Automation and Control Engineering

My 8 months’ internship in Guiyang

Cristian has taken part in a double degree program with XJTU, during which he is doing an 8 months’ internship in China, in 2024

How did you find your internship?

It was not easy, although there are many job fairs at the University in which different companies participate (XJTU is a renowned university in China), most of them are aimed at Chinese students, or at least at students with a good knowledge of Chinese language. Furthermore, while I usually look for jobs via Linkedin, in China recruiters use other platforms. However, if you are proactive and you spend enough time and energy in cultivating a good network of contacts, it is possible to find interesting opportunities. Speaking of myself, for example, I found my internship thanks to a Chinese friend. I suggest to Polimi students interested in doing an internship here that they start gathering information as soon as possible in their research team at XJTU, asking to both professors and students if they have contacts at any company.

Tell us about the company you work for

My company is called Pix Moving, it is an autonomous guide start-up with branches in China, United Sates and Japan. The company’s headquarters, where the production takes place, is in China and has 200 employees: all Chinese but me and an Indian colleague. I am part of the “autonomous guide” team, my manager speakes English very well and has helped me to find projects related to my thesis project. For what concerns my thesis at the moment I structured it into two main parts (as I have worked in two different projects in the company): the first part deals with “End-to-end Learning-Based Longitudinal Dynamics Calibration with Neural Networks”, while the second part, longer and more detailed, deals with “Hybrid Imitation Learning-based Motion Planner”. Both my Polimi supervisor and my XJTU supervisor are happy with my work: I consider myself very lucky!

Where do you live?

I live in Guiyang, capital of Guizhou province, where the company is located. It is one of the least developed provinces in China, in the country’s south-west. Guiyang has 6 million inhabitants and is undergoing a rapid modernization. When I arrived, I first stayed in a hotel but then a colleague of mine helped me find a flat.

What do you do in your free time?

Guiyang is not a touristic spot which attracts many international visitors, therefore my experience here has been one hundred per cent “Chinese”. Although it is not easy to get to know Chinese people, especially because of the language barrier, I was able to make friends with my colleagues and during the weekends we often go out together in bars, pubs, restaurants or to karaoke. Not far from Guiyang there are also beautiful cities we like to visit, as Guilin and Kunming.

However, what I like most of Guizhou is definitely the nature: it is a province rich in mountains and forests. My manager is a professional climber and sometimes we do outdoor climbing together. There are also several local organizations and associations which organize daily excursions with experienced guides to waterfalls, canyons, caves and forests: I discovered places which are really incredible!

In conclusion, my life in Guiyang is very different from my student life in Xi’an, but both experiences have been equally beautiful.