COVID-19 Can't Stop Love for Juniors... University Students Creating UCC

Dongmyeong University 12 Students Throwing Talent to Encourage Freshmen Weakened by COVID-19
Producing Campus and Nearby Area Exploration Videos to Upload on SNS

Students in their 2nd to 4th year at Dongmyeong University have started a volunteer activity where they capture videos of the campus and nearby attractions to post on social media, aiming to support new freshmen who could not enjoy campus life due to COVID-19.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] University students have taken on the task of producing a ‘special video’ for their freshman juniors. The motivation behind creating the video was that it was difficult to see the faces of seniors due to COVID-19, and many freshmen had not fully explored the campus or its surroundings.

Twelve students from Dongmyung University, ranging from 2nd to 4th year, jumped into this project. They selected 10 on-site locations including on- and off-campus facilities and institutions that would be helpful for freshmen to know about, and visited one location each week to produce UCC videos which they then upload on SNS platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.

Jung Myeong-eun (4th year, Department of Early Childhood Education), Song Chae-hyun (4th year, Department of Finance and Accounting), Kim Seong-jin (3rd year, Department of Nursing), Kim Na-young (3rd year, Department of Speech Therapy and Audiology), Hong Seong-wook (3rd year, Department of Mechanical Engineering), Lee Min-ji (3rd year, Department of Distribution Management), Eom Yoo-jung (3rd year, Department of Distribution Management), Kim Su-hyun (3rd year, Department of Nursing), Seong Su-in (2nd year, Department of Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering), Heo Jeong-hyun (2nd year, Department of Port Logistics Systems), Ha Jun (2nd year, Department of Media Communication), and Yoon Ye-won (2nd year, Department of Nursing) decided to donate their talents.

Knowing that many freshmen were very disappointed because they had barely visited their alma mater due to COVID-19, they picked up their cameras in late June, right after the first semester final exams.

Having regularly participated in various off-campus volunteer activities, they prioritized exploration targets close to the university such as Daeyeon Arboretum, the National Forced Mobilization History Museum, Nam-gu Youth Development Center Makerspace, Igidae Park, and volunteer sites. On campus, they selected locations like the Dongmyung Memorial Hall, Kang Seok-jin Startup Village and AI Education Innovation Site, and the Premium Employment Support Site.

The UCC content is produced in a youthful style, not too long, using formats like card news or exploration Q&A. Considering international students, the UCC videos are also made with subtitles in foreign languages such as English, Chinese, and Vietnamese. After exploring all 10 locations and producing the content and uploading it to SNS, the first phase is complete. Then, an on-site quiz competition is held by selecting up to 100 freshmen, allowing them to experience the seniors’ hard work and receive gifts as part of the event.

The explorations, which started in early July, have already covered three locations and are currently in the editing phase. Completing one location’s exploration requires at least 2 to 3 sessions of over 2 hours each, including preliminary visits, on-site filming on the day of exploration, final editing, and foreign language version production, with 7 to 8 or more participants each time. Recently, freshmen such as Seo Gang-hee and Kim Ji-soo (both 1st year, Department of Advertising and Public Relations) have also started joining the explorations and filming, creating an exciting atmosphere.

These volunteer enthusiasts dedicate most of their summer vacation to this time of caring for juniors and will continue their activities through the upcoming second semester.

Freshman Seo Gang-hee said, “I have liked volunteering since high school and spend my vacations staying in the dormitory doing volunteer work. I learned about this activity and joined the seniors, and it is very interesting and beneficial,” adding, “Since many freshmen have not been able to visit the school due to COVID-19, I hope other freshmen will also participate.”

Jung Hong-seop, president of Dongmyung University, praised, “Since early March, we have been conducting blended classes combining face-to-face and online lectures at an excellent level. I am grateful to all enrolled students who have followed this well, and I am very pleased that seniors are dedicating their personal time to such activities for freshmen.”