AIA Leaders Program

Overview

The AIA Leaders Program is an annual scholarship initiative by Asians in Advertising (AIA), created to empower and elevate Asian professionals in marketing, advertising, and communications. Each year, the program focuses on a different stage of leadership, with guidance from seasoned API facilitators and partners.

This tuition-free program is designed to help participants grow their leadership confidence, strengthen their professional presence, and build lasting community connections.

Join the Class of 2025 AIA Leaders Program

In partnership with API Rising, the 2025 AIA Leaders Program offers a career coaching experience built around cohort-based learning. Participants will engage in interactive sessions designed to foster personal and professional growth, learning not just from coaches but also from one another.

This year’s program focuses on:

  • Building leadership confidence

  • Articulating your unique value

  • Navigating professional challenges

  • Connecting with a community of API peers

Program Details

  • Open to applicants worldwide

  • 8-week virtual career coaching cohort (2 hours/week)

  • Sessions held on Wednesdays at 4 PM PT / 7 PM ET

  • Program begins September 24 and 25, 2025

  • Applications close September 5, 2025, at 11:59 PM PT

For questions, reach out to: AIAFALScholarship@gmail.com

Purpose

Asians in Advertising aims to support the advancement of API into leadership positions through visibility, clarity, and mindset shifts. With community care and culturally considerate coaching, participants will have completed a Leadership Visibility Project and emerge with more confidence and a clear vision of their leadership path.

Curriculum

  • Meet your FAL peers and create an intimate space to grow and learn together. This session is intended to build a deep connection with your classmates by sharing our life journeys, struggles, and goals. This session may influence the remainder of the course curriculum.

  • Visibility has long been a challenge for the API community. Developing a strong, intentional personal brand will not only steer the narrative but also draw people to you for your unique zone of genius.

  • Emotional intelligence is critical as you move into higher levels of senior leadership. Explore your own self-regulation, effectively manage emotions, read the room, and have crucial conversations that will build trust and connection.

  • Oftentimes breaking through to the next level depends on the relationships you make and the brand you’ve established for yourself.  Discover strategies to expand your influence across your organization and industry, enabling you to drive impact and build a strong leadership presence.

  • At one point or another in everyone’s leadership journey, we’ve heard it said that “you need to be more strategic,” and yet no one shares what that means. Take a big-picture lens and develop the critical thinking and problem-solving skills necessary to anticipate challenges, identify opportunities, and make informed decisions that align with long-term business goals.

  • Gain insights into the unwritten rules of corporate politics and learn how to strategically maneuver through organizational dynamics to advance your career.

  • Crucible moments in every leader’s journey is leading through change. We’ve seen unprecedented speed of change across geo, economic, social-political, and technology. Equip yourself with the tools to lead change initiatives successfully, ensuring smooth transitions while maintaining team morale and achieving organizational objectives.

*This curriculum is subject to change based on the cohort’s needs.

Participants will

  • Confidently Engage in Strategic Discussions: Build the skills to participate in high-level strategic conversations with authority.

  • Navigate Difficult Conversations with Ease: Develop the confidence to initiate and manage challenging discussions effectively.

  • Expand and Maximize Their Sphere of Influence: Learn how to broaden their impact and influence within and beyond their organization.

  • Secure Strategic and Executive Mentorship: Establish meaningful connections with mentors who can guide their career trajectory.

  • Own Their Personal Impact Narrative: Craft and articulate a compelling personal story highlighting their unique contributions and value.

Meet Your Career Coach

Van Tran, Founder

Van is a program advisor for the Women in Leadership Program at University of San Francisco's School of Management. She's a visionary leader dedicated to advancing DEI in corporate leadership. She has a background in global leadership with a focus in marketing technology, operations, and digital experience.

She is deeply committed to supporting women in leadership, with over three years of active involvement as a founding member of Chief, a private executive women's network, and its wellness and API communities. Van also co-founded OPMG API Collective and served as Global Co-Chair of Asian Leaders Circle, amplifying API voices globally, and is leading an entrepreneurial mastermind group for women entrepreneurs.

Learn More