Reception Coordinator Testimonials

Read what some Reception Coordinators thought about their experiences hosting international interns.

Walker Johnson's Testimonial:

"My favorite part of reception this year has been rock climbing with Florian, an intern from Germany. Two days ago he introduced me to some of his friends that are also into climbing. Now, even after Florian leaves, I will have a connection to people with climbing gear (they're really cool too). So, being a Reception Coordinator is great not only for meeting people from other countries but from your own school as well.

It has been hilarious encountering cultural differences with Florian that seem totally mundane to me yet absolutely ridiculous to him. Over all though, we have found a lot of common ground and have enjoyed our times together.

Why not be Reception Coordinator? The only difficult part of the job is finding housing for the interns and you can get other members to help with that. Other than that, all you need to do is hang out with your new foreign friends. Even going to create bank accounts is fun to do with friends. Cultural differences are great topics for conversation, but I soon forget that they are from other countries. The fact that I met them through IAESTE is soon forgotten as well. I just think of Florian as a friend, and even though he is leaving in a month I'm glad to have gotten to know him.

Other potential Reception Coordinators should keep in mind that a lot of their friends may go home over the summer. Being an Reception Coordinator is a fun way to bring new people into your life for a short time (and quite possibly a long time)."

--Walker Johnson, IAESTE Berkeley

Katie Thompson's Testimonial:

"When I joined IAESTE, like most students, I was very interested in going overseas to experience another culture. I had no idea that some of my best IAESTE experiences would occur not while I was overseas, but while I was welcoming international trainees to the United States.

For me, each time I met a trainee arriving in Illinois, I was able to experience my own adventures abroad all over again. I recalled how lonely it felt to miss home and how thrilling it was to see a new place all at the same time. I enjoyed the small accomplishments of overcoming language and cultural barriers. And, perhaps most importantly, I saw my own country through the greatly varied eyes of students from around the world. This forced me to examine the ugly aspects of American culture and government, but enabled me to better value many wonderful privileges that I am allowed.

When I graduated from college and began to search for a job, I expected to discuss my involvement in IAESTE. But, it wasn't my own traineeship that provided most of my interview conversations. Potential employers were more interested to know how I had organized reception events, communicated with diverse individuals, and troubleshot sticky situations with employers.

Years later, many of the friendships that I made with IAESTE trainees in the U.S. still result in e-mails, letters, and packages. It makes me very happy to read e-mails from IAESTE alumni describing who they are working for, where they are traveling to, and how they are going. In many cases, we exchange memories from our shared summer in Illinois.

When trainees write and tell me that they miss the United States, or that they have very happy memories of their traineeship, it's very satisfying to know that I helped shape those experiences."

--Katie Thompson, IAESTE Illinois