Currently, universities and educational institutions across Da Nang are investing in startup support activities, thereby supporting students on their journey to start a business right at school.

Students study and research at the DUT Maker Innovation Space of the Da Nang University of Science and Technology. Photo: M.Q

Coming into operation from February 2024, the DUT Maker Innovation Space of the University of Science and Technology, a member of the University of Da Nang, is open to lecturers and students to meet their research and realize scientific ideas.

This is also the place where businesses grasp a deeper insight into the innovative start-up activities of the school's lecturers and students, thereby seeking cooperation opportunities between the school and business partners from at home and abroad.

Nguyen Duc Huy, a first year year student majoring in Automatic Production - Engineering, the Da Nang University of Science and Technology shared that he often comes to the DUT Maker Innovation Space because there is a place to study with modern equipment. Here, students can exchange ideas, meet people with similar passions and have startup projects in the future.

According to Assoc. Prof. PhD. Tao Quang Bang, the Dean of Science Technology - International Cooperation Department, the Da Nang University of Science and Technology, investing in facilities is one of the activities the school carries out every year to promote startups.

At the same time, it is improving the quality of training and innovating teaching methods. In the first semester of the 2023-2024 school year, the school implemented 302 student scientific research projects with the participation of more than 900 students from many different courses. The age of participating students is getting younger with many 3rd and 2^nd year students.

Most of the products of student scientific research projects are highly applicable and practical, meeting the requirements for production deployment, transfer and startup along with scientific content that help for students to satisfy their creative joy. Evidence is that the school's students have just won the first prize and the second prize at the ministerial-level student scientific research competition, as well as many awards at the city level.

Over the past 10 years, the Duy Tan University has established Microsoft Innovation Center (2014), BK Holdings - Duy Tan Innovation Center (2022), Samsung Innovation Center (2023), and other applied research centres, research labs, and STEM classrooms to serve students participating in innovative startup research activities.

Ph.D. Vo Thanh Hai, Permanent Vice Rector of the Duy Tan University, said that this educational establishment has spent many resources to promote innovative startup activities, specifically establishing a department specialised in startup and innovation, building a production and manufacturing space to serve startup and innovation activities, promoting the development of startup business models in universities, participating in startup competitions, establishing an ecosystem of innovation centres and functional departments to serve training, search, and support incubation of student ideas, aiming to commercialise products to the market.

In the coming time, the university will build an innovative startup fund to provide initial finance, nurture projects of potential students, focusing on a number of fields suitable for resources of the school and the city’s orientations such as information technology - tourism.

In addition, this tertiary establishment will build innovative student startup groups to pursue potential projects over a large enough period of time, closely coordinate with the city's innovative startup support organisations to take advantage of expert resources in training, incubation, and startup project management activities.

The Duy Tan University has joined the the Viet Nam Network of Higher Education Innovation and Entrepreneurship Centre (VNEI)) under the auspices of the National Innovation Center (NIC). This is an opportunity for the school to carry out innovative activities in training, research, and knowledge transfer in the university and college sector.

Meanwhile, the Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Research of the Da Nang University of Technology and Education has undergone more than two years of operation. The institute's team of experts has been supporting students to participate in startup competitions, proposing many ideas that are close to reality and applicable to many areas of social life.

As revealed by Le Vu, a lecturer of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the Da Nang University of Technology and Education, this year, the school will expand the scale of the Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Research, providing more "packages" supporting students with ideas and entrepreneurial spirit.

The school will organise startup competitions to give students the opportunity to express their ideas and call for investment capital, supporting the development of startup ideas.

At the same time, the university will organise seminars connecting students with investors, so that students have the opportunity to seek investment capital for their startup projects.

Reporting by MAI QUE - Translating by A.THU