AIESEC began in 1959 in Puerto Rico when the now Prof. Antero Batista founded a new chapter of AIESEC-United States as part of the Extension and Consolidation Project of the AIESEC Local Committee at the University of Columbia, New York. Activities were initiated in 1960 under president Lucy Cuadrado. Sears Roebuck Inc., Volkswagen, and General Electric were the first sponsors of business exchange for AIESEC-Puerto Rico.

In 1972, the Latin American Congress was held in Puerto Rico for the first time. Delegates from all of Latin America as well as other participating AIESEC countries attended this event. Following on the heels of this great success, from 1973 to 1975, AIESEC in Puerto Rico all but disappeared due to internal problems. During that time, AIESEC International designated a special assessor to evaluate the situation and work toward the development and strengthening of the organization. In 1976, Naphis Torres was elected president. This began a new era in the development of AIESEC in Puerto Rico.

From 1980 to 1982, Agnes Suarez held the president position.  During this period, the existing local committees (at the University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras and Mayagüez) were consolidated, and a new committee was opened at the UPR Bayamon Regional College. In 1980, the tenth Latin American Congress and the second Conference for the Development of Latin American Leaders were held in Puerto Rico. In 1981, the local committees participated in the "Stock Exchange Game" Project, and AIESEC in Puerto Rico sent 8 outgoing students and 4 incoming students to the International Congress. In 1982, then president Agnes Suarez was elected Treasurer of Latin America, the first Puerto Rican to occupy that position.

he year 1983-84 was a great year for AIESEC-Puerto Rico. Under the presidency of Luis Miguel Frontera, new emphasis was placed on the area of Educational Projects. The following projects were realized: The Conference on Information Systems (organized by LC-Río Piedras), the Conference on Industrialized Agriculture (organized by the National Committee), and the computerized Stock Exchange Game Project (organized by the LC-Mayaguez), honored as the "Most Creative Project" during the International Congress in 1984 in Avignon, France. During that year, AIESEC in Puerto Rico also hosted the seventh Conference for the Development of Latin American Leaders with the participation of 11 countries. Another 11 incoming students were presented to the International Congress, bringing the total to 23 incoming students.

Annette García assumed the presidency in 1985, and under her leadership, Puerto Rico became the third strongest country in the region. They obtained 27 incoming students and more than 30 outgoing students. The 15th anniversary of AIESEC in Puerto Rico was celebrated at the end of 1985. The local committees also worked together with West Indies Advertising in the "Passport to Talent" publicity campaign which won the "Best Publication" prize for Latin America.

Nowadays, in the 21 ^st Century and after a time of turmoil within the organization, a team has been selected to lead it to the next level.  This team is recapturing the times of glory that AIESEC went through in the eighties. Having to do a lot of backwork, we are, once again, re-positioning ourselves as an organization of weight. We are now the 2 ^nd largest growing AIESEC country worldwide, with an increase of 400%.

Since 1959, AIESEC in Puerto Rico has offered many opportunities to Puerto Rican students and businesses through our various programs. We have passed through periods of glory and periods of crisis, but we always keep in mind that this great organization has always been a PASSPORT TO TALENT.