Learning Abroad: Once a Luxury, Now a Necessity

via aiesec.ca

The president’s job is to present McMaster’s views on “both a national and international stage.” At the same time, locally, Boodhoo-Leegsma helps organize and coordinate group efforts regarding such tasks like incoming and outgoing exchange. During her time as president, she has spotted some definite trends emerging (besides the increase in interest from students).

“The BRIC nations [Brazil, Russia, India, and China] are undergoing huge economic changes right now and there is great demand for international students.” Former soviet bloc members such as Ukraine and the Czech Republic also have similar appetites for exchange opportunities with the number of AIESEC groups increasing “exponentially.”

Unfortunately, this isn’t necessarily the case across the world. There are AIESEC chapters in many places where political and ethnic tensions are a part of life (e.g. Central America, Sub Saharan Africa). Boodhoo-Leegsma notes that while “there are many opportunities for internships [in such places]..” there are often issues regarding “political instability, visa processing issues and language requirements” that make the establishing of internships a harder task. The safety of students is something that AIESEC greatly cares about; the organization does its best that exchanges go along as smoothly as possible.

Nevertheless AIESEC members have sometimes found themselves in the middle of conflicts. One member recounted how a group of McMaster students were in Egypt just as the Arab spring began. Many of them had become worried about their safety as protestors and police clashed in public places. But their fears soon gave way to contentment; the local members of the AIESEC group gave them directions and helped them identify safe and unsafe areas. They also made sure that they went out with them to help experience Egyptian culture. Such stories, Leegsma argues, are emblematic of the strength in community that AIESEC’s work has achieved.

Concurrently, there are also additional volunteering opportunities abroad in similar countries that look to work with those who are not reaping the economic rewards of the boom. While the economic ascendancy in such places like China are impressive, there are still many that have been left behind. To service those people, many NGO’s have begun working with universities – establishing relationships that could gather more participants for group projects.

Arbitrage Magazine spoke with Adam Kuhn who is the Manager of Community Service-Learning, Civic Engagement and Leadership at McMaster University. His job entails connecting “students with learning and development opportunities through collective and community engaged experiences.” Through his work, he has helped McMaster students work with NGO’s in such locations like Mexico, Panama and Peru.

As the financial situation in the developed world has grown increasingly tenuous, Kuhn has noticed an uptick in students looking for international experience. “In some ways, the world is shrinking and we are more aware of some of the pressing issues in communities near and far,” He explained. “Students are often looking for ways to contribute and get involved.”

One of the big benefits of the participants that Kuhn has noticed is the impact the work has on the student’s career goals and aspirations. An example he gave was that on a trip to Mexico, a student who had initially been focused greatly on pursuing a career as a doctor became more interested in the overall issues of global health. Once the trip was over, she started to research graduate programs involving such matters. But this change needn’t necessarily be a complete change in career Kuhn argues: “If your goal is to be an accountant…you may return still wanting to…but perhaps you will be an accountant with a greater sense of social justice, equity and community.”

ARB Team

Arbitrage Magazine
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