Turning Ideas Into Jobs
2011-11-07 안석현기자
Creative Campus
The Creative Campus project is a state business which is sponsored by the Ministry of Employment and Labor that enables young people to enhance their vocational skills through creative and challenging activities. Participants receive support infrastructure and administrative projects to create new socially based jobs. The participants are placed on 100 teams each semester for a total of 200 teams over the entire academic year. This year, these teams came from ten universities including KAIST, Kyungpook National University, Dankook University, Dongshin University, Soongsil University, Youngsan University, Vision University of Jeonju, Chungkang College of Cultural Industries, Chungbuk National University and Yeungnam University. Undergraduate students, graduates, and also ordinary people are eligible to participate in this project.
In the beginning stages participants brainstorm ideas and settle on about 20 products. Next, those 20 products go through presentation evaluations and are narrowed down to ten. Those ten products are divided into teams of five people each and then support funds are allocated from the work place. At that point each project team develops their idea through organized activities such as division of labor between team members, idea development strategies, commercialization, and business strategies. In the second half of the year, another ten teams are selected in this way. Therefore, at the end of 2011, each of the ten universities will select 6 teams, and those 60 teams will receive qualifications to participate in the Creative Campus project competitive exhibition in December. The winning team will take the prize and a cash award from the Ministry of Employment and Labor.
Some of the benefits received by participants are 6 million won per team which is allocated for product development support, work spaces that are equipped with PCs and other office equipment, as well as meeting rooms. Each team can also receive consulting and mentoring from professors and outside specialists. Three teams have been selected for the first half of 2011 from Yeungnam University, and ten teams have been active in the second half of the year.
Interview with “Chang-eop Thinking” team leader, Ji-Seon Lim, Senior, Psychology
Q) What is your team’s idea?
A) Our idea is an international cafe. An international cafe is a place where Korean students can go to meet foreign friends. We investigated the interests of Korean and foreign students along with other information and arranged meetings between them. Our concept is based on the idea that even if language is a barrier, students from different countries who have things in common or similar interests can still be friends.
Q) What made you choose this idea?
A) I met with my team members in the VLAS (Volunteer for Language and Administrative Support), and all of the members were very interested in English. Therefore, we all thought about making foreign friends. In order to learn English, we usually have to pay money. There are some programs on campus that facilitates contact with foreign students, but they have requirements such as grades and TOEIC scores. Students who don’t meet these prerequisites still want to learn English and learn about different cultures, but they have no opportunities. We want to give these students the opportunities they seek in our cafe.
Q) What did you learn through this experience?
A) We could not hope to receive support funds like this in any contest exhibition as students. I have never received support like this before. With this support, we were able to take a field trip that we otherwise would not have been able to take. It allowed us to travel with foreign friends. Many university students have never dreamed of spending a lot of money to have experiences because they have to work part-time jobs to pay for tuition. However, the Ministry of Employment and Labor supports university students and it will help develop our ability. I am interested in starting a business and during this project I was able to explore an unfamiliar field which led me to understand that I have to continue to test and push myself.
Q) What hopes do you have for the year end competition?
A) We are currently in first position simply due to hard work. We hope to win, but the award is not our only goal. We hope to show our growth from the first semester.
Q) Do you hope to create a job after this competition?
A) I am thinking about starting a business instead of trying to find a job. I have to do what I want to do. If I get a job at a company, I will have to undertake assignments from my superiors within the framework of the company. No matter how hard I work, big organized society will not change. I do not want to demean large companies, but I want to plan things on my own and I would like to start my own company. If it fails, then I will be solely responsible for that failure. I want to take on that challenge.
Q) What is the point of the Creative Campus project?
A) I think that the Creative Campus project creates possibilities and experiences for university students. Those experiences help students to exert their potential abilities. Their slogan is, “Ideas give your dreams wings, Creative Campus.” We only had dreams and ideas, Creative Campus gave us wings.
Interview with “Hermes” team leader, Jae-Won Jung, Senior, Electronic Engineering
Q) What is your idea and what made you decide on it?
A) Our team decided to develop a robot rescue team. We created a disaster exploration robot that can operate during disasters. The robot can be used for the purpose of rescue by the National 119 Rescue Service and public offices. This field is not specialized yet and there is currently no infrastructure. I chose this idea because I believe we need to create training programs and infrastructure so robots can be better utilized in disaster situations that are too dangerous for humans to enter like the nuclear disaster in Fukishima, Japan. Creating these programs and infrastructure would create new jobs.
Q) What did you learn through this project?
A) We are all Engineering students so we primarily study about development. However, during this experience and research, we had to think from a variety of perspectives. We also came to understand the importance of consulting. The consultants pointed us in directions that we would have never thought of going in.
Q) Do you have any complaints about this project?
A) It seems to have no established procedures because it in its first year. Schedules and updates were delivered late. In addition, if a team buys equipment like a computer or a camera, the team has to return it after the project ends. The team is also required to return books.
Q) What is the point of Creative Campus project?
A) Korea has a small landmass and its job market is almost saturated. It seems that the Ministry of Employment and Labor wants to give students the opportunity to develop good ideas and invigorate the workforce with fresh ideas from their school-days. I think the point is that ideas can be applied to generate new opportunities.
Q) Do you want to develop your idea after the competition ends?
A) If I develop my idea, it will be difficult to manage individually. I hope that the government accepts this idea and manages it as a national-enterprise. This idea will create many jobs if it is realized. Our team can serve as pilots to operate the robots at disaster sites.
Interview with “Eco” team leader, Ju-Hyun Oh, Sophomore, Psychology
Q) What is your team’s idea?
A) This idea came out of discomfort in my daily life. Every morning, I take a bus to school. Sometimes, I see bus drivers speeding violently or shouting at citizens. I thought that it would be useful to give citizens an outlet to voice their opinions about their experiences with public transportation. When the passenger scans the QR code which is attached to the bus with their smart phone, the passenger can report their satisfaction with the service and safety of the bus. These evaluations can be used to register a complaint or a commendation of the driver’s performance. I really believe this will improve the transportation services of Daegu.
Q) How will this idea create jobs?
A) The transportation system of Daegu is not set up to receive complaints. We can create a social network between the citizens of Daegu and the public transportation system, which will require staffing.
Q) What did you learn through this experience?
A) When I was in high school, I did as my teachers told me. When I went to university, I still just took classes. Through Creative Campus, I learned how to resolve my own problems. On a personal note, as team leader I also learned the importance of considering the opinions of others on a team to resolve issues.
Q) What is good about being part of a team?
A) I felt comfortable not being alone. My teammates gave me strength. I could not have done this without the team. When the going got tough we came together and got through it.
Q) What hopes do you have for the year end competition?
A) This competition started with 60 to 70 teams. Now, 3 teams have been selected. It would be a lie to say we do not care anymore. I think our three teams represent Yeungnam University. Therefore we want to have skills deserving of the admiration of other participants and judges. Before the competition, we only hoped not to embarrass ourselves. There are many famous universities involved, but we wanted to show them that even though we are local university students, we also have infinite possibilities to make new ideas.
The creativity of students is endless. If you are university students, you should be proud because you have learned a lot and have developed your abilities. When faced with narrow opportunities for employment, let’s challenge ourselves by creating new jobs that address needs in our society. Youth unemployment will be reduced if more young people start their own businesses based on their creative ideas. If the government is to take advantage of the potential of students, they should support the students who have their own aptitudes and abilities actively.