By Evangeline Quek
As summer comes to an end, many of us come back with stories of our summer internships. While most of us drone on about our time in IB and consultancy, we dive into how some LSE students embrace unconventional work. From online political commentary to the sun-soaked party boats, Victor and Robin have spent their summers blending passion with professional growth.
Victor Destang (3rd Year BSc International Relations)
With over 67.6K followers across TikTok and Instagram and a whopping 1.5M likes, Paris-based Victor Destang has carved out a niche in political commentary. His mission? To make complex global issues digestible for the social media generation.
As we sit down with Victor on a balmy afternoon, he shares insights into his journey, creative process, and the challenges in bridging the gap between academia and social media.
EQ: How did you leverage the summer to grow your online presence?
VD: I think my strategy was to be bold, aware, and quick. I secured press access to political rallies and rapidly produced breaking news content. I offered unique perspectives on events like the Olympics, differentiating my content from mainstream coverage.
EQ: How did your collaboration with political commentator Farah RK shape your content?
VD: We collaborated on a livestream at the France Unbowed meeting. Her experience and connections secured us exclusive access and interviews with key political figures, while our dynamic partnership attracted over 150,000 viewers for our live commentary, a significant achievement given we were the only ones amongst 50 journalists with this opportunity.
EQ: As an expert on short-form content, can you explain an IR theory using only emojis?
VD: Hahaha, love this question. I’d go for 😶🌫️🫵😬✊💪🚀🗺️(Can you guess the theory? **Scroll to the bottom of the page for the answer!).
Robin Cheng (3rd Year, LLB Law)
Over a thousand kilometres away in Croatia, was Robin Cheng, an adventurous spirit with a penchant for new experiences. Driven by a desire to embark on a solo journey that would satisfy his love for meeting people, exploring new places, and partying, Robin stumbled upon Worldpackers, a work exchange platform that offers a unique proposition: a chance to work on a party boat in the stunning coastal city of Split, Croatia, in exchange for commission and free accommodation.
EQ: Share your most memorable experience.
RC: Living in a three-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment with 15 other promoters for a month and finding out mid-way that the little black insects crawling around the house were bed bugs. We quickly got evicted because the apartment was infested.
EQ: What’s the biggest lesson you learnt on the Croatian party boat that law textbooks don’t teach?
RC: Travel with an open mind, be spontaneous to adventures no matter how silly they sound, and meet as many people as you can. There is lots to see and learn from the places and people around us!
EQ: Agreed! In that case, if you had to create a legal contract for party boat etiquette, what would your top three clauses be?
RC: Jumping off the boat is not only allowed but compulsory (bonus points for a flip), get drunk as fast as possible – the faster you get drunk the less seasick you get, and make five new friends or you will not be allowed off the boat.
*This interview has been edited for length and clarity
**The answer is defensive realism!
