SM Entertainment, one of the big three entertainment companies in South Korea, has partnered up with Jongro Haneul Education to found SM Institute (SMI), a global arts educational facility meant for training stars who wish to join the entertainment industry. After the two signed an MoU, a systematic education program and curriculum was prepared carefully, combining academics and SM's knowledge of celebrity training and content production. The Institute will be making use of state of the art technology in the field of education to make sure that education is offered in the best way possible even during this current period of COVID-19 worries. SMI plans to export Korea's "ed-tech" solutions as well.
This announcement has opened up a whole new avenue for aspiring idols and young kids who dream of becoming musicians, dancers, or actors in the future. This is a bold first in the history of entertainment agencies, and a lot of people are lauding this collaboration.
SMI will offer an educational program that focuses on industry knowledge that has led to the immense worldwide popularity of the Hallyu wave and has made K-Pop reach new heights throughout the world. To be a genuinely global institute, it will also be offering language courses including Korean, Chinese, English, and Japanese, which are prerequisites for becoming a K-Pop star that's all rounded.
SM's affiliated company, ESteem, is also going to be an active participant in the founding and management of SMI. It will bring the institute its expertise in modeling, entertainer, and influencer management as well as fashion, beauty, and lifestyle content creation. This further broadens the scope of entertainers to be produced by SMI.
SMI President Choi Jin Young has stated that the institute aims to use online education and custom educational content to make sure that artists who dream of becoming famous don't have to give up on their education because of massive hours of practice and scheduled activities.
SMI is all set to open its doors for Korean as well as international students come March of 2021. Applications are invited starting October of 2020. SMI also plans to have an international branch to pioneer the "Hallyu Wave" of education.
