On 7th of June 2013, 20 students visited MetLife Brand Centre located along the busy concrete jungle of 5 Ave. MetLife, one of the respectable Fortune 500 Companies, is also the largest life insurer in United States.
Despite the looming Andrea creating a whooping 4 inches of rain along the streets of Manhattan, students from CCIP were nonetheless enthusiastic about their visit to MetLife. After a concise brief by one of MetLife's personnel, students proceeded to learn about MetLife's advertising history, as well as getting fascinated with their notable ambassador - Snoopy, Charlie and Woodstock!
One of CCIP's interns from NUS, Atlas Ang, spoke to the personnel about the relevancy of Snoopy and gained a deeper understanding behind why it was chosen as their long-running ambassador. Elizabeth Kay, the founder of CCIP, also gave the interns an insight to the interesting stories behind the birth of some of MetLife's noteworthy advertorials.
The fun did not just stop there. Other Singaporean students from the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University joined the original group for an engaging dialogue with Deputy Permanent Representative Mark Neo of the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Singapore. A warm surprise was when the students from the Chinese University of Hong Kong came along to be part of the dialogue.
During the informative session, students set attentively to learn about the Singapore Mission to the United Nations; the structure of UN, the importance of delivering promises when a resolution is signed and clarifications regarding the authority and mandate of the Mission. Students such as Jerad, Shi Wei and Zeyu volleyed thought-provoking questions with Mr. Neo that kept the conversation alive and reflective. Even Mr. Neo himself praised the question by ZeYu as "one of the most novel question" that he had to give an answer to. Also admirable were the pertinent questions on censorship and power raised by students from CUHK.
Beyond just the refreshments and group photos, the 30 students that attended the dialogue walked away with important lessons which they can share with their classmates back home. CCIP interns attended these two events with little expectations and enthusiasm, but upon the events' conclusion, the interns gained a whole lot of wisdom, food for thought and humility in scholarship. This is one day of the program we hope it did not end so quickly.
