Female ROTC cadet receives presidential award

Lee Su-ji, an Army ROTC cadet of Sungshin Women's University / Yonhap

By Kang Seung-woo

The military's glass ceiling continues to break as Lee Su-ji, an Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) cadet of Sungshin Women's University, has been commissioned after winning an award conferred upon the most-outstanding military trainee.

According to the Ministry of National Defense, a total of 3,971 cadets began their duties as junior officers in the Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps, Monday, and Lee, a law major at the Seoul-based school, received the top prize for Army cadets from President Moon Jae-in.

The 22-year-old is the third female Army cadet to graduate summa cum laude in the military program.

“I give special thanks to my parents, who fully supported me and helped me to become an outstanding cadet, as well as my fellow ROTC cadets and instructors,” Lee said.

“I will use this award to motivate me to try my best and be committed to protecting national security.”

During her cadet training, Lee was called a “freak” by her peers due to her outstanding performance, but not everything was as easy for her as she'd hoped.

“When I watched military training on TV before joining the ROTC, I just thought it looked interesting and expected that I could do it easily,” she said.

However, she realized when she participated in her first basic military training that it was far harder than she'd assumed.

“It was never easy,” Lee said, adding that she was motivated by her fellow cadets to keep going.

During last year's winter training, Lee was also picked as the top cadet thanks to her high marks in push-ups, sit-ups and the three-kilometer run as well as marksmanship.

“Whenever I finish my assignments, I feel like my self-esteem is increasing,” she said.

The presidential award is given to one top cadet in each military branch.

In Korea, the college-based officer training program was established in 1961 and women were first allowed to enroll in the ROTC in 2010.