September 2016 was a precious moment in the history of Mien R. Uno Foundation (MRUF), a non-profit organization committed to creating young entrepreneurs from current students. 28 students from four major cities in Indonesia (Bandung, Yogyakarta, Semarang and Surabaya) were officially appointed as MRUF ENVOY cohort VIII students at the opening of the MRUF ENVOY VIII program in Jakarta. Donors, alumni from various regionals, partners, and the press attended the opening ceremony.

Through the MRUF ENVOY VIII program, students not only receive scholarships and education, but also business development skills through business training, business coaching, business mentoring, and the production exhibitions within one year of the program. It is intended to improve the business capabilities of the students so their businesses can be further developed and provide benefits not only for themselves but also for the communities.

In contrast to previous years, this year's selection process was more stringent. First, all participants were required to register online. This online system is paperless, more efficient, and easier for participants to collect the required files because they no longer need to submit hard copies. As many as 2,390 registrants submitted MRUF ENVOY VIII scholarship program applications.

Participants who pass the selection online must then go through a selection process consisting of an initial interview, psychological test, an interview by a team of psychologists, and a final interview by the board of the Mien R. Uno Foundation. After this long and rigorous selection process, 28 students were selected from diverse educational backgrounds, family, and business. In this admission process, MRUF partnered with various institutions, such as the University of Airlangga, the Economics and Business Faculty of Indonesia, the University of Education, and alumni. In the future, MRUF will collaborate with more institutions so that more people can benefit from this program.

So far, MRUF ENVOY VIII students have undertaken the Training 1 activities in Jakarta from September 20-25, 2016, with the theme “My Business, My Passion”. Through this training ENVOY students were equipped with an understanding of the importance of doing business that aligns with their passion. Not only that, the students were also required to create key performance indicators for each business venture so that progress can be measured. After completing training 1, the ENVOY students participated in the Coaching 1 roadshow in all cities from October 17 until November 6, 2016. For this coaching process, MRUF partnered with Coaching Indonesia and Yayasan Indonesia Lebih Baik (YILB).

At the same time, there were coaching activities for MRUF alumni, in cooperation with Action COACH South Jakarta. This coaching session was attended by 30 alumni from Bandung, Yogyakarta, and Surabaya. In contrast with the ENVOY students coaching which was done individually, the alumni coaching is done in groups in each region. Moreover, this year the alumni coaching also involved non-alumni as participants. It aimed to expand their business insight and grow their networks. By using the Growth Club method, all alumni were required to implement their business strategies and actions over the next 4 months. This method is considered very helpful for alumni in teaching them to run a more organized and effective business venture.

In the near future, the Mien R. Uno Foundation will organize the Training 2 sessions, which will be held in Yogyakarta on November 20^th – 26^th, 2016 with the theme “Knowing My Business – Business Models, Marketing, Finance Reports”. The purpose of this training is to provide a deeper understanding of business models, how to determine the target market and formulate strategy, as well as to better understand the financial mindset required in micro enterprises.

To create an independent youth through entrepreneurship requires the cooperation of various stakeholders. As such, Mien R. Uno Foundation will continue to create partnerships with different parties to achieve this goal.