On the 18th of April, AEclipse hosted its first-ever online Alumni Event in which both current students and former AEclipse members had the opportunity to participate. For the first time, alumni were able to meet and interact with master (and bachelor-3) students, network and learn from each other’s experiences.
The first part of the event was open to both students and alumni and began with a keynote speech from Leonhardt van Efferink, who is a former vice-president of AEclipse and experienced a dynamic career path as a country risk analyst, policy advisor, author, trainer and lecturer. He told participants about the ways they can manage their career paths and important success factors that students should be aware of at the start of their careers, such as taking calculated risks and distinguishing between good and bad advice.
Students and alumni then participated in a speed-networking activity through which they were able to share experiences and get to know each other. Participants were divided into small break-out rooms based on industry or past study program, which made the interaction more personal. This was a great opportunity for students to enhance their personal network, gather some tips and learn from alumni’s success (and failure) stories.
The second part of the event was dedicated to alumni only, starting with a prompt game in small groups for participants to socialize and mingle. This was followed by a wine-tasting session for which wine tasting kits had been shipped a couple of days before the event. A sommelier took the alumni on a tasting tour of three different Dutch wines of which they tried to guess the flavours and characteristics.
All in all, the afternoon was a great opportunity for alumni to reconnect with AEclipse and with each other, and for students to network and learn tips and tricks for their future career!