AIESEC SFU
ALUMNI NEWSLETTER
Summer 2009
W
elcome to our first edition of SFU Alumni newsletter! As the Executive Board, we are excited to update you what on what’s happening in our local chapter. Recently, we had three interns joining us in Vancouver from India, Finland, and Greece. For those that have missed our Summer Alumni Get-Together...shame on you! Just kidding but we really wanted you there! Thanks to everyone for coming out and making it a very fun event. And don’t worry if you couldn’t make it, we’ll be hosting our annual AlumNight again this Fall! We hope that you will enjoy our first edition of our alumni newsletter and please feel free to give us feedback on how we can improve the newsletter for you! Email us at aiesecsfu.vpar09@gmail.com.
AIESEC-ly yours,
In this issue:
• • • • •
Conferences AIESEC SFU Results AlumNight 2009 Interview with Tero Executive Board
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Fiona Xu
aiesecsfu.vpar09@gmail.com
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NLDC 2009 Iggy Alcantara, Cheryl Tan, Terrence Tang, Lucinda Yeung, Kuda Mutama show some SFU and UBC love
Colleen Wong and Jingting Ma pose for Karen May, Teresa Lee, Michelle Nguyen, Bealaine Pamandanan and Ruby Lin look glamourous for the dance at NC 2008 the camera at NLDC 2009
Conferences, Conferences, Conferences! National Conference AIESEC conferences started with a bang this year as AIESEC SFU hosted the annual National Conference in Richmond in December 30th - January 4th. The conference saw AIESEC members from all over the country in order to build skills and to network together for a five day event. The conference included planning, management and social skills training, as well as detailed information on AIESEC resources. The conference focused on training incoming executives for their roles in local committees.
National Leadership Development Conference The National Leadership Development Conference took place May 8th -13th, 2009 on the picturesque grounds of St. Mary’s University in Halifax this year. Our yearly NLDC brings new executives together to receive training. The five day event in Halifax included selling strategies, information on AIESEC’s global vision, and solid leadership skills.
Western Regional Conference We are still waiting for fall to arrive to attend our Western Regional Conference, hosted this year by AIESEC UVIC. WRC is an event that introduces local AIESEC leaders to AIESEC opportunities such as making positive changes in local communities. Last year’s event was held in Edmonton and focused on having senior members mentor new AIESEC’ers, a strategy that was very effective. We’re looking forward to another great time this year!
Colleen Wong and Bealaine Pamandanan are matching in purple at NC 2009
NLDC 2009 AIESEC’ers getting pumped up in matching pink t-shirts
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Katrina Lim, Surbhi Seru and Katherine Tam show off their muscles by holding up Philip Webb at NC 2009
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AIESEC SFU Results
Exchange Participants (EPs)
Incoming Trainees (TNs)
• Sahil Gupta Atimi Software • Ioannis Deniozos ResponseTEK • Tero Isokauppila Career Services SFU
• Arnab Sen • Iris Eom • Bergen Vermette • Lori Wigbers
China Malaysia Bangladesh Malaysia
A Night to Remember AlumNight 2009 is just around the corner and we look forward to seeing all of you during this fabulous event. As you may or may not be aware, AlumNight is a collaboration between AIESEC SFU and AIESEC UBC aimed at bringing our alumni together with our members and community business partners. All alumni from both schools are invited as well as any other visiting AIESEC alumni in the area. It is the third annual AlumNight and the first time hosted by AIESEC SFU. We have a dedicated Organizing Committee working hard on this event to ensure its success. We will make it known that AIESEC SFU can do a better job than AIESEC UBC in hosting one of the most important AIESEC events. AlumNight is an opportunity for all attendees to develop their network. This event is a way to reconnect with old friends, get to know current members, talk about the life of an AIESEC alumnus and even relive some of your most enjoyable AIESEC moments! Lily Yang, Bealaine Pamandanan, Brian Fingler, Yanni Lu and Lara Lien at the Alumni Get Together Event show us how networking is done
AlumNight 2009 will be held either in the last week of October or the first week of November. As of this issue, the date has not been confirmed yet but keep an eye out for updates on LinkedIn and for a new AlumNight website for more information. Your support for AIESEC SFU is greatly appreciated and we will be honoured if you could attend this event. Feel free to contact our current VP for Alumni Relations, Fiona Xu at aiesecsfu.vpar09@gmail.com if you have any inquiries.
Alumni Get Together 2009 attendees get close in a group shot
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Interview with Tero This year, AIESEC SFU was fortunate enough to receive three incoming interns. Tero Isokauppila, is our latest intern from Finland and he offered to say a few words about his AIESEC and Canadian experiences.
Why did you join AIESEC? I joined after I was recommended by a good friend. He had done an internship with AIESEC and he really enjoyed it. He visited AIESEC Germany and AIESEC Turkey for an Anatolic Conference and found the atmosphere there to be quite different from AIESEC Finland. His experiences have really impressed me with how diverse this organization is.
Do you think conferences are important? I think that they are crucial to the organization because you can see how massive it really is. In university, you meet maybe 50, or even 100 people on a daily basis but during conferences, you meet hundreds of people from all over the world.
Why did you choose Canada to do your internship? Did you have other choices? I actually had about 12 different places to choose from but I chose Canada. I had a friend from Vancouver who came so I learned about Vancouver from her before I arrived.
You are working in SFU’s Career Services, how do you find your job? I am handling the Career Days event which will take place later this year. Although I have been in management and sales before, working for a university has a different culture compared to working for profit-making companies.
What do you like about Vancouver so far? It is an amazing city. The experience has been quite good for me but the transit system can be improved. Overall, I would award Vancouver 9 ½ out of 10.
If you could go on exchange anywhere else where would you go? I would go to New York. Someone once told me “live in New York, but leave before it makes you hard”. As for education, I would choose to study in MIT. Finally, for volunteer work I would like to go to places that are in danger of disappearing such as the Galapagos Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. Due to environmental changes, these places might not exist for much longer. I would like to learn more about nature and help the planet not just in those places but in all the natural wonders such as the Grand Canyon and the Norwegian fjords.
What do you think of AIESEC SFU? I had an amazing reception at the airport and everyone helped me with a smile. I could tell everyone was very enthusiastic and active. However, I think you should recruit more people from other faculties to have some variety. Speaking of variety, I think there are too many girls and it is too “Asian”. Perhaps a better mix of boys and girls and a more multi-
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2009
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Interview with Tero Continued cultural environment can lead to a better community. I do think that the people here are very warm-hearted and hardworking. I find that Former Interim LCP
you are very interested in raising TNs, I don’t
Vice President, Finance
Angela Babuk Iggy Alcantara
know the exact numbers but you seem to be doing well. Two thumbs up for AIESEC SFU!
What advice would you give to those who wish to go on exchange? Going on exchange whether it is for work or for school can change one’s values. Here is my advice- “the only way to go far is to go too far”. When on exchange, go all out and you will discover your own potential. There are many
Vice President, Alumni Relations
Vice President, Outgoing Exchange
Vice President, Communications
Vice President, Talent Management
Vice President, Corporate Relations
Vice President, Corporate Relations
Fiona Xu Hazeline Montecines
things that cannot be learned from books so you must think outside the box and open your minds to everything that is new.
Do you have any parting words for alumni reading this? I think the AIESEC way and AIESEC values do not end with graduation. The Alumni have a big role to play, as I learned when I attended an
Mathieu Baril Colleen Wong
AIESEC 60th Anniversary Gala. They are an important part of AIESEC and should contribute to the AIESEC experience. The connection to the school does not end once one leaves it but continues forever. That is why I invite all alumni to come to Career Days. You might find a job or you might find students you can work with.
Ruby Lin Ivan Ma
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