Presidents Urge "Tuition, Financial Support, and Evaluation Improvement"... Ministry of Education Promises to "Ease Regulations"

University Presidents Urge Deregulation in Higher Education
Tuition Frozen for 14 Years, Higher Education Funding Excluded from National Agenda
Ministry of Education to Announce Tuition Regulation Alternatives Soon
Amendments to Four Major Requirements by Year-End, Evaluation System Improvements Planned
Commitments to Introduce Regional Talent Investment Agreements for Local Universities, Expand RIS Projects Nationwide

On the 23rd, 133 university presidents attended the 2022 Summer Presidents' Seminar hosted by the Korea Council for University Education at the Inter-Burgo Hotel in Suseong-gu, Daegu.

"Tuition has been frozen for 14 years, so even if we cover personnel and operating expenses with tuition fees, it is difficult to manage without corporate support." (Park No-jun, President of Anyang University)

"Local regions and local universities are on the brink of collapse. The new government has presented the agenda of the 'Era of Local Universities,' but it is necessary to gather opinions from all presidents and have discussions." (Park Maeng-su, President of Wonkwang University)

University presidents gathered for the first time since the launch of the new government to urge the concretization of financial support for higher education, deregulation of tuition fees, improvement of evaluation systems, and support measures for local universities.

On the 23rd, the Korea Council for University Education held the '2022 Summer Presidents Seminar' at the Inter-Burgo Hotel in Suseong-gu, Daegu, where presidents from 133 universities discussed current issues in higher education policy.

The presidents unanimously agreed that clear guidelines should be presented regarding financial support for higher education, which is not included in the national agenda, and the regulation of tuition fees that have been frozen for 14 years.

Kim Heon-young, President of Kangwon National University, pointed out, "Universities are struggling financially as it has become difficult to use various operating expenses and finances," adding, "There is no specific plan for higher education financial support in the national agenda."

The Ministry of Education also expressed its intention to actively pursue regulatory improvements. The government has proposed the training of one million digital talents, easing of four major requirements, and improvement of evaluation systems as national agenda items.

Jang Sang-yoon, Vice Minister of Education, said, "Tuition fees have been indirectly regulated by linking them to the Type 2 National Scholarship, and there is a consensus within the government that this should be lifted," adding, "We are consulting with financial authorities and will soon finalize specific alternatives."

Regarding financial support for higher education, Vice Minister Jang said, "The government fully agrees on the need to expand the scale of higher education financial support. Rather than making minor adjustments with a one-year budget, it is appropriate to establish a stable funding framework," adding, "We are reviewing various alternatives, including enacting special laws or creating dedicated accounts."

On the 23rd, Jang Sang-yoon, Vice Minister of Education (second from the left), is speaking at the 2022 Summer Presidents' Seminar of the Korea Council for University Education held at Inter-Burgo Hotel in Suseong-gu, Daegu.

There is also a strong demand to move away from uniform standards in university evaluation systems such as the 3rd cycle of the University Basic Competency Diagnosis.

Hwang Deok-hyung, President of Seoul Theological University, pointed out, "When professor recruitment rates are evaluated on a relative scale, universities that have already exceeded 80-90% see score differences of just 1%. Small universities have no difficulty managing departments even if they exceed 80%," adding, "Because of relative evaluation, universities have to invest a lot of funds to meet this indicator, which causes difficulties, so it needs to be changed to an absolute indicator."

The Ministry of Education plans to reform the current evaluation system that checks whether indicators are met and grant autonomy through a 'pre-financial support followed by performance management' approach.

Vice Minister Jang said, "We will establish customized performance management systems for each university, where they report project outcomes based on self-set goals and link project funding accordingly," adding, "For marginal universities, which are currently excluded from financial support without further measures, we plan to grant regulatory exceptions to allow the use of reserves, disposal of assets for structural improvement purposes, and recognition of exceptions if merged with other universities, thereby providing opportunities for re-challenge."

Especially, local universities are on the verge of collapse due to difficulties in recruiting new students. Although the current school-age population is in the mid-400,000s, it is expected to fall below 300,000 in 12 years, signaling an 'enrollment resource cliff,' making it urgent to prepare support measures for higher education. The government plans to introduce a Regional Talent Investment Agreement system as a measure to foster local universities and expand the local innovation project based on cooperation between local governments and universities to all non-metropolitan areas. A 'Higher Education Committee' will also be introduced to delegate administrative and financial authority of local universities to local governments.

Kim Heon-young, President of Kangwon National University, pointed out, "Both the Regional Talent Investment Agreement system and the establishment of the Higher Education Committee must assume a horizontal relationship with local governments." Lee Byung-soo, President of Kosin University, said, "There is a skeptical view on how to lead the era of local universities."

In response, Vice Minister Jang said, "The idea of the Higher Education Committee came from the perspective of moving beyond simply providing more financial support to local universities, aiming for the local community to become a hub to find jobs, create foundations, and set visions for regional development," adding, "We do not intend to mandate the establishment of committees uniformly across all regions or to push them simultaneously within the same framework."

Park Maeng-su, President of Wonkwang University, said, "Only when higher education policies that allow coexistence and development between metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas, and between large and small universities, emerge will the phrase 'Era of Local Universities' truly resonate."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.