On April 25, SMC participated in “Charting the Stars: Where Purpose Meets Profession.” Organized by the Ateneo Association of European Studies Students (AEuSS), the event was attended by various organizations and students with the goal of meaningful exchange about careers and advocacy. The event provided an opportunity for SMC to talk about the AspirE Project and the preliminary findings from the Philippine dataset.

Eunice Tejada and Bernard Garcia represented the Center. In the plenary attended by an estimated 40 participants, Eunice introduced SMC, sharing a brief overview of its history and contributions to migration research and advocacy in the Philippines; and the Center’s ongoing research projects. Eunice’s presentation highlighted the preliminary findings of the AspirE project, which explores the European migration aspirations of the youth sample of the Philippine dataset. There was a lot of interest in the topic of migration to Europe among the audience, who are university students majoring in European studies, international relations, and political science, among other programs.

Eunice and Bernard interacted with the students in the booth after the plenary, where students dropped by for a quick chat about the AspirE study, research as a career, and internship opportunities at SMC. We had conversations with the students who visited our booth about the methodology and research design of AspirE, and we answered their questions about the findings presented in the plenary.

Thank you to the Ateneans who participated in the event, and to AEUSS for the invitation!