Globalization key mission for Myongji University
Myongji University President You Byong-jin speaks during an interview with The Korea Times at the university’s campus in western Seoul, Nov. 15. / Courtesy of Myongji University
By Chung Hyun-chae
Myongji University is expanding support for foreign students in an effort to attract more.
“We aim to nurture pro-Korea global talented people who have experience and understanding of Korean society,” You Byong-jin, president of the school, said in an interview with The Korea Times on the university’s campus in western Seoul, Nov. 15.
“I believe that Korea needs to have more countries that can deeply understand our culture in this global age,” You added.
As part of such efforts, Myongji established a scholarship program in 2014 for descendants of Korean War veterans.
Two students have benefited from the program so far. One was a Turkish student who returned home after finishing his undergraduate studies, while the other from Ethiopia is now studying for a master’s degree in chemical engineering.
“We will continue to expand this program to cultivate pro-Koreans and build friendly relations with their home countries,” You said.
The university even plans to establish a foreigners-only college in 2018 to offer a tailored education for them.
“We are thinking of providing basic courses including Korean culture and history for foreign students during their first and second years on the school’s Yongin campus in Gyeonggi Province.”
For the college, the school will recruit 200 foreign students from China, Indonesia and some European countries. All lectures will be given in English and Chinese.
Myongji already has several departments that are popular among foreign students.
One of them is the Department of Baduk Studies in the College of Arts and Physical Education. Launched in 1997, the department is the nation’s only college course related to baduk, the Korean name for the board game go.
“We attract and train foreigners who want to specialize in baduk to become professional go players and spread it to their home countries,” You said.
About 100 students are attending the undergraduate baduk course and 10 students from Turkey, Germany, the Netherlands, Vietnam, China and Poland are taking the graduate school course.
Daniela Trinks, a German baduk player, has been teaching students there since March 2015. She received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in baduk from Myongji.
Foreign students at Myongji University have a discussion during class at the school’s campus in western Seoul. / Courtesy of Myongji University
Enhancing domestic students’ global competence
Besides attracting foreign students, Myongji strives to develop its Korean students’ global competitiveness.
The university partnered with a King Sejong Institute branch in Spain. The branches of the institute, run by the Korean government, are located throughout the world to spread the Korean language and culture.
Myongji students who go to Spain as exchange students are encouraged to participate in educational service activities, teaching Korean to local people at the institute.
“We also plan to launch an internship program with our sister universities in Vietnam so that our students can work at local companies there as interns while staying there as exchange students,” You said. “I expect such experiences to help our students improve their foreign language skills as well as gain various job experiences.”
Educational reform
Reelected twice, You has served as the university head since 2008. He has also been leading the Korean Association of Private University Presidents that has 158 members from across the nation since April.
Having such a career, You has raised efforts to improve higher education.
“With the Fourth Industrial Revolution coming, educators need to overhaul and complement their teaching methods. In that way, they can encourage their students to develop what they’ve learned to create new knowledge,” You said.
For this, Myongji launched a college education innovation center this year to help professors develop teaching methods, or design new lectures, by assisting them in collecting data.
“Professors can apply new teaching methods and demonstrate new classes at the center, which I believe will improve the quality of our university’s education,” You said.
The president also stressed the importance of personality education which is based on the value of Christianity as Myongji is a Christian school.
“I believe true personality education is to let students know how much professors care for them and to set an example of what a good citizen should be,” You said.
In line with his belief, Myongji holds a special event every spring in which professors wash the feet of their students and a concert prepared by professors for the students every autumn.