From May to July 2023, Sookmyung Women’s University Korea and Gadjah Mada University will hold a training program to improve women’s leadership and entrepreneurial abilities in the era of globalization. In the program entitled “Sookmyung 2023 UNESCO-UNITWIN Digital & Leadership Local Training,” there were two students from the UGM Department of Socio-economics who succeeded in getting the title of the best participant and were selected to take part in hackathon activities in South Korea in November 2023. They are Beny Nabila Happy Fauziah, an Agricultural Extension and Communication student class of 2021, and Regina Claudia Setiawan, a student of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness class of 2022.
This program offers a variety of training materials covering the basics of entrepreneurship and creating business models. In implementing this program, participants are also divided into several groups, where each group must carry out a brainstorming session to develop business ideas that will be presented at the end of the program. However, this activity is special because at the end of the training, only 12 delegates will be selected to participate in the hackathon event in November 2023 at Sookmyung Women’s University, South Korea. The proudest thing is that of the 12 delegates selected, two came from the UGM Agricultural Socioeconomic Department, namely Beny and Regina. This is a proud achievement because they had the opportunity to compete with participants from various universities and countries.
When asked about their feelings after being selected as delegates, Benny said, “I really didn’t expect to be selected as a delegate. But now I am grateful and happy for this opportunity. I feel lucky to have a dynamic group, so I can do my best. Thank you to the study program who helped with the administration process very responsively. Don’t forget to thank my friends, Ulin and Tami, who invited me to register and participate in this program together. After this, I will continue to do my best.”
No less happy, Regina, as one of the selected delegates, also shared her feelings, “I was delighted! Yes, because who doesn’t want to go to Korea? And get paid for it and have events there, so there are activities too, apart from just traveling. Apart from that, what makes me happy again is that you can make a relationship with new friends. There are friends I have only met for a few days, but I have to be able to trust them. I have to be able to be a good leader. It’s quite hard to talk about leadership, but I’m very grateful. God is really good for letting me go through such a deep process. Anyway, I’m really happy to invite my friends so that next year I can join this program too so that more valuable experience to expand into other worlds.”
Beny and Regina’s achievements as delegates in this program inspire students at the UGM Department of Socio-economics and show that anything is possible with a passion for learning and hard work. Their success also proves the importance of participating in self-development opportunities to gain valuable experience and expand networks. Hopefully, their achievements will motivate other students to follow in their footsteps in achieving brilliant achievements at the international level.