President's Blog Feb 2022

Hello World!

Hello and welcome dear readers to my first blog post of the year!

By ways of introduction, I’m fortunate enough to be the President of this esteemed society and study third-year Actuarial

Studies. I’ll be posting here monthly (or thereabouts) to give an update on the society activities and future plans in a more colloquial manner than our more formal means on social media.

Firstly, welcome back/to Macquarie University! It’s been a tough couple of years in and out of lockdowns; the pandemic certainly didn’t make studying Actuarial Studies any easier. But we’ve all weathered the storm (hopefully) and with in-person teaching returning this semester, I’ve noticed a palpable sense of enthusiasm amongst us all which has certainly been reflected by ASSOC…

Forming the Committee

Throughout January, we ran multiple events specifically geared towards establishing our committee. The committee plays the role of ASSOC’s backbone, with each team focused on delivering one of the many events ASSOC runs – some of which you may recognise e.g., Camp, Ball, Careers Fair, etc.

After the Annual Committee Meeting (ACM) and Committee Interviews, the Cabinet was able to select an incredibly talented line-up of dedicated students to form ASSOC’s 2022 Committee.

ASSOC Online Chess Tournament

February opened with our online chess tournament which was jointly sponsored by KPMG and EY. The event attracted plenty of self-proclaimed grandmasters from the woodwork, with sponsor representatives trying their hand against ASSOC’s finest.

Despite the fierce competition, accolades are limited to the three-man span of a winner’s podium – and in this case, Wesley Chan, Andrew Shan and Herbert Young came out on top. Wesley completely floored us all by going the entire tournament undefeated; but just between the two of us, I wasn’t really trying or anything…

O-Week

If there’s any indication as to how the year will go, O-Week is certainly a prime candidate. As the litmus test, O-Week came with strongly positive results.

All throughout the week, the ASSOC stall was buzzing with activity as students ranging from 1st year to recent graduates popped in to check on the items displayed. The ASSOC designer tote bags (a Jerry Chu original) were the star of the show as people milled around the counter to find out more. Unfortunately, there was such high demand that we ran out by the time the week ended – but not to worry, Jerry’s already busy restocking!

We were fortunate enough to give a presentation to the 1st year cohort about the society and what to expect. It was jarring to see so many Actuarial students all together in a lecture hall again – a sight we all thought to be a novelty from a time in the distant past.

To be candid, the reception at O-Week has filled us all with confidence in the resurgence of university life. After two years, I can’t wait to see our future events unfold with the same atmosphere!

Future Events?

You’ll have to stay tuned to our socials for information on upcoming events but here’s a little sneak peek at the first month and a half:

Event	Timeframe
Meet and Greet	Week 2
EY Case Competition Opens	Week 2
PWC Welcoming BBQ	Week 2
Orientation Camp	Week 3/4
World's Greatest Shave	Week 4
Careers Fair	Week 4
Games Night	Week 6