From AIESEC in Zurich to PwC in Frankfurt — and back to Switzerland

We’re excited to launch a new series celebrating the people who make up our AIESEC Alumni community. In each edition, we’ll catch up with an alum and hear about their AIESEC journey, career, experiences and what they’re up to today.

For our first interview, we’re introducing Arita, originally from LC Zurich (2014-2016). After completing an AIESEC internship at PwC in Frankfurt, she went on to spend eight years there before continuing her PwC journey back in Switzerland, in Zurich.

What brought you to AIESEC, and what was your experience like as an AIESEC member?

I joined AIESEC shortly after starting my master’s studies to gain practical experience that would help me enter the job market. What began as a way to strengthen my CV quickly became much more. I found a global community of young people working on real projects with a shared sense of purpose. It was a place where I learned by doing, made mistakes and took on challenges I didn’t always feel ready for. AIESEC broadened my professional experience, but more importantly, it gave me a new perspective and the belief that I could help make the world a little better, starting with the people around me.

Your AIESEC journey actually led you to an internship at PwC. How did that opportunity come about, and what made you decide to take it?

At the end of my studies, after quite a few applications and rejections, and given my non-EU citizenship, I realized how difficult it was to get a foot in the door of the job market here. So I decided to challenge my global citizen spirit and started applying everywhere I could to get the international professional experience I had always wanted, ideally in a big company.

Being an AIESECer at the time, the first place I looked was, of course, the AIESEC opportunities platform, where I found a one-year trainee position at PwC in Germany. It sounded like exactly what I was looking for, so I applied. What I didn’t know was that the position had been initiated by two PwC partners as part of the AIESEC partnership with PwC, and that they had also been part of AIESEC during their studies. I discovered this during my interview with one of them, and it turned out to be one of the best job interviews I’ve ever had. At the end of the call, I was offered the position, and that one opportunity became the foundation of my career.

You have now been with PwC for nearly ten years. Looking back, what has surprised you most about your career journey?

What has surprised me most is how much the journey changed me, not just professionally, but also personally. I arrived in Frankfurt without knowing anyone, and over the years I built a life there, one project, one relationship, and one small step at a time. Looking back, the biggest reward wasn’t any single achievement. It was becoming someone who can adapt, keep going when things get difficult, and trust that the path doesn’t always need to be clear for you to keep moving.

I learned that leadership isn’t just about giving direction; it’s about caring about the development and well-being of the people around you.

What skills or lessons from your time at AIESEC have stayed with you throughout your career?

The biggest lesson is how much the people you work with matter. I learned that leadership isn’t just about giving direction; it’s about caring about the development and well-being of the people around you. I also learned that even tedious work can become enjoyable when you’re doing it with the right people, those you trust, laugh with, and can be yourself around.

AIESEC brings together people from very different backgrounds and generations. Is there something you learned through working with people who think differently from you?

I learned that the people who challenge you the most are often the ones who teach you the most. AIESEC put me in rooms with people who thought, worked, and saw the world differently. Over time, that has become my compass check: I know I’m in the right place when people feel free to bring different ideas to the group.

What is something people might be surprised to learn about you that has nothing to do with your career?

I have a funny kind of selective memory - I might forget the name of a café I went to last week, but somehow remember a conversation from ten years ago, even down to the smallest details. Apparently, my brain has its own priorities.

AIESEC put me in rooms with people who thought, worked, and saw the world differently.

What advice would you give today’s AIESECers who are just starting out?

A lot of students wonder when they’re starting out, “Will I really be able to do AIESEC, study, and maybe even work at the same time?” I had the same question. What I learned is that when you stop overthinking it and just go for it, you somehow find the time. You learn to make things work. 

My favorite line has always been, “The more you put into AIESEC, the more you get out of it.” So be open to opportunities, even if you don’t know where they will lead. Say yes, get involved, meet people, and see what unfolds. You never know which small decision might open the next door.

What does being an AIESEC alumna mean to you today?

It means being part of something that shaped me deeply. I carry the people, lessons, and belief that small actions can have a wider impact with me wherever I go. And it means knowing that, wherever I am in the world, there is a community of people who understand what it felt like to be there - to be young, ambitious, and convinced that we could make the world a little better.