Due to the corona virus, our board interest evening continues in a different way (Skype). To give more information about a board year at STC, we give the word to former board members.
Today Julia Cleton, treasurer of the board in 2017/2018, tells more about her position and what it brought her.
“Who are you, what was your position during your board year and in which year was your board?”
Hi! My name is Julia, I am 22 years old, I study fiscal economics and in 2017-2018 I was the treasurer of Serve the City Tilburg. As treasurer you are responsible for keeping all the finances of the foundation and making all financial reports. I chose this position at the time, because in this way I could apply my studies in practice. In addition, I was responsible for three committees: the gift pyramid, serve the dinner and the small activities committee. As a representative of the board, you are often the coordinator or chairman of these committees in these committees. This made for a very nice change between your board duties and your activities!
“Have you benefited from your time at Serve in the years following your board?”
Very much, in fact. My board year at Serve the City was in my second year of study, so quite early for someone who was 19. For me it was really a leap of faith, I had no idea what I could expect from a board year. The following year I did a board year at Student Party SAM as the vice-chair, for which I had to run elections in April 2018. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have ended up here just without my board year at Serve the City. During my board year at Student Party SAM I also had a lot from my experiences from my previous board year. That way I knew much better what it meant, how to meet, how to organize activities, how to plan and dozens of other things. Currently I am working as a Student Assessor for the management team of my faculty (TiSEM), which I now do next to my studies. I would never have ended up here without my two board years. In other words, it is the best decision I have ever made! It was also the best basis for me to start more new things and gain experiences. At the time I had some doubts about the study delay that I would suffer from a board year, but I really did not regret this for a moment.
“What is the most valuable thing you learned during your board year?”
Pfoe, there are so many things. I think I found the most valuable in general, to get to know and develop myself better. I am personally convinced that extracurricular activities have so much more to offer than just following the curriculum of your studies. In my opinion, there are far too few soft skills in the curriculum, so you really are not yet ready for the labor market if you have done nothing wrong. Through a board year you get to know your own strengths and pitfalls and you gain a lot of experience.
If I had to mention something specific, I would choose to learn how to plan. A part-time board year as well as studying part-time and also having a side job requires some planning skills. I always took this with me in the years that followed.
In addition, as trite as it is, I also found it very valuable to realize how good you actually are. I certainly did not always think about this enough.
“What activity did you remember most?”
Without a doubt You are Beautiful, this is a kind of beauty day for people with a mental disability. I thought this was an incredibly grateful target group and it was so nice to see how much these people brighten up by simply doing a few hours of fun activities. For me during my board year this was the most realizing moment that we really do something good for the people around us and where I got the most satisfaction!
