President University is committed to preparing entrepreneur students who are ready to build their own business after graduating. SetSail BizAccel (SetSail), a business incubator is the proof of this commitment. It provides counseling, teaching and mentoring for the students who want to open their business. Adhi Setyo Santoso, Business Administration lecturer is currently directing the unit which was founded in 2016.
Aside from his activity as a lecturer, Adhi also runs the information technology business named PT. Biline Aplikasi Digital. According to the alumnus of the School of Business KAIST, South Korea, the curriculum prepared by Setsail for President University plays an important role in the students’ business preparation.
“First, I want to change the students’ mindset that the entrepreneur curriculum is not only for the students who want to open the business but also for the one who wants to be professionals,” said Adhi.
“For now, the students thought that entrepreneur is limited only to the one who wants to trade, but in the practice, if we see a startup business, many of them come from IT background. Meaning, everyone can be entrepreneurs,” he continued.
After the entrepreneurship mindset formed, the students would be given the opportunity to be involved in some activities and organizations where socializing skill is needed. According to Adhi, an entrepreneur is not only about trading skill, but also the ability to build a good relationship with every single person involved in the business.”
“With the right entrepreneur mindset and socializing skill, this is the time for the students to run their business,” added 31 years old male who currently pursuing his doctoral degree in Universitas Indonesia.
We can not learn business only by simply reading classic theories. Thus, the real practical business experiences are necessary.
“It is important for the entrepreneur to combine the theory and practice. Therefore, the experiences only gained when someone has started to run their own business. A plan without execution is nothing,” he continued.
Adhi encourages students to dare to try, so they can find the most suitable business opportunity. He expects students who build their business during university will have a stable running business when they are graduated.
“I hope 25% of President University graduates open their own businesses, while the remaining 75% become innovative professionals. Although they don’t open their own business, I want President University students to be able to become agents of change in their workplace later,” he concluded.