How SCOPE President Alexia Poncet and her team help shape the student experience at SBE

“For those who may not know SCOPE or its leadership yet, could you briefly introduce the association and share what led you to take on the role of President this year?”  

SCOPE is the official student association at SBE. We organise everything from big recruitment events and workshops to international trips, company visits, and social activities. It’s fully student-run and brings together over 5,000 students from different backgrounds.

I first joined SCOPE in my second bachelor year, when I helped organise a multi-day consulting trip to Luxembourg with four other students. We visited firms like PwC, KPMG, McKinsey, and the European Investment Bank. That experience really shaped my student life. It gave me both      -professional exposure and memories I’ll never forget.

Through SCOPE, I built friendships, expanded my network, and learned how much you can grow when you take initiative. So, when the opportunity to apply for the board came up, becoming President felt like a natural next step for me. I wanted to give back to the community and help   create that same kind of experience for other students.

“Looking back on the board year,  what are you most proud of building together as a team?”

What I’m most proud of is how we’ve grown into a strong, reliable team. In the beginning, everything felt new, from our roles to the systems we were taking over. But over the months, we developed a better way of communicating, dividing responsibilities, and supporting one another. We’ve become more confident in how we work, and that shows in the way we handle challenges together.

One moment that really captured that shift came just after the Christmas break. We had to present SCOPE’s Semi-Annual report, where we looked at our strategy, events, and finances, and reflected honestly on what went well and what didn’t. Preparing that together and seeing the full picture of what we had accomplished so far made us realise how much we’d grown. Not just in   results, but in how we functioned as a team.

“What makes the SCOPE board  experience unique compared to  other student opportunities at SBE?”

What makes it unique is how much ownership you really have and how real everything starts to feel. You’re not just helping with a project. You’re part of the team responsible for making things happen, whether it’s a large-scale event like the Maastricht Business Days, a partnership with a company, or internal decisions that shape how the association runs. In practice, those decisions influence the kind of student experience at SBE, what students see, attend, and are actually part of during the year.

It’s also not something you do alone. You rely on your board, and they rely on you. Over time, you build a way of working together that feels like a real team. That’s where most of the growth happens.

“Organizing initiatives like the Maastricht Business Days requires leading at scale. What does this teach students about leadership and responsibility?”

The Maastricht Business Days, both in autumn and spring, are among the biggest student- led recruitment events in the Netherlands. We bring together over 40 companies and hundreds of students for interviews, workshops, and networking. Everything is organised by students from start to finish.

One of the biggest challenges is realising that we’re not just organising an event. We’re representing the university. The way we communicate with companies, how we plan, and how we handle unexpected situations all reflect back on SBE. That kind of responsibility pushes you to be more careful, more detail-oriented, and more composed.

At the same time, you realise that leadership isn’t about doing it all yourself. It’s about trusting your team and adapting quickly when things don’t go exactly as planned. It’s intense, but it teaches you a lot about working under pressure and about what it really means to be responsible for something bigger than yourself.

“As the next board recruitment  approaches, what would you  encourage students to reflect on before applying?”

It helps to reflect on what kind of experience you want from your time at university, and whether you’re ready for something that challenges you in a different way. A board year with SCOPE gives you the chance to take on real ownership, represent other students, and help shape the student experience from the inside.
It’s not about being perfect from the start. None of us were. What matters most is being willing to learn, work closely with others, and handle situations where you won’t always have a clear answer. If that sounds exciting, or even a little uncomfortable in a good way, then it might be worth going for.