May-June 2015

amazing reasons to go on exchange3

11it will be the adventure of a lifetime.

Whether you're on an professional internship or volunteer program, being on exchange will BE ONE EXCITING RIDE. You’ll be in a country with unfamiliar customs and that on it’s own will be an adventure. So go and explore unknown territory!

22you will finally know what you want

33you will gain new insight and learn

By the nature of being away from comforts of home and exposing yourself to your own attention, you have a possibility to uncover your Heart's Desire.

Experience is the best teacher. And what makes this even better is that what you’ll learn will be out of the country.

Being in this project for six weeks is an eye opener for me about e-waste and its impact to the society. Going on exchange has given me the opportunity to be part of a movement that helps save the environment and at the same being of service to the underprivileged communities. Also through this experience, I was given the opportunity to be exposed to people coming from different cultures. Hearing their stories and at the same time learning from them made me see the things I can improve on and the things i should keep doing. This exchange was definitely one for the books!!

My exchange internship in Europe was truly an amazing expe-rience. Not only did it give me a new perspective on what I wanted in life, it also caused a shift in the way I lead and work with others. Now as [con’t, third page]

Here about the wonders of exchange straight from the horse’s mouth -- our EP Returnees!

tara

ej

My project was all

about putting together

events which celebrat-

ed the different cus-

toms, traditions, and

national identities of its

exchange participants.

I'd have to honestly say

that the project man-

agement responsibili-

ties which came with

being a part of a task

like that was [con’t third

page]

I participated in

Edison Project in

Prague, Czech Repub-

lic. I got to go to a very

beautiful city on the

other side of the world,

meet new friends from

around the world who

share the same pas-

sions, go to [con’t third

page]

Living in a country

where people speak

a foreign language

and practice differ-

ent traditions taught

me how to be inde-

pendent and depen-

dent at the same

time. When I arrived

in Vietnam, I was

welcomed by my EP

buddy telling me

that I have no place

to stay and I need to

provide food for

[con’t third page]

What adventure will AIESEC take you on next?

fil mico cathleen

Continuation, Mico Moulic

culturally educating in itself already. When you're in a room with 20+ people of at least 8 different nationalities and you're the only Filipino, almost none of the normal group dynamics that you've been so used to applies anymore. You get to see, learn, and experience first-hand how these people of different backgrounds

Continuation, EJ Noble

the director for exchange operations in the iGCDP department, I work hard in ensuring that the EPs coming to the Philippines will have a memorable experi-ence similar to what I had during my unforgettable stay in Europe.

Continuation, Fil Bayot

a new school every week to share about our own cul-tures. It opened a part of me I've never known existed. Honestly, I underestimated our impact to the students. The students added us on facebook and sent us mes-sages. Some of them shared their personal life. One of the students shared about her anorexia. Another one which was my host brother had bone cancer.It gets very

Continuation, Cathleen Mae Luteria

myself. It says in the TN that both will be taken care of the LC in Vietnam, for free. To make the long story short, my co-interns and I decided to not ruin the whole experi-ence and just make the most of what we were given. After all, we came there to iteach the Vietnamese students and somehow make a difference in their lives. As a leader, the whole experience allowed me to be more assertive with my decisions while learning to compromise to address the needs and limitations of the team. I went on exchange to see a wider view of the world but I ended up looking into the most intricate details of humanity. I believe that all exchange participants (EPs) have unique stories to tell. But one thing's for sure, each experience brought a change in the community and in the hearts of the EPs.

emotional sometimes when I get involved, but making a difference in my students’ life was worth it. I even got personally invited to attend a school ball, where I got to learn some traditional ball-room dancing. It was a very fun experience for me since I didn’t attend prom in high school and I even got to meet a Czech celebrity!

think, act, and communicate with each other in achieving one similar goal. That's the sort of learning that you won't get in a classroom; the kind that humbles you, sticks with you, and makes you wish you could take back those 6 weeks just so you could re-do it all again.