Step Aboard #2 • Quirine her experience as HR Officer in the 69th board!

In the second part of this “Step Aboard” series, we gave the word to Quirine Wezenbeek, the HR Officer of the 69th board of Aureus. Read further to find out how she looks back on this amazing opportunity.

Introduction

My name is Quirine, I am 25 years old and currently, work as a management trainee at Ahold Delhaize. Before starting this job, I studied the bachelor International Business Administration at the VU and, later on, pursued a master’s degree in Entrepreneurship at the UvA.

Besides my studies, I have always been very active at Aureus. During the introduction days, I was already soon attracted by Aureus as it combined both my interests in doing fun, social activities while learning new skills and creating a large network. After a couple of committees such as Internal Events, the European Study Trip and the Graduates Development Program, I decided I wanted to develop myself further and applied to the board of 2017-2018.

What role did you fulfill in the board and what did you like about it most?

Lucky as I was, I got selected for the 69th board as the HR Officer. Being the HR Officer at Aureus meant that I was responsible for the recruitment and selection procedure of its members, the organization of multiple events, and the personal contact and development with and of its members. What I liked most about this role, was the personal contact with the members and being able to follow their personal development and successes from up-close.  

Why did you choose to do apply for the board?

The reason I decided to do a board year was to be able to work on my leadership and networking skills, together with other students. Doing a board year means that you are responsible for the entire organization at the end of the day, together with a group of young and driven people.

Furthermore, it allows you to connect with many different recruiters from different companies in various fields – something I definitely benefited from, as I was also still searching what I was interested in. I considered doing an internship at that time, but I realized that it would not truly connect me to these companies and would not offer me that same level of responsibility as a board year – two things that seemed to be very valuable when applying for a job. 

Looking back on that year, what do you think that the added value of a board year is?

I believe that the added value of a board year is that you can explore all different opportunities that are out there after student life, while still enjoying all the perks of that student life! This year allowed me to learn who I am (while working closely with a coach), what I am capable of, and what I value most in a work environment. With new skills up my sleeve, I was able to present myself well during the application procedure of my job.

The reason? When managing an association of over 4000 members with different students; leadership-, networking-, communication-, ad-hoc decision-making skills and many more, you have an example of any situation. I look back to this year as a year full of responsibilities, new and very valuable contacts, and friendships. I greatly enjoyed this adventure and can only advise others to take the leap, embark on this journey and step aboard!

You can still apply for the 72nd board of Aureus! You can look here to find all the basic info, including the selection procedure. Are you curious about more experiences of prior board members? Then check out this blog about Azra her year as Career Officer in the 70th board!