How TMU students are landing global internships and leadership roles
TMU students gain leadership experience through AIESEC's portfolio system, managing everything from corporate partnerships to international exchange programs.
When Bhargav Modukuru, a fourth-year Ted Rogers School business technology management student, learned about a campus group offering international volunteer experiences and leadership development, he was immediately interested.
"I learned they are focused on youth leadership, high-impact oriented and support United Nations (UN) projects around the world. I knew it was something I wanted to be part of," says Modukuru about AIESEC in TMU, a chapter of the world's largest youth-led organization.
AIESEC (external link) was founded in 1948 after World War II by seven young people from different countries who wanted to build cross-cultural understanding to help change the world for the better.
Nearly 80 years later, AIESEC, which has been active at TMU for more than 25 years, is the world's largest not-for-profit youth-led organization.
It has chapters in more than 100 countries and territories facilitating more than 30,000 cultural exchange experiences a year and creating leadership opportunities for young people across the world.
"The mission is the same," says Eman Khan, a third-year global management studies student and president of AIESEC in TMU, taking over from Modukuru this past January.
AIESEC’s global opportunities
AIESEC offers three exchange programs: global teaching, global talent and global volunteering, with each volunteer opportunity targeting one of the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). All of the programs are managed by members, which is what attracted Khan to AIESEC.
"Membership provides a sandbox to learn, grow and experiment because you're working in one of a number of portfolios. And if you have an issue, you can call on AIESEC's alumni, who are always available and willing to help," says Khan, who started in the business-to-consumer marketing portfolio promoting the outgoing exchange programs to young people between the ages of 18 and 29 both across TMU and the broader community.
Other portfolios include:
- Finance, where students work on sponsorships and outreach
- Incoming global talent, which gives students the opportunity to build relationships with corporate AIESEC partners to match participants with internships in Canada
- Outgoing global exchange, where students work with AIESEC chapters and partner organizations around the world to manage the participant experience from start to finish
- People management, where students manage the membership experience to ensure they take away the most from their time with AIESEC – and build their resumes
AIESEC in TMU connects students with global opportunities, from teaching English abroad to addressing UN Sustainable Development Goals through volunteer work.
Industry partnerships and training
Recently AIESEC in TMU partnered with EY Ripples to host a networking event for members with panels on how to transition from student life to their careers, industry trends, in-demand skills and how to translate the leadership experience they've gained onto their resumes.
Thi Tran, a third-year business management student, was both a member of AIESEC helping facilitate outgoing exchanges and a volunteer exchange participant, taking part in a trip to Taiwan organized by Modukuru to help address UN SDG4: Quality Education.
An international student from Vietnam, Tran joined AIESEC in TMU in her first year. "It was amazing. Everyone was really welcoming and created an environment where you want to be part of the family. This was important for me because I was just learning English and language was a barrier. I met a lot of people and it helped me develop my confidence."
In her role facilitating exchanges, she heard a lot about the experiences people were having and she was excited to go on one herself. Last May she went to Taiwan for two months, a country she always wanted to visit, to teach English.
"I was responsible for creating a curriculum and teaching English to elementary school students. I explained my home country, Vietnam and my experience in Canada to encourage the students to speak more English and learn about different cultures," says Tran. "While I was there, I was able to immerse myself in the culture. The people were so friendly. They took me out to different restaurants and night markets, and I was able to use Mandarin, a new language I'm learning."
To get involved, visit AIESEC in Canada website (external link) where you'll find AIESEC in TMU's exchange sign up link (external link) and the link to join as a member (external link) , or visit the chapter's Instagram page @lc.tmu.