This summer the Global Leadership Program at Mississippi State will take 30 undergraduate students on an all-expense-paid trip to South Korea.The 10-day trip will last from May 9 to May 19.
J.P. Shim, professor of management and information systems, is the program director. A South Korean native, Shim said this is the first program like this one at Mississippi State.
“I think it’s a great opportunity for students,” he said. “This is a great first-hand experience.”
Mississippi State is striving toward an international and global perspective and this trip will hopefully help with that goal, he said.
“Most students here [at Mississippi State] have been born in the United States,” he said. “This trip provides an excellent chance for a different experience.”
Mississippi State President Robert “Doc” Foglesong said on the program’s Web site, “This 10-day trip will give 30 undergraduates from diverse backgrounds and fields of study a chance to experience first hand the culture of a society that combines 21st century technological innovation and 50 centuries of history and tradition.”
The itinerary for the trip includes visits to the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, TU Media, Samsung Electronics Company, National Museum of Korea, Olympic Stadium and other locations.
As part of the University Education Program directed by Korean universities, the students will stay at five different universities. Ten students will stay at Kyungpook National University, ten at Kwangwoon University, five at Catholic University of Daegu, five at Yongin University and five at Daejon University.
Shim said South Korea is very technologically advanced, even more so than the United States.
“South Korea … has paved the way on the technology front, such as cellular TV on mobile phone and wireless broadband technology,” he said through the program’s Web site.
Shim described Seoul, which is where the majority of the trip will occur, as “a bustling city, very high tech.”
Shim said that the students will get to learn a different type of culture and see all of the technology first-hand.
“The Global Leadership Program: Korea Study Tour will give highly motivated and talented American undergraduates a revealing glimpse of what their future may hold and a valuable stepping stone to further academic and experiential preparation for leadership in a global society,” Foglesong said on the program’s Web site.
To be eligible for the trip, students must be currently enrolled full-time at Mississippi State.
They also must be coming back to school next semester and must have at least a 3.5 GPA.
“We are looking for people with leadership, vision and future,” Shim said.
He hopes to take students from all different study programs and disciplines, not just business or technology-related majors, he said.
Shim said 15 male and 15 female students will be chosen for the trip. Also, he will be taking five graduate students as mentors and chaperones.
Undergraduate students must submit a one-page resume along with a one-page essay answering the question “Why is this trip to Korea important to my career?” All applications are due by Feb. 16.
Students selected by the Korea Study Tour Selection Committee will be interviewed in late February.
Finalists will be notified before March 19. The selected 30 students will attend two orientations in March and April.
Five Korean education institutions and two Korean companies are sponsoring the trip. While the sponsors will take care of all costs for the trip, students are responsible for having their own passports, health insurance and personal spending money.
Shim hopes to continue this program after the first year, he said.
“I really want to make this program successful,” he said. “If it’s successful this year, I want to continue it next year and increase the number of students.”
Shim, encouraging students to apply, said on the Web site, “I strongly believe that the Global Leadership Program: Korea Study Tour will be a great opportunity for MSU students to broaden their horizons and gain a global leadership perspective. I hope you will take this opportunity for your future career.”
Interested students should visit the program’s Web site, www2.msstate.edu/jps1/glp.htm for more information the application process details about the trip.