AIESEC in Lund Exchange Participant Booklet

INTRO

ABOUT THE BOOKLET

The information will ensure that exchange participants understand the leadership development experience that AIESEC facilitates. It will additionally be a tool for expectation setting in order to experience maximum personal growth and development throughout the duration of the internship for those going abroad.

INDEX

1...Welcome..............................

2...AIESEC in Lund....................

3...Why AIESEC........................

4...Who can apply...................

5...Our Programs......................

6...Leadership Development...

7.....Inner and Outer Journey...

8.....LEAD......................................

9.....How we can help................

10...What to expect..................

11...What we expect................

12...FAQ.......................................

1. WELCOME

As Local Committee President and the current head of AIESEC’s

operations at Lund University, I would like to extend a warm

greeting to you. AIESEC is an organization centered around

the idea of leadership development, and the information

provided here is the first step on your own AIESEC journey

towards discovering your leadership potential.

Whether it’s teaching in Tanzania or working with professional

finance in Brussels, AIESEC is much more than just an

internship provider. Through the course of this booklet you will

read about how AIESEC is a unique organization, one that I am

truly proud to say I am member of and better leader because

of.

I wish you the best of luck as your AIESEC journey begins. It

will be a long and crazy road - but I can promise you will not regret it! With that And after your

internship, whether it is for 6 weeks or 6 months, I hope to see you back in Lund as a true global citizen

equipped to tackle the challenges facing our society today.

Best Wishes,

Anna Wangen. Local Committee President AIESEC in Lund

2. AIESEC in Lund

CONTACT

AF-Borgen

Sandgatan 2

22350 Lund

lund@aiesec.se

BRIEF HISTORY

The AIESEC Local Committee in Lund was founded in 1982, and after a brief one year shut down, reopened again in 2013. Since then, AIESEC in Lund has steadily grown with the total amount of current members presently around 30 students.

3. Why AIESEC?

Based upon the vision of “peace and fulfillment of humankind’s potential” AIESEC provides a platform for young people to develop professional skills and an awareness for community development through cross-cultural experiences, both on university campuses and abroad. These experiences equip youth with a global perspective, creating the types of leaders that are ready to tackle many of the pressing issues facing society today.

AIESEC creates these purpose-driven leaders through its own Leadership Development Model (LDM), where skills such as self-awareness, the ability to empower others, and a solution-oriented mindset are bred in order to create true world citizens.

We are the world’s largest student-run organization, an NGO with a global reach of 126 countries and territories that has been providing internship opportunities since 1948. Besides providing internships to young people, AIESEC additionally connects companies with recent graduates and current students (18-30 yrs) who are looking for international experience in a professional environment.

4. WHO CAN APPLY?

Are You eligible to apply?

Yes, if you are between 18-30 years old.

If you have previously spent more than 3 years in one specific country, you are prohibited

to apply to that country. This is because AIESEC promotes cultural understanding by

sending students abroad to a new and challenging environment.

5. OUR PROGRAMS

GLOBAL TALENT

Our internship program that focuses on companies and larger corporations.

Eligible: Finished or almost finished bachelor/masters

Duration: 6-18 months

Paid: Yes, monthly salary to cover accommodation and living expenses.

Application time: Around 3-4 months

Cost: 5000 SEK

5. Our Programs

GLOBAL ENTREPRENEUR

Our shorter internship program that

focuses on start-up companies.

Eligible: Studying relevant program at university for the specific internship.

Duration: 6-12 weeks.

Paid: No, but accommodation is sometimes provided (depending on the project. It is written in the project descriptions on Opportunity Portal).

Application time: 1-3 months.

Cost: 3500 SEK.

5. OUR PROGRAMS

GLOBAL CITIZEN

Our volunteer program that

focuses on NGOs and similar.

Eligible: Everyone between

the ages of 18-30 years old

Duration: 6-12 weeks

Paid: No, but accommodation and food is provided

Application time: 1-2 months

Cost: 3500 SEK

6. Leadership Development

We believe that we can reach our vision by developing responsible leaders for

the future. These leaders should have the four traits represented in the picture to be

able to work towards the vision:

o They should be able to empower others, so that their good work can create a ripple effect

and make the most impact. One way of doing this is by learning how to communicate effectively

with people from different backgrounds.

o A leader should be self aware in order to understand what drives them, their personal values

and knows their strength and weaknesses.

o By being solution oriented the leader can adapt quickly to changes and be able to see

things in a positive light and dare to take risks when needed.

o Lastly, a leader should be a world citizen, meaning that they see and believe their role as

change makers in the world and society around them.

These four elements create leaders that are responsible and that can strive to

fulfill peace and fulfillment of humankind’s potential. These traits we aim to

develop through our internships.

7. Inner and Outer Journey

As we wrote above, we strive to develop

leaders that are self aware, empowering

others, world citizens and that are solution

oriented. But how do we do that?

Inner and Outer Journey is the framework that

you as an EP, should go through no matter if

you go volunteering or go on a professional

internship.

As you can probably figure out from the name, the outer journey consists of elements of

your surroundings - the internship and the new setting, whereas the inner journey describes

the personal development that comes with working in the new challenging environment.

By going out of your comfort zone, you can start to reflect and re-evaluate how you see

yourself and what is important in your life. With these steps, you should be able to develop

self awareness, solution orientation, the skill of empowering others and becoming a world

citizen - hence, our idea of what today’s leaders should look like.

7. Inner and Outer Journey

8. Learn, Engage, Activate, Deliver

Finally, the LEAD model is what brings it all together and also acts as a catalyst to drive the process in which AIESEC facilitates the inner journey for the participants in each program. So, how does LEAD affect you?

First of all, to make sure we can deliver a quality experience, our programs have standards and minimum requirements. Secondly, in order to facilitate your inner journey, there will be minimum five touch points between you and an AIESEC representative.

8. LEAD

Before leaving for your internship you will go through an Outgoing Preparation Seminar where you start your inner journey by setting individual goals.

During the internship there will be three touch points where we follow up on the quality of your experience as well as your personal goals. These will take place approximately 2 weeks into your experience, in the middle and two weeks before the completion of your internship.

8. LEAD

When you have arrived back home, it is time for the last meeting whereby we evaluate and wrap up your experience. This will provide an opportunity for you to reflect on your experience and personal development.

We believe that by following these steps you will be able to go through the inner and outer journey and hence develop the qualities found in our Leadership Development Model.

9. HOW WE CAN HELP

LOCAL COMMITTEE SUPPORT

The host entity acts as a buffer, helping incoming exchange participants (EPs) settle in as

easily as possible. The hosting entity provides the following.

PRIOR TO EXCHANGE PARTICIPANT’S ARRIVAL

Help with acquisition of visa, provision of documents that would assist the EP in filing for

any work permits, or other documentation.

9. HOW WE CAN HELP

ON EXCHANGE PARTICIPANT’S ARRIVAL & FOR THE DURATION

OF EXCHANGE

Airport Pick-up

Accompany EP to work on the first day

Help with procuring necessary documentation within host country (social security number, setting up bank accounts, etc. as it applies)

LEAD: Each EP have an EP buddy from the Host Entity with a routine bi-monthly progress checkup.

ON EXCHANGE PARTICIPANTS DEPARTURE

The Host entity would provide information on how to depart from the

country, prior to the end of the internship.

9. HOW WE CAN HELP

The sending entity acts as more of a support system for leadership

development throughout the internship application process.

DURING APPLICATION PROCESS

Technical support in learning how to use AIESEC online platforms

Assistance in providing internship selection suggestions, provision of guidance with regard to internship applications

Provision of a so-called “EP Manager”, who is the exchange participant’s personal AIESEC representative with whom to turn with questions regarding the application process and or procurement of visa/work permit

Facilitation of the EP’s leadership development process prior to the internship experience through coaching meetings and personal goal setting sessions during the outgoing preparation seminar (pre-departure orientation)

10. WHAT TO EXPECT

FROM YOUR HOSTING ENTITY

Pick up from the airport

AIESEC comes along to the first work day

Assist with finding suitable accommodation

Facilitation of inner and outer journey

Local AIESEC buddy

Cultural twice per six months and invitation to participate the local committee activities

Welcome package for the upon arrival

10. WHAT TO EXPECT

FROM YOUR SENDING

ENTITY

Your EP manager will help you with

the application questions - sending you

internship propositions as well as

answering any questions you may pop

up along the way.

We provide tips when it comes to

travel insurance, visas, vaccinations and

flight tickets if necessary.

11. WHAT WE EXPECT

BEFORE

It is your responsibility to actively apply to internships.

Buy a valid travel insurance, visas, vaccinations and flight tickets before departure.

Keep constant communication with your EP manager and let him or her know if your plans have changed.

DURING

Keep communication ongoing with the hosting and sending committee (regarding experience and potential problems and concerns)

Participate in activities

Execute your tasks according to your job description

12. FAQ

What is the difference between AIESEC’s professional and volunteer internships?

Why should I go?

On volunteer internship, you will have the chance to develop your leadership skills by having a cross-cultural living and working experience that is aiming to impact society within a two-month time period. On professional internships, you will rather be given the opportunity to develop entrepreneurial and professional skills through a longer-term more immersive exchange.

Can I get a certificate that I was part of an AIESEC internship program?

Yes, just contact your AIESEC representative in order to procure this document.

I’m not sure what is the best fit for me - Global Entrepreneur, Global Talent or Global Citizen. Which should I choose?

This is up to you based upon your preferences and skills. Please take note that Global Entrepreneur and Global Citizen are shorter in length whereas Global Talent internships are oftentimes 6 months to 1 year long. If you are a Bachelor’s student, we recommend taking a shorter experience as this is especially conducive to summer holidays and internships courses part of degree programs. However if you are a recent graduate of either a Bachelor’s or Master’s program, the Global Talent program is most likely the best fit for you if you are looking to gain professional skills in a foreign cultural environment.

12. FAQ

AIESEC is present in 126 countries, but you are telling me only to go to certain zones. Why?

Yes, you are free to apply for all opportunities listed on our Opportunities Portal. However AIESEC in Sweden has partnerships with certain countries that are more willing to accept our internship applicants, so we often suggest these opportunities to those applicants first because they have a higher chance of being selected for these jobs.

I cannot click on the “Apply” button on opportunities.aiesec.org. Why?

First, be sure that you have filled out every field of your personal and professional information the “My Profile” page. If problems persist, please contact your AIESEC representative in Lund.

So, I have applied for internships but nobody is answering me. What do I do?

Certain internships have large numbers of applicants, which can cause delays. In this case, contact your AIESEC representative to see if they can help in any way and ask for additional suggestions of internships that are suitable for your profile.

Can I send you my CV and cover letter for feedback?

Of course! Feel free to approach your AIESEC representative at any time to get feedback on anything regarding your internship applications. However in general, we suggest you attempt to tailor your CV and cover letter to the specific opportunity you are applying for as much as possible - this greatly increases your chances of being shortlisted or even selected for the job!