2021 Annual Meeting

Freshmen and Transfer Involvement: AIChE at UCLA’s Inaugural Intern Board

Incoming freshmen and transfer chemical engineering students are often thrust into the complex and unfamiliar world of engineering without a clear idea of what to expect or how to make connections (not to mention in the unprecedented state of remote learning). Officer service is a great way for students to gain invaluable leadership and mentorship experience, building up their professional accomplishments and profile. Here, we plan to discuss the UCLA AIChE Student Chapter’s newly conceived Intern Board (founded 2020), where freshmen and transfer chemical engineering students supported more senior members over a six-month assignment. To improve how we engage with students entering UCLA who are interested in becoming more involved with our chapter, we implemented the Intern Board to be N.I.C.E.
  • Networking-friendly by allowing direct mentorship between department heads and their interns as a smaller-scale unit than in committees
  • Inclusive of club departments that have no history of committees
  • Cohesive in new member identity-- with a shared intern identity and social intern events
  • Expansive in our event offerings and professional initiatives by allowing interns to directly partake in their development

We will first begin with a description of the pre-existing committee model, and cover the associated issues of engagement and retention. We will then proceed to discuss the areas interns served in: Internal Events, Treasury, Alumni & Outreach, and Publicity.

We will also be going over intern testimonials, the continuity of the interns’ involvement with AIChE after the end of their internship, and future directions we will pursue based on feedback.