades-long hiatus. Although he attended college for one year in the 1980s, he dropped out to take over his family’s business. After achieving success in the real estate industry, he realized the importance of finishing his education. Today he aspires to blend his knack for real estate with his passion for travel and hopes to secure a position with the state department or an international corporation after graduation later this year.

He encourages fellow business students to look to the government for jobs in finance, management, accounting, and more.