No challenge is too great if we face it together
Find and meet another version of yourself at Samsung Innovation Campus
Adding happiness to a senior's life using STEM knowledge
Samsung SW Academy for Youth – or shortly put, SSAFY, is a program specially designed for university students and job seekers to familiarize themselves with new technologies and ultimately become specialists in the field.
SSAFY graduates have shared their perspectives on their experience, the difficulties they confronted, and how they gained confidence.
Jun-Seok of the first graduating class of SSAFY at Gwangju Campus joined the academy to strengthen his SW competency and to gain hands-on experience.
Jun-Seok recalled his first meeting with SSAFY, “At first, it was reassuring to have outstanding colleagues around me since I didn’t know anything about software. But there were also times when I struggled since I felt left behind.”
Nonetheless, Jun-Seok did not give up. He devoted himself to become a well-prepared talent with strong foundational knowledge and a handful of experiences. The hard work paid off. Jun-Seok is one of the 1,009 SSAFY graduates to be employed at the end of the program*. He took the first step of his career as a developer at Daebo Communication and Systems, a domestic IT solutions company known for intelligent transportation systems.
“Remembering the warm and thriving memories I made at SSAFY, I will do my best as an outstanding developer who can lend a helping hand to the future generations.”
“I came across SSAFY when I was feeling the least confident, receiving two to three rejection letters almost every day from companies that I applied for. Nothing seemed to bode well for me.”
Joon-Hee, a first class graduate of SSAFY at Daejeon Campus recalls the time he was turned down after applying to more than 60 companies. Realizing the high threshold of employment, he joined SSAFY as a path out of adversity.
“By receiving heartfelt advice and keen consulting from an employment consultant, I was able to regain my confidence. Even in the times where I encountered obstacles, I sought advice from the professor and studied with my colleagues to strengthen my competency in software.”
According to Joon-Hee, SSAFY’s extensive training course as well as from the help of dependable colleagues and consultants was the major contributor to his goal of successful employment. “I hope everyone achieves what they want, with the love and support from caring colleagues and people around them.”
* A total of 2,087 participants from the first class to the fourth have completed the SSAFY training since December 2018. Of the participants, 1,411 students have been recruited by companies in IT, finance, and other fields, recording a 68% employment rate.
Hello, I'm Giuseppe Ricco from the University Aldo Moro of Bari in Italy. I am a horn player in the orchestra and a student majoring in physics. In addition to my passion for music and physics, I have always been interested in various fields and curious about almost everything.
One of my biggest interests is computers. In fact, I built my own computer at the age of 14 and I am still using it. People I know would say that the affection I have for my computer is out of this world and I agree.
My passion for computers was big enough to inspire me to build one, but I had very little formal experience in programming and other computer-related technologies. When my friends first told me about Samsung Innovation Campus, I thought I wouldn’t be the right candidate. Regardless, I encouraged myself to participate in Samsung Innovation Campus to reach my full potential.
Although the courses at Samsung Innovation Campus were conducted online due to COVID-19, they were extremely fruitful. I was one of the 24 students at Bari University that enrolled in the program together, all of whom I was happy to collaborate and share ideas with. The professors, too, gave meaningful lessons and knowledge.
At the end of the program, I could embody my passion for computers and information about new technologies that I learned through Samsung Innovation Campus. Furthermore, I broadened my idea of technology, innovation, and problem-solving.
Recently I heard that in addition to Samsung Innovation Campus at universities in Bari and Pisa of Italy, Samsung plans on expanding the program to 8 universities at the end of the year. This would be a great chance for the students of Italy to have the same once-in-a-lifetime experience like the one I had.
Our elders are suffering in the dark. Since COVID-19 hit all regions of the globe, social distancing became a social norm. While minimized physical contact has helped prevent the spread of the disease, the isolation impacted our emotions and relationships inducing an onset of loneliness and depression. Since the pandemic, the elderly are facing a higher risk of premature death, dementia, heart disease, and strokes. An interaction with society is important to lower such health risks.
Students from Texas' Porter High School began brainstorming ideas for how they could build the elderly's connection with the outside world. Prioritizing the feasibility and ease of access, the students picked a combination of an app and website as the design matrix.
Immediately after the base of their app was chosen, the students put their heads together to engineer and code from scratch. They excitedly shared and incorporated a variety of STEM ideas and resources like MIT App Inventor and WordPress, and made a mock-up of the app and website “Gen Bridge” that elders could use on a tablet. The students picked out bright colors and large fonts to use on Gen Bridge so that elders can easily navigate. The app has three main features: video calls, games, and events.
“On the first day of the one-on-one video chat, I could tell we are going to make a huge difference in our community. I was paired with one of the elders in the neighborhood nursing home who told me that she was 'having a very bad day and was depressed'. We instantly began having a long conversation with each other and she began smiling. It felt like I changed her complete day.”
“Each participant is given a general happiness scale at the beginning and end of each session. Today, we have a 100% increase in happiness and 84% of them increased by more than five slots.”
The students have given the elderly residents something to look forward to. A reason to get up in the morning, a reason to get dressed.
Recognized for their kind hearts and contributions to society, the student developers of Gen Bridge are one of the National Winner teams of the US Samsung Solve for Tomorrow competition. So far, Gen Bridge is available on tablets that have been donated by the residents and personalized for the users. The students hope to continue growing the project by partnering with more facilities and helping more residents in a battle against the depression induced by the pandemic.
Share this story to motivate the young minds to build a better world together.
