The Seoul National University Presidential Recommendation Committee, responsible for selecting the 29th president of the university, narrowed down four preliminary candidates on September 9: Kang Jun-ho, professor in the Department of Physical Education at the College of Education; Kim Hyun-cheol, professor at the Graduate School of International Studies; Lee Jae-young, professor in the Department of English Language and Literature at the College of Humanities; and Choi Hae-cheon, professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the College of Engineering. Ryu Hong-lim, the current president (School of Social Sciences, Department of Political Science and International Relations), who sought reappointment, was eliminated.
The committee shortlisted the four preliminary candidates after a presentation session involving 12 candidates who applied for the presidency. The four candidates will hold presentation sessions on September 17 at the Yeongeon Campus and September 22 at the Gwanak Campus. Following this, a policy evaluation panel comprising faculty, staff, and students will vote on October 7 to select the final three candidates. The university’s board of trustees will then elect one of these three as the final candidate through voting. The board’s selected candidate will be appointed president by the president of the republic upon recommendation by the Minister of Education. The next president’s term (four years) will begin in February next year.
Meanwhile, a recent survey of Seoul National University professors revealed that “salary increases” was identified as the top priority for the next president. In an online survey involving 414 out of approximately 1,500 professors, the task “It is necessary to raise salaries to secure outstanding faculty and strengthen the university’s competitiveness” received an average score of 9.1 out of 21 tasks, the highest. The current average annual salary of Seoul National University professors is around 120 million Korean won. This is lower than Harvard University in the U.S., where professors earn over 300 million Korean won, as well as Yonsei University in South Korea, where professors earn 180 million Korean won.
Professors also rated the task “To actively manage development funds to secure financial resources, like competing universities” at 8.7 points, and the tasks “Allow colleges and departments to autonomously use budgets” and “Expand the autonomy of colleges and departments in operating academic programs and curricula” each at 8.3 points.
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