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The spotlight is on Jieun Ha, former student, Dongguk University, South Korea

Dongguk University is a private university in Jung District, Seoul, South Korea. It is one of the few Buddhist-affiliated universities in the world and a member of the International Association of Buddhist Universities. The university has 13 areas of study and over 100 distinct academic programs across undergraduate and graduate levels. The College of Engineering has seven departments representing most disciplines of engineering, including Computer Information and Communication Engineering (CICE).

CICE’s 10 faculty members deliver courses to 300 undergraduate students annually. Each student must follow Capstone Design courses in their final semesters and design a project. This allows them to put into real-life practice the learning of the previous three years. In the process, students working in teams develop leadership skills; master deliverables and deadlines; and learn to hone communication in group dynamics.

Jieun Ha recently graduated in Computer Engineering from Dongguk and was team leader in a Capstone Design project.

Oracle Academy: Can you tell us about your graduation project?

Jieun Ha: The Capstone Design 2 class was part of an advanced curriculum for final year computer engineering majors. It was a one-year course attended by 46 students, and our project focused on building a system to help HR professionals resolve the challenges of distributed data. It allows them to more easily and quickly analyze company-wide HR data that is otherwise spread across different sources.

Oracle Academy: And how did you build it?

Jieun Ha: The project was named HR Copilot, for which we were given access to Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) resources from Oracle Academy. As team leader I was responsible for the backend: a generative AI-based chatbot. To design the chatbot, I needed to understand OCI components such as Autonomous Database, Select AI, and Oracle Database 23ai.

I stored the HR data using Oracle Autonomous Database and leveraged Select AI to convert users’ natural language queries into SQL. This process allows HR staff, who may not be experts in SQL, to access and analyze data more objectively and analytically.

Ultimately, my goal was to lower the barriers to data access using AI so that everyone, regardless of technical background, could gain analytical insights. Oracle’s artificial intelligence tools automate repetitive tasks, enhance the quality of data-driven decisions, and greatly improve query accuracy and efficiency through autocomplete features.

Oracle Academy: Sounds like a much-needed resource for HR departments. Did you follow lab exercises for designing the Chatbot?

Jieun Ha: Yes, I was also able to reference various Oracle Academy Lab courses throughout the HR Copilot project whenever I needed additional resources or guidance. The most helpful was the workshop called Build an AI Chatbot engine with Oracle AI Database and OCI Generative AI Services. This lab is a fabulous guide to AI in chatbots and allowed me to apply what I learned directly to my project. It was a way to try out real cloud infrastructure and was far more practical than regular university classes.

In addition, I took OCI Certification courses to get more deeply into the Oracle Cloud.

Oracle Academy: Kindly tell us more…

Jieun Ha: I used the labs to follow the twin courses: Become an OCI Foundations Associate (2025) and Become an OCI AI Foundations Associate (2025), the latter being a learning path that gives the fundamental concepts of AI, Machine Learning, Deep Learning and Generative AI with a specific focus on the practical application of these technologies within the Oracle Cloud.

Oracle Academy: Excellent. Did you pass those exams?

Jieun Ha: Yes, I am now OCI certified!

Oracle Academy: Congratulations. Were they tough?

Jieun Ha: I completed the courses step by step, including quizzes, and didn’t find them too difficult. When I encountered challenges, I first discussed them with my team, and when we needed further support, we reached out to Oracle Academy or invited Oracle experts for mentoring. The certification course was especially helpful at the beginning of our project, as it provided an essential overview of OCI and its AI capabilities.

Oracle Academy: What is your overall takeaway from having access to Oracle Cloud?

Jieun Ha: It was great to get hands-on experience with OCI and gain a structured understanding of how AI and cloud work together. I feel fortunate to have completed a project on a topic I’m passionate about using Oracle Academy resources and with the support of excellent mentors from Oracle Korea. Also, my teammates received top (A+) grades in the first and second semester. As team leader, I am grateful for their hard work and dedication, and I would like to extend my sincere thanks to our professor and to Oracle Academy for their invaluable guidance and support.

Professor Lee has now begun introducing the Oracle Academy Cloud Program to Computer Engineering juniors.

Oracle Academy: And now we hear you are working in finance…

Jieun Ha: Correct. I have just joined a major Korean state-owned bank focused on SME financing and retail banking services. I have always aspired to work in the finance sector and did a summer internship in the IT Systems Operations Department, working specifically with the DB Operations Team, where I had the opportunity to communicate with Oracle Korea. Right now, I am completing their training program before being assigned to an IT-related department. The bank uses Oracle Database extensively across most departments.

Oracle Academy: Did the Oracle skills acquired at Dongguk contribute to your being hired?

Jieun Ha: I certainly believe so. During the recruitment process, I emphasized my hands-on experience with Oracle technologies and working with Oracle experts on projects, which I believe was highly valued. I look forward to furthering my expertise in Oracle products. My goal is to be a continually growing, adaptive professional who is always eager to learn and apply new technologies.

The other students on my team also strongly believe that the experience gained from using Oracle Academy resources, project-based learning, and mentoring is invaluable for job searching, especially considering that many major companies in South Korea are Oracle customers.

Oracle Academy: Do you know if Dongguk plans to implement Artificial Intelligence with Machine Learning in Java or other AI resources?

Jieun Ha: Having just graduated, I cannot speak for the future plans of my department. However, from an undergraduate’s perspective, I believe integrating Oracle Academy’s AI and Machine Learning course into the syllabus would be a fantastic opportunity for students to learn how AI features are applied in real-world business contexts.

Oracle Academy: Thank you. And lastly, what are your interests outside of studying and the workplace?

Jieun Ha: Outside of academics, I particularly enjoy swimming and working out. I prefer swimming and weight training over more typical cardio activities like running, as I find a great deal of satisfaction in using different equipment and working up a sweat. Another personal interest of mine is fashion. I like to keep up with the changing fashion trends of each season, and I shop for reasonably priced items that complement the latest styles. I enjoy attending sales events, such as end-of-season, Black Friday, or refurbished product sales. My preference is to shop in person, not online.

Thank you, Jieun Ha, for your passion for technology and Oracle Academy.