The Hult Prize Bengaluru Experience as a Campus Director at Jain University in India 2021/22.
About the Hult Prize
Today I had the opportunity to talk about my experience as an international student in India and a Hult Prize Campus Director for Jain University. I study Computer Science and Engineering, at Jain University Bengaluru Global Campus and am heading to the 5th semester.
Hult Prize Foundation is a global organization that empowers students to lead change through social entrepreneurship in a year-long competition. It is a worldwide movement for students involving over 121 countries and over 3000 tertiary institutions.
The Keynote
I will start by saying that being a campus director when not many people had heard of the program on my campus was no mean task. I faced several challenges, mainly in satisfying startups, but my university professors and staff were kind and assisted me much in completing our program. Despite all of this, my team and I were able to impart leadership, problem-solving and critical thinking to more than 250 students on campus.
The biggest takehome from my leadership experience was growth in mindest. Through my interaction with founders, leaders, innovators, and investors, I learned how people continue to change the world. And that I could also tap into my power as a young person to lead change in my community.
Before my experience as a campus director, I was a student studying computer science and engineering for the job market. But now, I think about applying my engineering knowledge to solve class scheduling problems on my campus by introducing a user-friendly integrated academic environment. You see, now, my role as an engineer in the community is part of a more significant course.
As a campus director, it is my responsibility to manage the overall activities of the campus to the best that I can. In my weekly routine, I had responsibilities supervising and evaluating weekly activities, managing day-to-day activities, and meeting with different stakeholders, regional directors, university officials, and directly with participant students.
My Campus Director journey for the Hult Prize on-campus program has unlocked limitless opportunities for me and my community. In just a few months, I learned more through my experience with the Hult Prize OnCampus program than I did in two years in college. I like how the diverse team is making the biggest impact. I also really enjoy working with students, bringing people together, and finding them very motivated by the competency of technology, and I’ve seen how the campus communities and programs have grown.
Leading a global program as an international student was quite challenging, and being in this position is not that as easy, added to the fact that at the moment, most students studying at my university are still stuck in their home countries. Participation was meager at first. The challenge forced me to leave my comfort zone, network more, and develop innovative ways of engaging students. By the end of my term, I was more confident and courageous in my skills as a leader and my ability to influence change. I will carry the lessons of this experience for the rest of my life.
The Competition
Hult Prize Challenge 2021: Getting the World Back to Work
The 2022 Hult Prize Call to Action is about creating meaningful work opportunities. We want YOU to build a business that will employ at least 2,000 people by 2024 while creating a positive impact on the world.
There were 12 entrepreneurs who participated with innovative ideas to alleviate the problem of youth unemployment while producing a meaningful work opportunity.
All teams had creative and interesting ideas and each proposed an original solution to the unemployment problem in a different way. It’s aspiring to see that the ideas, the talents, and the engineers are working so hard to improve the current situation in their own country. We hope to see in the near future some of the solutions on the market. I was deeply impressed by how creative the teams were.
Conclusion
Through Hult Prize, I was able to build a network that I can leverage for good. Beyond meeting, startup founders, innovators, and judges, I’m able to meet new peers who have the same vision as I do; to lead change in our communities. Six months ago, I never thought that I could get to this point. Thanks to all the members of the core team for their contributions. Because of you, Jain University has the Hult Prize on-campus program today. Because of you, I realized that I can do it. To these things! It is a very rare and valuable experience to be the campus director of the Hult Prize campus.
I’m glad I was ready to take the initiative to apply for this position. I’m now participating in the Regional Final competition alongside the Regional Organizing Committee. It’s an amazing chance to be a part of that team, and I’ll be expressing my thoughts after finishing the regional program. As of now, I am willing to extend my application to join as a campus director for the coming summer of 2022/23 to lead a generation to change the world! If there is a chance, I will continue with the entire squad.
Related Links to Hult Prize
Hult Prize at Jain University — Instagram
Hult Prize at Jain University — Linkedin
Hult Prize at Jain University — FaceBook
Hult Prize at Jain University — Twitter
Hult Prize at Jain University — Website
Hult Prize Official Website
I’m Gemechu Taye, a Software Engineer (Frontend Development). And I’m currently in my second year of computer science. I write about web2, career advice, and startups.
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