Dear students, faculty, alumni, and supporters of Seoul National University! Today, we celebrate the 76th anniversary of Seoul National University, and on this occasion, I feel the heavy weight of my responsibilities as President of our university. I am deeply grateful to our alumni and the many people for their continuous support of our university. I also thank all faculty members and students who have endeavored in their studies, research, and responsibilities despite the difficulties they had to face.
While the COVID-19 outbreak is diminishing, the pandemic has caused permanent changes to the world, such as the accelerated pace of the fourth industrial revolution and the transition into the digital era within universities. Another essential challenge for Korean universities is the drastic decrease in our nation’s population and the consequential reduction of the school-age population. Seoul National University is preparing to respond actively to these demands and challenges while considering its role and responsibilities as the most prestigious institute of higher education in Korea.
Similarly to the history of Korea’s industrial development, Seoul National University has developed by benchmarking and following the example of universities in developed countries. As a result, we have now caught up with many of our role models and maintain a top position in various world university rankings. The same approach, however, will no longer help maintain or improve our current standing. Now is the time for us at Seoul National University to lead and establish our own path based on the accumulated knowledge and experience of our past. While education is universal, its subjects and methods do not have to be uniform. We need to establish our own practices as a university. Seoul National University must be willing to endure the pain of change during this process of transformation and innovation.
The best way to respond to impending difficulties and challenges is to predict the mid-to-long-term effects and improve the university’s competencies and capabilities. Seoul National University has been unable to establish a long-term development plan for the last fifteen years since 2007. We were harried by our daily tasks and tended only to our most urgent issues. But during this time, there were drastic internal and external changes in the environment, such as SNU’s transition to a national university corporation. Unfortunately, we failed to address our key responsibilities responding to these changes. Over the past two years, we have thus established a fifteen-year development plan for Seoul National University to address our challenges. Close to one hundred board members, including external consultants, have met countless times to examine all aspects of the university, including university governance, education, research, student support and welfare, globalization and social responsibility, and finances, and propose concrete action plans. The resulting 2040 Seoul National University Development Plan includes action plans such as breaking the boundaries between departments, introducing convergent undergraduate programs for creative and convergent innovation in education, broadening the admission units and flexible major selection for more autonomy, establishing an open and rotational university model to re-educate alumni, the introduction of Residential Colleges, aiming for fruitful globalization, and the realization of an R&D startup ecosystem linking the university with our society and industry. This development plan is not a pretty report consisting of empty words but rather a code of practice and a self-declaration based on self-reflection. Now is the time to promote and implement the 2040 Seoul National University Development Plan.
Dear members of Seoul National University,
Two months ago, record rainfall caused severe damage across the country, and Seoul National University was no exception. Laboratories, libraries, and infrastructure were damaged or destroyed by the flood. The loss of electricity and Internet access led to interruptions in teaching and research and also affected the administration. In these challenging times, graduate students guarded their laboratories throughout the night by removing much of the water. Faculty and staff members spent nights working on restoring the campus. The Student Council organized a group of volunteers consisting of close to three-hundred students. Even now, approximately two-hundred students are volunteering to manually dab and dry individual pages of library books. The autonomy and camaraderie within Seoul National University shined during these ordeals, and I am proud of our university. We have never forgotten that the role and responsibilities of Seoul National University are to forge a path in the right direction and to be a worthy role model for our society.
Over the past few years, South Korea has gained global recognition in cultural fields. Many artists play active roles globally in TV shows, movies, classical music, and so on. Art and culture should be vital pieces of Seoul National University, and we have established the Cultural Center to commemorate this era of culture. The Seoul National University Cultural Center will support cultural activities of its members, interact with the outside community, and contribute to the development of K-Culture. The old Power Plant building has been transformed into a cultural space - a facility that used to heat the campus now supplies cultural energy. The main gate, redesigned as a square, has already become a visitor attraction. The ongoing transformation of our campus shows us the potential and future of Seoul National University. A campus ground can be considered as an empty canvas for a university. Even as we restore the flood-damaged areas of the campus, we are taking into consideration the fundamental causes of the flooding and damage and taking preventative action. Let us create an environmentally friendly campus, safe from natural disasters, where art and culture can flourish.
Dear students, faculty, alumni, and supporters of Seoul National University! Soon we will be greeting the 28th President of Seoul National University. My thoughts go back to the school field trips in my childhood. The highlight of these field days was the relay races. As the baton handoffs determine the victory of a relay, I end my speech with a vow that I will do my utmost best as the President to pass on successfully the proud legacy of Seoul National University. Thank you very much.
October 14, 2022
President of Seoul National University Se-Jung Oh