Jacob Kim

Position you are running for: AFSA Board of Directors

What do you believe are the main concerns for students in SAF right now? How would you like to approach fixing them?

I believe that there are a few concerns for students in SAF right now. The first is opportunities or lack thereof for professional development. Some students find that many of the AFSA events are more catered towards people who are looking for social or wellbeing events, as opposed to having more events catered towards professional development, careers and skill building. Another concern some students have is having more settings where there is an opportunity to connect with fellow SAF classmates. One solution to this, obviously, would be to host more events and workshops that are more focused on preparing students for the workforce, and all that comes with it. For example, resume building workshops, or interview prep courses where students can have the opportunity to connect with others in the same faculty, coming together to gain new skills. Another solution could be hosting events where it is possible to connect with upper years, and gain new insights and knowledge from them.

What do you know about the roles and responsibilities of a Board of Director? In addition to general executive oversight and advocacy, what are some tangible deliverables that you would “want to see happen” during your 12 months as a Board of Director?

The Board of Directors act as the trustees of the AFSA fund, and are responsible for approving the budgets that are presented by the Executive committee. The BoD is also responsible for producing annual Audit Reports for AFSA, and producing recommendations on different strategies. The BoD also provides a timely procedure by which feedback from the SAF community can be properly addressed, and oversees elections to appoint directors for the next year. One thing I would want to see happen most during my 12 months as a BoD member, is the success of incoming SAF students. I would also want to see a closer connection in the SAF community. This would include improving the amount of communication about any important information through different events, LEARN posts and social media posts.

Place your platform for your position here:

Having been a part of the SAF community for some years now, I understand the many challenges that come with being a student here. I have also spent two years being a part of AFSA, and additionally, I am the current Vice President of the Administration and Knowledge Management committee, so I have a very deep knowledge of the ins and outs of our association. Furthermore, hard work and steadfastness are no stranger to me. When I was 12, I started competing in badminton tournaments, and my skills were far behind other athletes who had started to train much earlier than me. In under 6 years, I was competing at the National level, ranked amongst the top 2 in Canada, won multiple national level tournaments and was able to represent Canada at the Junior Pan Am Games. My badminton journey helped me to learn how to set realistic and achievable goals and make plans to reach those goals. As a result, I have also developed amazing time management skills, the ability to prioritise my work and focus on each task at hand, skills which are essential to help AFSA to continue to run smoothly. One thing I want is to be able to provide as much assistance as possible to anyone who requires it, and I believe being a part of AFSA BoD will help me achieve that. Thanks for your consideration!