40 Days in Russia: How It Started
Hello readers! Yes, I've told you that I will post about my exchange experience with AIESEC and also my traveling experience in the end of June. But before I tell you about how adventurous and amazing it was, I think you should know when and why it all started.
So I did a company visit to Permata Bank one day in one of UKM LKMM's events and someone told us that he was a former vice president of AIESEC UI (University of Indonesia). I was interested because this organisation (AIESEC) seemed to be very famous. I did some research in the internet and I think it's good. It's an organisation focusing on sending people abroad and make social changes. My sister who was a student in UI said it was good too.
I was working as a staff of Research and Development Division in UKM LKMM when I decided to apply as an Exchange Participant (EP) in AIESEC BINUS (because it's the closest to my house and university). I was so bored with my current life. I wanted to make a change. I wanted to achieve something meaningful in my life. So I applied!
On December 16, 2013, I received an email telling me to send a CV and a motivation letter. After I sent it, I received another email telling me that I have to schedule an interview with BINUS' AIESECers (this is how the AIESEC people in a local committee call themselves). I think it was a very good New Year present ;) I got interviewed on January 15, 2014 at Anggrek Campus BINUS. The interview was in English so I tried my best. Six days later, I got the result that I'm accepted (yayy) and also my EP Manager's contact. My EP Manager named Lidya and she would help me to answer my questions and give me informations. I had to pay contract fee Rp1,500,000 so I could get an account in AIESEC website (MyAIESEC.net) to search for projects that I would take.
I received emails offering me to join a project in India, Brazil, China, Egypt, Philippines, etc. I wanted to go to some other country in some other continent. I didn't want to go to China like many Exchange Participants chose. I wanted to go farther but not 20-hour-flight far like to the USA. So I decided: Europe. But then I received an email offering a project in a summer camp in Russia. And I was interested. Russia is cool. I discussed it with my EP Manager and family and then, on April 7 I finally emailed Dmitry, the Project Leader, that I was interested to his Sunshine Project in Voronezh, Russia, along with my CV. He replied right away and ask me to do interview on April 9. The interview was via Skype and (of course) in English. To be honest, I couldn't really hear what Dmitry was saying because his voice was too low. But I just talked, and laughed, and convinced him, and laughed again, aaand... I got accepted! Yeah again! I felt like I was alive again. You know, after all those denials I experienced in the past. I was really touched. I mean, excited.
Oh anyway, I was just kidding. I didn't just laugh and laugh during the interview. I also asked a few things of what I'm going to do in the internship and Dmitry explained a few things too. Sunshine Project is basically putting interns in some summer camps in Voronezh. We would make a presentation about our country's culture and even teach the kids about our culture.
I actually was already in holiday since the end of May, so I told Dmitry that my preferred date for the internship was June 3 until August 10. I was told before that the minimum time for internship is 21 days, so in the EP AN (some kind of agreement) I wrote June 3 until July 31. Dmitry told me a few camps would start on June 10, so I still had the time to take medical test and participate in events that they would organise. So he matched me with the project and I paid the match fee for Rp1,250,000.
About the further preparation for this trip, just stay tuned!
So I did a company visit to Permata Bank one day in one of UKM LKMM's events and someone told us that he was a former vice president of AIESEC UI (University of Indonesia). I was interested because this organisation (AIESEC) seemed to be very famous. I did some research in the internet and I think it's good. It's an organisation focusing on sending people abroad and make social changes. My sister who was a student in UI said it was good too.
I was working as a staff of Research and Development Division in UKM LKMM when I decided to apply as an Exchange Participant (EP) in AIESEC BINUS (because it's the closest to my house and university). I was so bored with my current life. I wanted to make a change. I wanted to achieve something meaningful in my life. So I applied!
On December 16, 2013, I received an email telling me to send a CV and a motivation letter. After I sent it, I received another email telling me that I have to schedule an interview with BINUS' AIESECers (this is how the AIESEC people in a local committee call themselves). I think it was a very good New Year present ;) I got interviewed on January 15, 2014 at Anggrek Campus BINUS. The interview was in English so I tried my best. Six days later, I got the result that I'm accepted (yayy) and also my EP Manager's contact. My EP Manager named Lidya and she would help me to answer my questions and give me informations. I had to pay contract fee Rp1,500,000 so I could get an account in AIESEC website (MyAIESEC.net) to search for projects that I would take.
I received emails offering me to join a project in India, Brazil, China, Egypt, Philippines, etc. I wanted to go to some other country in some other continent. I didn't want to go to China like many Exchange Participants chose. I wanted to go farther but not 20-hour-flight far like to the USA. So I decided: Europe. But then I received an email offering a project in a summer camp in Russia. And I was interested. Russia is cool. I discussed it with my EP Manager and family and then, on April 7 I finally emailed Dmitry, the Project Leader, that I was interested to his Sunshine Project in Voronezh, Russia, along with my CV. He replied right away and ask me to do interview on April 9. The interview was via Skype and (of course) in English. To be honest, I couldn't really hear what Dmitry was saying because his voice was too low. But I just talked, and laughed, and convinced him, and laughed again, aaand... I got accepted! Yeah again! I felt like I was alive again. You know, after all those denials I experienced in the past. I was really touched. I mean, excited.
Oh anyway, I was just kidding. I didn't just laugh and laugh during the interview. I also asked a few things of what I'm going to do in the internship and Dmitry explained a few things too. Sunshine Project is basically putting interns in some summer camps in Voronezh. We would make a presentation about our country's culture and even teach the kids about our culture.
I actually was already in holiday since the end of May, so I told Dmitry that my preferred date for the internship was June 3 until August 10. I was told before that the minimum time for internship is 21 days, so in the EP AN (some kind of agreement) I wrote June 3 until July 31. Dmitry told me a few camps would start on June 10, so I still had the time to take medical test and participate in events that they would organise. So he matched me with the project and I paid the match fee for Rp1,250,000.
About the further preparation for this trip, just stay tuned!
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