“If it carries on like this, it will all end; SNU will no longer be able to be the best university in Korea.”

SNU has always been the leading university in Korea, owing to the collaborative efforts of the brightest students and the best professors in the nation. Recently, however, there have been voices of concern that SNU is becoming complacent while other universities are desperately developing themselves to catch up.

SNU President OH Yeon Cheon, therefore, held a meeting with the younger professors of SNU to gain fresh insight so as to recognize and address any and all potential problems. The meeting was held last Thursday evening, in one of the restaurants on campus.

Professor KIM Hyung Do and Professor KIM Kee Hoon from the Department of Physics and Astronomy, and Professor PARK Jun Seok of the School of Law participated in this meeting. The professors had a heated discussion, lasting over three hours, on the current problems of SNU and possible solutions.

"We need better technicians for better research"

All of the participating professors agreed that for SNU to develop further, it must expand its infrastructure and implement a system that supports research.

Professor Kim Hyung Do pointed out that “For over 30 years, the smartest students have come to SNU, yet over this period of time, the system to nurture these students has been stagnant.”

Professor Kim Kee Hoon added that “What determines the quality of an army is its commanding officers, and in the field of science research, it is determined by the technicians. In the leading foreign universities, technicians work for 20 to 30 years and they manage and maintain the experiment facilities, allowing the post doctorates to concentrate solely on the research. This is an area where SNU is lagging behind, as there are no technicians to support the technical aspects, and the post doctorates have to start from scratch to get accustomed to it.”

In response to this opinion, Professor OH agreed that there is a problem and promised to look in to the matter of acquiring technicians to manage and maintain technical apparatus.

"Other universities are going to catch up!"

Professors were especially anxious about the fact that KAIST University and POSTECH University were rapidly catching up with SNU.

Professor Kim Kee Hoon emphasized that “The times when SNU was the sole leader are past us, and President Suh’s reformation of KAIST is not an event that is irrelevant to SNU. While it is important to increase support, what is more fundamentally needed is an increased effort from SNU professors and an environment that promotes intense competition.”

Professor Kim Hyung Do reminded that “the closest Korean science professor to getting a Nobel Prize (in physics), Professor Park Jun Seok, chose KAIST University over SNU a few years ago. If a professor from another Korean university receives the first Nobel Prize, people would criticize and ask what SNU was doing during this time.”

To Recruit the Best

The need to recruit famous professors was also suggested during the meeting. Professor Park said, “When I call up professors to give lectures, all I have to offer them is the fact that I feel immense gratitude whenever I teach SNU students. There are no other factors to attract professors. Bringing Professor AHN Chul Soo has invigorated the Graduate School of Convergence Science and Technology and support is needed to bring in more star professors.” Professor Kim Hyung Do shared the experience of failing to employ a foreign professor after trying for a year. “There must be an incentive to lure foreign professors, but all we can say is ‘although we have nothing to offer you, please come to our university.’”

What will be the Post BK21 Project?

Professor Kim Kee Hoon voiced his concerns about the BK21 program, stating, “If the Brain Korea 21 program that supports the research of elementary studies ends next year, then there is no future for SNU. There is no way of assuring that SNU will maintain its speed of development if the program ends.”

Professor Oh said that “Of course, we cannot overlook the importance of the elementary fields; SNU is currently considering alternative measures and working hard on collecting money for the development funds.”

President Oh said after the meeting, “It was a great opportunity to listen to the candid opinions of the younger professors of SNU, and it has been a productive and insightful time.”

Written by YU Minseok, SNU English Editor, brits@snu.ac.kr   ?
Reviewed by Eli Park Sorensen, SNU Professor of Liberal Studies
Proofread by Brett Johnson, SNU English Editor