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Engineering Education in Korea - Status and Challenges

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Conference

2012 ASEE International Forum

Location

San Antonio, Texas

Publication Date

June 9, 2012

Start Date

June 9, 2012

End Date

June 10, 2012

Conference Session

Main Plenary 2 - Establishing Innovative Strategies Through the Virtuous Cycle of Research in Engineering Education - Korean Society for Engineering Education (KSEE)

Tagged Topic

ASEE International Forum

Page Count

2

Page Numbers

17.24.1 - 17.24.2

DOI

10.18260/1-2--17068

Permanent URL

https://strategy.asee.org/17068

Download Count

431

Paper Authors

author page

Woon Kyung Kim Korean Society for Engineering Education (KSEE)

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Abstract

KSEE PlenaryEngineering Education in Korea - Status and ChallengesMoon Kyum Kim (President, KSEE)Woon Kyung Kim (Director of International Affairs, KSEE)Republic of Korea (South Korea)—noted for its remarkable industrialdevelopments over the last 30 years (especially in the engineering industry)and having many readily-recognizable global engineering companies suchas Samsung, Hyundai, LG, POSCO and SK—is, owing to its stronghistorically Confucian cultural roots, also noted for Koreans’ general respectfor education as evidenced by the yearly statistics that over 70% of highschool graduates enroll in colleges. Although it may seem apparent–withthe coupling yearly statistics that about 23% outright majority of the college population major inengineering—that Republic of Korea is on smooth sail with respect to its engineering evolution,there are—due to threats pertaining to changes in industrial structure, culture, economy, politics,education, environment and social structures (and, ultimately, people’s psyche, work-ethics andliving styles)—some alarming early signals pertaining to the numbers, quality and sustainabilitypertaining to its engineering workforce. In this presentation, more introspective examination andanalysis beneath the façade is presented which, in turn, points to some challenges that lie aheadfor engineering education in Republic of Korea.In the context of the general engineering education development hierarchy, mirroring thecorresponding hierarchies associated with International Federation of Engineering EducationSocieties (IFEES) and American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE), Korean Society forEngineering Education (KSEE)—under the mission of promoting engineering education inRepublic of Korea and with close ties with the Korean Engineering Dean’s Council (KEDC), theAccreditation Board of Engineering Education in Korea (ABEEK) and the National Academy ofEngineering of Korea (NAEK)—has been playing a crucial role in disseminating newdevelopments in engineering education since its founding in 1993 and—with 1800 strongmembership from academia and industry—engages in numerous publication and academicactivities that include: journal of engineering education research, bi-monthly magazine,proceedings, reports, year-round workshops and KSEE Annual Conference in November (withan open invitation to the international community).

Kim, W. K. (2012, June), Engineering Education in Korea - Status and Challenges Paper presented at 2012 ASEE International Forum, San Antonio, Texas. 10.18260/1-2--17068

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