The 2011 Student entrepreneurial exchange (SEE)

In May this year Hoa Sen University students, faculty and administrators welcomed back more than 25 delegates from the ESCIA School in France. The ESCIA school delegation is part of the Student Entrepreneurial Exchange.

From the beginning of October 2010, 25 selected French students worked online with 25 selected Vietnamese students via Skype, yahoo, and email.

The students were divided into five groups of 10 each with five Vietnamese and five French members in each group. The five groups then founded an entrepreneurial business in both the French and Vietnamese markets. They all worked together in their established company as founders and they were responsible for finding products, suppliers, sponsors, customers, and employees.

The two separate founder-groups each worked on critical areas of their respective businesses which they presented to the Board of Advisors or their so-called Board of Directors who are professors and faculty members from the ESCIA School and Hoa Sen University.

The groups presented their plans

During five days in Vietnam, the 25 French and 25 Vietnam students were instructed to give workshops, group discussions, visit companies and take part in numerous group activities so that they could experience a real-business life, benefit from professional knowledge and absorb cultural differences.

All of the subject content was designed to help students have the opportunity to combine campus knowledge with real-life experiences which appears to be very limited in some business schools.

Minh Tuyen, a Hoa Sen student from the Tourism and Hospitality Management school said “This is the second year that I signed up for the program. At every stage of the program I was inspired to study harder and to explore real business. I want to register again next year for certain when the program is announced at Hoa Sen University”

The 2011 SEE was closed with the five participating project-companies that opened up many business opportunities not just for student participants but also for Vietnamese – French commercial partnerships.