The Department of Economics held an Ewha Economists’ Meeting, a session designed to promote interactions between Ewha students and alumnae who are active in the economic world, on May 7 at the LG Convention Hall. The forum was open to all students and professors.
“The meeting is held every year to promote connections between students who are interested in economics and graduates who work in this field as well as professors,” said Park Ji-soo (Economics, 3), who is the student representative of the Department of Economics.
The meeting was divided into three parts, two lecture sessions followed by a reception.
During the first lecture session, professors of the Department of Economics who participated in the forum introduced themselves and gave words of encouragement. After the introductions, the head of the alumnae association Hong Kui-in (’87, Economics) made a congratulatory speech, and then alumnae scholarships were presented to two economics majors studying at Ewha. Lectures by Kim Woon-jung (’07, Economics) of Samsung Electronics and Park Sun-young (’08, Economics) of Korea Eximbank completed the session.
Kim advised the students to have various experiences during their college years. “I always thought I would eventually work in the field of bonds and stocks and I actually came to work at an investment company after I graduated. However, I left the company after working for only a month. Nobody knows where she will end up in the future. To prepare for this, one must have a lot of experiences,” said Kim. Kim also advised students to become professional at what they chose to do and to constantly study English.
Park, the second speaker, advised the audience to understand what they want to do in the future. She said that it is important to keep developing oneself even after being employed. “To my experience, people who survive the longest in the workplace are those who continue to develop themselves,” said Park. In addition, Park said that students should trust their capacities and have bigger dreams.
The second session continued with a special lecture by Lee Jung-ae (’86, Economics) who is currently a personal care MD and the vice president of LG Household & Health Care. Lee introduced LG Household & Health Care and described what the company looks forward to in future young employees. Lee also introduced several employment programs. Lee emphasized the importance of administrative work and communication skills.
“Students should think differently, raise their emotional quotient (EQ), always practice and prepare and, finally, work passionately,” said Lee. The meeting ended with a small reception for the participants.
“I came to participate in this event as a favor to a friend, but the event was much more helpful than I thought. The lecturers gave me advice directly related to their workplaces,” said Kim Su-bin (Economics, 3). “I was glad to hear from graduates who had similar experiences with me in the past.”
Professor Hong Ki-seok, chairman of the Economics Department said, “The Department of Economics will continue to hold sessions where students, graduates and professors get together once in a while. I am also planning to change the format a little so that they can be less formal and more fun.”