STUDENT UNION INTERNATIONALISES AT A RAPID PACE

STUDENT IN FOCUS

Industria, Group T Leuven Campus’s student association, does not just provide entertainment and fun events. The association also plays an active role in the further internationalisation of the campus. Remarkably, two female presidium members take the lead. A portrait of Margaux at Business Relations and Rosário, Industria’s communications officer.

Margaux Devos is of Spanish origin and went to school in France. And Maria do Rosário Quintas Baylina (Rosário to the friends) is from Porto, the second largest city of Portugal, on the Costa Verde. Margaux is studying Chemical Engineering Technology and Rosário is a master student of Electromechanical Engineering Technology. Both have known each other since their arrival in Leuven. Together they engaged in the student association Industria and were key figures in the bachelor presidium. In the current team, they have grown into true role models for the international student population on campus. But also, the Belgian students can take an example from their open mind and willingness to learn from each other.

Maria do Rosário Quintas Baylina and Margaux Devos

Entrepreneurs’ day

Business Relations is a relatively recent department of Industria. Margaux participates in one of the top events: the annual Job Fair. “On our campus, we call it the Entrepreneurs’ Day,” she explains. “After all, it’s about more than jobs and vacancies. The companies also offer master’s theses, research projects or other forms of collaboration. On 24 February, we will once again be organizing a physical fair in a large sports hall. We expect at least 100 companies. To give an idea of the size: during the virtual fair of 2021, there were 419 online vacancies offered. These were consulted more than 6,000 times, resulting in 506 applications. The stands themselves were visited more than 15,000 times”.

Margaux concentrates on preparing the students. To this end, she organises workshops on job application skills provided by selection and recruitment agencies. The CVs of the final year students are placed online and bundled in a ‘Talent Catalogue’ that is sent to the companies. Conversely, Margaux also provides a Job Guide for the students with the company profiles. This way, all parties can optimally prepare for the Entrepreneurs’ Day. She considers the matching of supply and demand to be the essence of her job.

Communication mix

Rosário started at the Sport department of Industria. She quickly realised that it was not enough to organise good activities. You also must communicate them properly to be successful. So now she uses all the channels Industria has at its disposal to communicate about its offerings. Website, social media, flyers, folders, posters, eye-catchers, etc. She devises the most effective communication mix for each event.

“The formula for success does not exist,” Rosário says. “The student population on campus is too diverse, both among Belgians and international students. You cannot lump 80 different nationalities together.

A group that deserves special attention, according to Rosário, are the students from the Asian partner universities. “They only arrive in Leuven in the second bachelor year, when most students have already settled in. Moreover, they usually come as a group and tend to clump together, and are less interested in getting closer to the others. This is unfortunate for everyone. This group deserves special attention”.

Point of no return

Despite the practical difficulties, Margaux and Rosário see the future evolving favourably. “The international student population is growing significantly faster than the Belgian one. With a share of 30%, the point of no return has long been passed. We must work and live together, there is no other option. We can see a striking example of how this can work at Industria. Since a year, all staff meetings are held in English. The rest of the campus can learn a lot from this.

Yves Persoons