Pukyong National University

Pukyong National University and Korea maritime & ocean university jointly applied for 'glocal university 30'

- expected to grow into the world's largest national university specializing in marine and fisheries

- to create new maritime industry value by converging cutting-edge fields

Pukyong National University (President Jang Young-Soo) and the National Korea maritime & ocean university (president Ryu Dong-Geun) announced on February 22 that they submit an innovation plan in the form of a university confederation to the project 'glocal university 30'.

Following the first official discussion of the integration of Pukyong National University and the National Korea maritime and ocean university in December last year, expectations are high that the world's largest specialized national university in the marine and fisheries field will be newly born as the two universities decided to form a joint university ahead of the public contest for the project, glocal university 30.

The purpose is to jointly present a university innovation model for the two universities to develop into a joint university premised on solid cooperation. The two universities intend to create a synergy effect in the marine and fisheries field by leading the convergence of cutting-edge and specialized fields by forming a single governance unit to achieve a common goal.

It is predicted that if the two national universities join forces, a world-class base can be created that will lead a major transformation in Korea's marine and fisheries science and technology field. If the two universities are combined, it will be the largest in Busan with an enrollment quota of 5,000 and 28,000 enrolled students, and the largest in the country in the field of education and research related to marine and fisheries.

Both universities are working to create new maritime industry value that combines the ocean, including cutting-edge fields of shipping, port logistics, marine finance, environment, bio, marine resources, marine robots, and marine drones, also they plan to create a synergy effect in nurturing future talent in cutting-edge new industries such as semiconductors, IT, digital finance, AI, and nano,

A synergy effect is also expected with the Busan region, which is preparing to leap forward as a global maritime city by establishing a 'K-ocean cluster' cooperating system with marine cluster institutions, research institutes like the National fisheries research & development institute, and related companies in the Dongsam innovation district, such as the Korea institute of ocean science and technology in Busan as well as the Ministry of oceans and fisheries by utilizing the infrastructure specialized for education, R&D, and talent development in the marine and fisheries field, including the two universities' four state-of-the-art training ships.

Pukyong National University and the National Korea maritime & ocean university plan to proceed transparently with the future process following the formation of a joint university through a process of publicizing it within the school and collecting opinions.

President Jang Young-Soo said, "I believe that Pukyong University, which has led the fisheries, marine, life sciences, environmental field and has played an active role as a central institution in the education and industrial development of Busan, a global maritime city, will leap forward as the world's best marine science university that will lead the sustainable future of the global environment and humanity," he added, "Based on the innovative DNA of our university, which has the history of being the first national university to be integrated with National fisheries university of Busan and Busan national university of technology, we will do our best to nurture future talent by cooperating with an open mind with the National Korea maritime & ocean university, which has been leading the shipping and port fields."

Ryu Dong-Geun, president of the National Korea maritime & ocean university, expressed his ambition, "The National Korea maritime & ocean university, a specialized university in the maritime field, is producing excellent talent in the fields of shipping, ports, and logistics, achieving the highest graduate employment rate and new student recruitment rate despite the difficulties faced by local universities," he continued, "We will approach cooperation with Pukyong National University with an open mind, and will continue to do our best to help our students become key talents in the marine and fisheries field. I believe that both universities will work together to grow into a representative university in the world's oceans beyond the region and country." <Pukyong Today>