Ajou University's 'V-Startup Research Group' Holds Nation's First Startup Mentoring Program for Foreign Students

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Jung Eun-kyung] Ajou University (President Choi Ki-joo) held the nation's first startup mentoring program presentation for foreign international students, the 'Ajou University V-Startup Research Group (hereinafter referred to as the Research Group),' on the 17th.

The Research Group was conducted as a volunteer talent contribution from October last year through February this year by Suwon Ilbo (Representative Director Kim Gap-dong), Aquamarine (Representative Kim Beom-yeon), and Ajou University Professor Lee Tae-jin (College of Business) to support startup activities of Vietnamese international students.

The Research Group program was operated with a total of 12 lectures, starting from an orientation and culminating in a business plan presentation competition.

At the Research Group's business plan presentation competition, students who participated in the startup mentoring program presented business strategies including SWOT analysis and business promotion directions for target products they aimed to launch.

As a result of the competition, the grand prize went to ▲Nguyen Thi Yenny for 'Four Seasons Lunch Box Business,' while excellence awards were given to ▲Bui Thi Tu Huong for 'Flower Business' ▲Phan Thi Huyen for 'R-Beauty Business' ▲Hua Thi Tu Huai for 'Korea-Vietnam Post Business.'

Nguyen Thi Yenny, the grand prize winner, said, "Through this startup mentoring program, I learned valuable content that I could not have learned in university lecture halls, and it will be a great help in actually launching my business."

Kim Beom-yeon, CEO of Aquamarine, said, "As Korea and Vietnam celebrate 30 years of diplomatic relations and the two nations' relationship is becoming closer, we planned the nation's first startup mentoring program at a university to help Vietnamese international students studying in Suwon," and added, "Ajou University's startup mentoring program shared essential foundational knowledge for Vietnamese students' ventures, drawn from Mentor Kim Jin-ho's 29 years of professional experience at Samsung Electronics and 9 years of startup know-how."

Professor Lee Tae-jin of Ajou University said, "I hope that the startup mentoring program for foreign international students will continue to be expanded and implemented in the future, producing many successful entrepreneurs."

Kim Gap-dong, Representative Director of Suwon Ilbo, said, "Through the startup mentoring program, I look forward to the day when foreign international students studying in Korea grow into global entrepreneurs drawing near," and "Suwon Ilbo and Aquamarine plan to continue volunteer talent contributions so that this startup mentoring program can spread to universities across the nation, and we welcome applications from universities interested in this program."