Toulouse college students create a mini-company for a competition
Discovering the business world in college? This is the initiative of “Undertake to learn Occitanie”, which each year accompanies college students from the region to start a mini business. The project consists of three courses: S (over 1 half-day or day), M (over several weeks) and L (between 6 to 10 months). “In these courses, the students work in groups and think about a product that they will implement. It is a kind of entrepreneurial immersion to better prepare their entry into the professional world”, specifies Guylaine Pottier, member of the Toulouse Rotary club, interviewed by The Independent Opinion.
This year, a class of 3° of the College Hubertine Auclert participates in the project and told us about their mini-company.
Discovering the entrepreneurial world
Since September, 28 college students have been busy discovering the entrepreneurial world. The class in question was formed in relation to this project.
The students who were to enter this class passed a motivational interview with business leaders who sponsor the class, and wrote a CV with the help of French teachers” explains Ludovic Carrié, teacher at the Hubertine Auclert establishment.
Thus, the third class will present on May 25, at the Ernest Wallon stadium, the product resulting from several months of work. The students imagined phone jewelry whose aim is to protect the cell phone while bringing a touch of aesthetics. The mini-company was named Aegis, a Greek name meaning security, which is also the name of Athena’s shield. A choice echoing the concept of their product which is based on the protection of the phone.
One of the class sponsors created the mini-company logo
At the beginning of the year, the class was divided into several groups. Each of the groups imagined a product, then presented their idea orally. We voted for our favorite product which was this jewellery”, we specify with confidence Tesmine, 15 years old.
Once the product has been chosen, the college students divide up the tasks so as to draw up a real organization chart. Tesmine and Milya (15 years old) have improved the position of general managers, Louna (14 years old) is director of communication and marketing, Mohamed (15 years old) works in the administrative department and Adem (15 years old) has a position as production manager. This experience allows them to discover the workings of the world of workwhile teaching them to have responsibilities and to communicate with others.
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Gain in maturity
In this project, the third class is supervised by 3 sponsors, an accountant and two business leaders, including Guylaine Pottier. Thanks to their lessons, students obtain tools and ideas to learn how to manage their mini-business and gain in maturity.
I see an evolution. Students take responsibility. For some students, this experience gives them a great orientation in their studies. A few years ago, a student wanted, at the beginning of the project, to become a security guard, now he has obtained a BTS in sales and the mini-company has been a click for him. This student returns to his old college to talk about his experience. Through this project, students clearly have a head start in their orientation and speaking skills“, welcomes Guylaine Pottier.
For the students, the contribution of this experience is very beneficial. “We know what a company is, what it means to have responsibilities,” says Tesmine.
Mohamed goes one better: “Thanks to the mini-company, I know what I would like to do later, it helped me in my orientation.” For Milya, the creation of the mini-company was also eye-opening, but at the same time showed how difficult it is to communicate with others. “Sometimes communication with colleagues was complicated. The experience allowed us to understand that all the departments of a company are linked and that discussing is very important.”
Preparation for the mini-company championship
Now the middle school class Hubertine Auclert strives to prepare the mini business championship. The event will be held at the Ernest Wallon stadium. The students prepare their oral and imagine activities to make their presentation attractive.
On D-Day, we will set up a stand to unveil our product. We developed a sales pitch with our sponsors and our two teachers. This will help us answer all the questions” explains Tesmine.
Milya, who will be responsible for the full stand: “We are going to develop an animation where we are going to spread out all over the stadium, then we are going to ask questions to the people present and they will be able to win a bracelet”, enthuses- she.
At the end of this championship, students can win a trophy, and “a diploma attesting to their participation in the creation of a mini-company, which will be useful to them in their search for an internship” specifies Professor Ludovic Carrié. Despite the apprehension, the students say they are confident and are eager to present one year of work to the general public. See you next May 25!