A Newbie’s First Peek Into AIESEC in NUS
It all begun when I attended the information talk that AIESEC in NUS offered, I stepped in with the hopes of landing my dream internship abroad through the organization. Fast forwarding to the present, I am now a Brand and Marketing Team Member of AIESEC in NUS.
To put it simply, the story of how I joined AIESEC in NUS is one of mistakes, uncertainty, and sheer luck. I had mistaken the information talk by AIESEC to be one of calling for students to join their outgoing programs, when they were actually recruiting students to join their team. Amidst the confusion, me and my friends, impressed by the presentation by AIESEC in NUS members, bumbled into the Assessment Center and pulled through the rigorous interview to earn our spot.
The issue came when the acceptance email came in – should I pull out to let someone else (who would probably have more passion and interest in AIESEC) have the position instead? Getting into the club felt like an accident as I wasn’t sure if it was really what I wanted with all the commitments I already have on hand.
Despite the doubts, we stuck our heads in and went for the Induction Conference, a session to help all newbies get to know more about AIESEC and its members. I remember hoping that the conference will answer the questions about why I got into the club and thankfully, it did.
From there, I made some interesting friends (a freelance hairdresser with funky purple hair), tried my hand at the front-end department (in which the introverted me would never have tried), and simply enjoyed the new experience.
What really came through from the conference was that I was just one of the many lost sheep in the room. In one of the activities, I met others who were equally clueless about what they could do in AIESEC in NUS, and were simply there to make friends. The thing that clicked in me was that I really didn’t know what I will find here, but as cheesy as it sounds, I have already found friends.
After the Induction Conference last weekend, I stepped out of the Seminar Room with new hope that my experience here will be fulfilling despite the lingering questions of my purpose here. This is perhaps what AIESEC is about – the faith that everything will work out well as long as you press on and believe in whatever you do.
