Winners of the Korea Times-ETS Student Reporter Contest pose with award plaques alongside sponsors and judges during a ceremony at the Korea Press Center in Seoul, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk

By Jeon Yae-woolThe winners of the 2023 Korea Times-ETS Student Reporter Contest received awards for their outstanding achievements at a ceremony at the Korea Press Center, Wednesday.

A total of 21 students from middle and high schools and universities across the nation were recognized for their creative work in the competition that required applicants to submit a video report on one of two given subjects.

The Korea Times has been hosting the annual event, sponsored mainly by ETS, the creator of the TOEFL iBT® test, to help students improve their English proficiency and gain journalistic experience by reporting on key issues through the medium of video.

“For students, it must have been unfamiliar to report and make a news video. Still, there were many creative and original works,” said Oh Young-jin, President-Publisher of The Korea Times. “I believe participation in this competition will lead to further advancements for the students.”

Jay Kang, director of Academic Relations at ETS Korea, congratulated the winners for their remarkable achievements.

“Not only their English proficiency, but the logic behind their ideas and the creativity of their new media usage were also excellent and brilliant,” he said during a congratulatory speech. “I have no doubt that the awards are the result of their hard work and long-time skill cultivation.”

Other sponsors of the event include Incheon Global Campus (IGC) and the University of Utah Asia Campus.

Yu Pyung-ryun, CEO of the Incheon Global Campus Foundation, also congratulated students on their impressive achievements in the event. “A contest like this can provide an invaluable opportunity for students to grow into global talents,” Yu said in his congratulatory speech.

Utah Asia Campus Director of External Relations and Alumni Relations, James Park, was also present to congratulate the winners.

Two winners of the contest also made acceptance speeches during the event. Kim Hee-won, a student at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and the winner of the ETS Grand Prize, said that her team tried to figure out what the contest wanted applicants to do and sought to reflect it in their work as much as possible.

“I think the contest was really great. It especially gave us a rare and meaningful opportunity to put our common interests in media and English into practice in the format of video reporting in English,” Kim said. “AI development is such a hot topic and this contest provided us the opportunity to contemplate on this issue.”

Jin Hae-in, a student at the Liberal Arts Soopna and the winner of the ETS Grand Prize for middle and high school entrants, said it was more relevant and easier for them to report on the topic of “Necessity of art, music and physical education,” as all of her teammates attend an alternative school. “Our team had fun making the news video during our summer vacation. We are really honored to receive this award,” Jin said.

The topics for university students were, “Ways to improve Korea-Japan relations” and “How to coexist with AI harmoniously.” For middle and high school entrants, the topics were, “How to stop school violence and bullying” and “Necessity of art, music and physical education.”

The winners received awards in seven prize categories, including the ETS Grand Prize, Top Prize, Gold Prize, Silver Prize, Bronze Prize, Incheon Global Campus CEO Award and Chief Administrative Officer Award.

Below are the 21 honorees of the contest and links to their works.

ETS Grand Prize Award

― Undergraduate and graduate
Team: Chang So-yeh of Yonsei University, Kim Hee-won of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies

― Middle and high school
Team: Jin Yeong-in of Liberal Arts Soopna, Jin Hae-in of Liberal Arts Soopna, Jin Hwang-hwi of Liberal Arts Soopna

Top Award

― Undergraduate and graduate
Individual: Shin Hong-kyu of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies

― Middle and high school
Team: Moon Ye-won of Daeil Foreign Language High School, Kim A-ri of Daeil Foreign Language High School

Gold Award

― Undergraduate and graduate
Team: Kim Young-eun of Korea University, Seo Hye-won of Sookmyung Women’s University

― Middle and high school
Team: Lee So-yoon of Hankuk Academy of Foreign Studies, Ha Yoon-kyung of Hankuk Academy of Foreign Studies, Lee Chae-eun of Hankuk Academy of Foreign Studies

Silver Award

― Undergraduate and graduate
Team: Park Kyung-jin of Yonsei University Mirae Campus, Kim Seo-hyun of Yonsei University Mirae Campus

― Middle and high school
Individual: Ann Seo-young of Saint Paul Preparatory Seoul

Bronze Award

― Undergraduate and graduate
Individual: Kim Ju-hyun of Ewha Womans University

― Middle and high school
Individual: Lee Anna of DeokWon Girls’ High School

Incheon Global Campus CEO Award

― Undergraduate and graduate
Team: Lee Tammy of Korea University, Oh Na-young of Korea University

Chief Administrative Officer Award

― Middle and high school
Individual: Kim Min-yong of Korean Minjok Leadership Academy