Busan is good

Busan's International Students Pursue Their Dreams of Launching Global Startups

내용

Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Chun Jae-soo) announced that it will hold the 2026 Busan International Student Startup Idea Competition today (October 8) from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at BEXCO Exhibition Center 1.

Now in its second year, the competition is hosted by Busan Metropolitan City and jointly organized by the Busan Global City Foundation, the Pusan National University Startup Support Group, and the Pusan National University Anchor Project Group.

Held in conjunction with the startup expo FLY ASIA 2026, the competition aims to encourage international students in Busan to take an interest in entrepreneurship and provide opportunities to commercialize promising startup ideas.

The program is designed to give international students hands-on experience in key stages of the startup process, from entrepreneurship training and expert mentoring to investor relations (IR) pitching.

A total of 21 teams participated in the competition, including teams comprising both international and Korean students. The 15 teams that passed the document screening received six entrepreneurship capacity-building training sessions.

The training focused on practical aspects of starting a business, including market and customer analysis, strategies for gaining a competitive advantage, revenue model development, and financing, helping participants develop their ideas into concrete business models.

Participants then refined their business plans and investor relations presentation materials (IR decks) through expert coaching and team-specific mentoring. Following presentation rehearsals simulating actual investor briefings and a preliminary IR pitching round, eight teams were selected to advance to the finals.

In today's (October 8) finals, the eight teams will present their startup business models. Following evaluations by entrepreneurship and investment experts, five teams will receive certificates and cash prizes.

Busan Metropolitan City plans to help international students, who may be unfamiliar with Korea's startup environment and institutional systems, gain practical entrepreneurial experience through the competition. The city also intends to connect participants with the Overall Assistance for Startup Immigration System (OASIS) program to support them in turning their ideas into actual businesses.

Meanwhile, the number of international students in Busan has exceeded 24,000, accounting for 14 percent of the region's university student population. Busan Metropolitan City is strengthening its integrated support system to help these students secure employment, start businesses, and settle in the region.

In February, the city opened the Study Busan Hub, an integrated support center for international students, in connection with the Regional Growth Talent Development System (Anchor) Project. The hub provides one-stop consultation services covering daily life, healthcare, legal matters, and other needs.

The city also operates various programs to support international students in finding employment, starting businesses, and settling in the region, including the Supra-Regional International Student Job Fair and the International Student Festival in Busan.

Kim Gi-hwan, Assistant Mayor of Economic Policy Office at Busan Metropolitan City, said, "International students are not only students pursuing their studies in Busan but also valuable talent who can bring fresh ideas and global networks to the city's industries and startup ecosystem."

He added, "We hope this competition will demonstrate the potential for international students' innovative ideas to develop into actual businesses and serve as a stepping stone for them to expand onto a larger stage through global startup platforms such as FLY ASIA."