INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY ORGANIZED INNOVATION CAMP 2025 - A JOURNEY TO BUILD A GREEN, MODERN, AND INNOVATIVE UNIVERSITY

On March 14th, 2025, International University – Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City officially launched Innovation Camp 2025 with the theme “Campus Spark.” Innovation Camp provided a dynamic platform for first- and second-year students from universities and colleges across Ho Chi Minh City, aiming to foster creative thinking and practical application.

Ms. Le Thi Quynh Mai – Secretary of International University Youth Union – delivered the opening speech for the camp.

The camp focused on four key areas: Academics, Facilities, Student Services, and Personal Development & Training, aiming to build a green, modern, and innovative university.

Before the camp, students were equipped with Agile Thinking skills through a training session conducted by Mr. Luu Nguyen Vinh Hien – Engagement Manager at NFQ Vietnam on March 11, 2025.

On March 11, Mr. Luu Nguyen Vinh Hien – Engagement Manager at NFQ Vietnam – led a workshop on Agile Thinking to equip students with flexible problem-solving skills.

The workshop not only provided practical knowledge, but also created opportunities for discussion and hands-on exercises. This activity was designed in order to enhance students’ adaptability in an ever-changing world, serving as a crucial preparation step for campers to apply Agile Thinking skill to the creative challenges of Innovation Camp 2025.

Students had the opportunity to enhance their adaptability in an ever-changing world, making this a crucial preparation step for the creative challenges of the camp.

Innovation Camp 2025 spanned two days, March 14th and 15th, 2025, with a range of exciting activities: problem analysis training, surveys and mentoring sessions with the advisory board, team-building and campfire, and project presentations before the judging panel. The organizing committee also implemented a scoring system throughout the camp in order to encourage active participation and offer students the chance to compete for exciting prizes.

The campers participated in the problem analysis training, which was a part of the exciting series of activities at this year’s Innovation Camp.

On behalf of the organizing committee, Dr. Tran Thi Ngoc Diep – Head of Center for Innovation and Technology Transfer – shared: “With the goal of building a green, modern, and innovative university, the 2025 Innovation Camp introduces brand-new contents to seek unique and practical ideas of the students. This is also our way of listening to students – those who directly benefit from the university’s best services.”

IU Innovation Camp 2025 offers challenging yet exciting experiences, allowing students not only to learn new skills, but also to contribute to shaping the university’s future.

This year’s Innovation Camp welcomed 53 students forming 13 teams, including one student from HUTECH participating in team “Cháu Ngoan Bác Hồ”. The evaluation criteria of the 2025 camp was also updated. For the Creative Idea Award, teams would be evaluated based on their ability to identify relevant problems, propose unique and effective solutions, develop feasible implementation strategies, and assess impact, scalability, and execution costs. Their presentation skills, including slide design and structure, were also considered. The Team-Building Award was given to the team that completed various physical and strategic challenges in the shortest total time. These challenges included a climate change challenge using a waste management card game, a running endurance test, the traditional game U, and a tent-building challenge. Finally, the Grand Prize was  determined by cumulative points from all activities, assessing student discipline, commitment, active participation, and teamwork within their groups.