South Korea Plans to Expand '10 Seoul National Universities' Initiative

The South Korean government is expected to add at least two more universities to its '10 Seoul National Universities' initiative next year, following the selection of three regional national universities this year. Concerns have been raised that the initiative is becoming skewed towards STEM fields, potentially sidelining the humanities, and that significant support is needed to address disparities among regional national universities.

During a National Assembly Education Committee audit on October 7, Education Minister Choi Kyo-jin responded to questions about the future expansion of the '10 Seoul National Universities' initiative, stating, "We will strive to add at least two more regional universities next year, considering the budget review process and overall budget situation."

The audit not only focused on the expansion of the initiative but also highlighted structural shortcomings and neglected areas in its implementation.

Ahn Gyu-baek, a member of the Democratic Party, criticized the initiative, asking, "Isn't the design effectively becoming '10 KAISTs' despite being named '10 Seoul National Universities'?" He pointed out the overemphasis on STEM fields, noting that regions are becoming increasingly focused on STEM industries, leaving humanities graduates with few alternatives other than moving to Seoul. He emphasized that a foundation in the humanities is essential for the development of STEM fields and called for measures to nurture universities with strong humanities programs, stating, "We must not eliminate the humanities in regional national universities; we need to find a model where the humanities and natural sciences can coexist."

In response, Minister Choi acknowledged the limitations of the initiative's focus on nurturing talent linked to regional strategic industries, which has led to a perceived bias towards STEM fields. He expressed agreement with Ahn's concerns and committed to increasing investment in the humanities, stating, "We will actively work to expand support for humanities and social science research institutes, nearly doubling the budget for next year compared to this year."

Kang Kyung-sook also raised concerns about the structural disparities among regional national universities, comparing them to the University of California (UC) system. She noted, "While the 10 UC campuses have minimal variation among them, our national universities show severe disparities, with Seoul National University ranked 81st globally while Jeju National University is at 1001st." She pointed out that despite having over 8,000 more graduate students than the UC system, the number of full-time faculty at Korean national universities is less than half, and their budget is only one-tenth of that of the UC system. She stressed the need for significant faculty expansion and balanced investment to achieve world-class research competitiveness.

When asked about plans for additional selections next year, Minister Choi reiterated, "We will evaluate each university's readiness and its connection to regional growth engines, and we will plan to add at least two more after the National Assembly budget review."