With Korean society emphasizing the importance of the “creative economy,” novel and imaginative ideas are becoming more valuable than ever. 

Professor Min Byoung-chul, professor of international studies at Konkuk University, looks to help students’ capacity to come up with such ideas through his business English class.

The class, which is conducted entirely in English, centers on teaching the techniques needed while working at global companies, according to Min. This includes presentation skills, negotiation tactics and how to effectively carry out a business meeting. 

But it aims to achieve more than making students a business expert. One of Min’s main project is the “creative mobile app proposal,” which has students create hypothetical products for a hypothetical company, such as smartphone applications, devices for the Internet of Things and wearable computers.

The project does not stop at merely creating ideas. Min chooses product plans that stand out and introduces them to relevant companies or government bodies. If the plan is deemed plausible, the respective organization develops the product, potentially creating jobs and profit.
About 800 students participated in the project from 2010 to the spring semester of 2015. 

“Through this project, students foster the ability to develop their original ideas, which gives them an edge over potential competitors in a global job market. Companies also benefit from it because they are provided with creative ideas from the students,” Min said. 

One of the model projects for the spring semester of this year was an application and a website for helping refugees in Germany, by a student named Jonathan Berneth, which will help with organizational problems and make it easier for people to donate. 

Min said the project was initiated so that it could help students develop abilities that corporations demand.

“There is a considerable gap between higher education and the talent companies are looking for,” Min pointed out. “In order to overcome this gap, it is important for students to acquire a competitive edge that the companies want by participating in various projects.

He said the goal of the project is to train students to perform their jobs in future careers while being able to come up with creative ideas.

By Yoon Min-sik (minsikyoon@heradlcorp.com)