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Distinguished SNU Members

SNU Awards /

Distinguished SNU Members

Seoul National University honors the people who made distinguished achievements in their lives with the Distinguished SNU Members Award. It has been the highest honor bestowed upon SNU alumni or faculty since 1991. The award is granted annually on the founding anniversary of the university during the official anniversary ceremony.

HWANG Dong-kyu/Poet
Professor, Seoul National University

HWANG Dong-kyu is one of the most beloved poet in modern Korean literary history. He published hundreds of poems that philosophically reflected Korean society. His works has long been honored by both critics and the public.

JEI Paul Jeong-gu/Urban poor activist
National Assembly Member

JEI Paul Jeong-gu(1944-1999) was the leader of the urban poor who had been the most vulnerable during the rapid modernization of Korea. Under his leadership, the shanty town dwellers in Seoul was transformed into a “functioning and thriving” community. He received the 1986 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership, and later became the National Assembly and worked for the poor.

KIM Young-sam/President of South Korea

KIM Young-sam(1927-2015) was a pro-democracy activist who served as the Korean president from 1993-1998. He fought against military dictators for decades and laid the foundation for a peaceful power transfer in a country that had been marked by military coups. Kim purged politicized generals, and introduced a landmark reform aimed at transparency in financial transactions.

KIM Yun-sik/Literary critic
Professor, Seoul National University

Professor KIM Yun-sik is the widely respected authority on Korean literature. His critics and theories became the textbook of Korean modern literature study.

SEO Jeong-hwa/Minister of the Interior
National Assembly Member
President of SNU Alumni Association

Serving as the Minister of the Interior and a member of the National Assembly, SEO Jeong-hwa contributed to the development of public administration and industry of Korea.