Regional University Presidents: "Semiconductor Talent Development Should Focus on Non-Capital Areas by Region"

Meeting between the Presidents' Council of 7 Regions and Deputy Prime Minister Park Soon-ae
Opposition to expanding semiconductor quotas and using reserved quotas in the Seoul Metropolitan Area
Proposal to allocate quotas across 9 non-metropolitan regions for training

Presidents of regional universities have opposed the Seoul metropolitan area universities' move to expand the enrollment quota for semiconductor departments and have urged the Ministry of Education to implement a ‘regional manpower development’ policy for local universities.

On the 8th, the chairpersons of the council of presidents from seven non-metropolitan university regions will attend a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Park Soon-ae at the Korea Educational Facilities Safety Institute. Initially, the council planned to hold a press conference, but the Ministry of Education, concerned about the backlash from presidents immediately after the minister’s inauguration, arranged a private meeting instead.

The government plans to announce semiconductor manpower development measures in mid-month. It is known that the plan includes expanding the enrollment quota for semiconductor departments by utilizing previously reduced quotas at Seoul metropolitan universities, as well as financial support measures related to faculty and facility investments. In response, regional universities are opposing the government’s semiconductor manpower policies, arguing that they will result in the outflow of local talent to the metropolitan area. The council of presidents stated, "If the total enrollment quota of metropolitan universities increases, regional universities will be directly impacted by the corresponding increase. Using ‘reserved quotas’ also essentially leads to the outflow of local talent to the metropolitan area."

The council proposed expanding semiconductor enrollment quotas across nine regions excluding the metropolitan area. They suggested selecting more than 10 universities in each of the nine regions and training 60 students per university. According to the ‘Industrial Technology Workforce Supply and Demand Survey Report’ by the Korea Institute for Industrial Technology Promotion, the shortage in the semiconductor field is estimated at around 1,600 people. The number of students graduating from semiconductor contract departments (360 students) established and operated by Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, and the AI Semiconductor Engineering Department at Seoul National University’s interdisciplinary major (440 students), along with related graduates from regional universities, totals about 1,000 students. Among these, about 530 should graduate from regional universities, while metropolitan universities should be encouraged to establish specialized tracks such as semiconductor design majors and interdisciplinary majors focused on system semiconductors.

The council emphasized, "Semiconductor manpower development centered on regional universities will be the driving force for the development of local industries," and added, "Instead of increasing undergraduate enrollment quotas at metropolitan universities, it is necessary to adjust quotas within universities or have existing semiconductor department students complete additional curricula. To train master’s and doctoral level personnel, expanding graduate school quotas nationwide, including metropolitan universities, is essential."

Additionally, they proposed expanding the ‘Digital Innovation Shared University’ project, a cooperative model among universities, to include semiconductor manpower development. "Regional hub universities and local universities can collaborate to organize faculty and curricula by process and field, award joint degrees, and certify expertise," they explained. They also mentioned the need to expand operational funding for semiconductor design education centers for system semiconductor education and to strengthen facility investments in semiconductor process education centers to expand semiconductor process education programs.

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