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Sejong Youth Startup Academy Operator Achieves National 2nd Place for Two Consecutive Years - Education Institution, Not VC, Focuses on Foundational Skills for Entrepreneurial Stage Until Revenue Structure is Complete Underdogs has announced that it achieved consecutive 2nd place nationally in the evaluation of Youth Startup Academy (Cheonchangsa) operators for two years while running Sejong Cheonchangsa. The company nurtures startups as growth partners rather than selective investment targets. Cheonchangsa is a project overseen by the Korea Institute of Startup and Entrepreneurship Development (KISED) to expand initial business growth potential for young entrepreneurs under 39 years old and improve business commercialization success rates. Operating since 2011, it has produced 6,741 young entrepreneurs across 18 regions nationwide. KISED selects private operators with excellent startup support capabilities to provide entrepreneurship education, commercialization support, and networking programs. Private operators are broadly classified into accelerators and startup education specialist institutions. Sejong Cheonchangsa, which opened in 2021, has recorded consecutive 2nd place in the national evaluation for two years under Underdogs, a startup education specialist institution. The gap with 1st place was a mere 0.3 points. The evaluation comprises three categories: qualitative assessment based on satisfaction surveys (education, operation, coaching satisfaction), quantitative evaluation of key indicators (sales, employment, investment), and presentation evaluation. In 2022, Underdogs ranked 1st in the first and second categories. Underdogs, as the operating institution for Sejong Cheonchangsa during this period, was uniquely the only startup education specialist among accelerator operating institutions to possess its own content. Lee Han-uk, Underdogs Partner and Sejong Cheonchangsa Center Director for two years, stated: "Many people tend to equate the halo effect of large investment amounts with startup performance, but this is merely part of the process. Since startup long-term competitiveness stems from solid revenue structures, we maintain an educational perspective that intensively collaborates on business model establishment and revenue structure completion as a precursor stage to investment." He continued: "Rather than approaching trainees from a deal sourcing perspective to select investment targets, we cultivated all entrepreneurs to survive without dropouts, which opened opportunities for startup teams. For the efforts to build regional and economic innovation momentum through youth entrepreneur development to bear fruit, a long-term perspective that does not overlook fundamentals is essential. We hope that the achievements of Sejong Cheonchangsa will lead to expanded startup development and support from an educational perspective, creating an environment that provides broader opportunities for more startups." Underdogs (CEO Cho Sang-rae) is a startup education specialist company. Since its establishment in 2015, it has discovered and nurtured over 12,000 innovative entrepreneurs nationwide. The name derives from 'underdog' in sports, referring to teams or athletes with low chances of winning, reflecting the company's intention to create a startup ecosystem that drives social innovation and changes the world through business despite slim possibilities. Underdogs has transformed one-directional lecture-centered entrepreneurship education into practical coaching education. In 2023, based on its practical project-based startup talent development expertise, it plans to launch 'Startup-type Core Talent Development' that creates entrepreneurial peers, opening a new chapter in customized talent education. As a subsidiary of NewBlack, a company builder with linked investment functions, it supports entrepreneur development, deployment, and growth.