[New Year's Address] Yoo Hong-rim, President of Seoul National University, "We Will Strive to Establish Undergraduate Colleges and Advanced Convergence Departments to Foster Creative Talent"

Mention of Improvement in Administrative Organization and Operation
Accelerating Preparations for the '50th Anniversary of Seoul National University Integration'

Yoo Hong-rim, President of Seoul National University, announced in his New Year's address on the 2nd that he will focus on establishing an 'Undergraduate College' and an 'Advanced Convergence Department' to foster creative talents.

Yoo Hong-rim, President of Seoul National University. [Photo by Seoul National University]

President Yoo identified 'educational innovation' as the top priority, stating, "Today, our university must nurture creative talents who actively pioneer the future in an uncertain and rapidly changing era to justify its existence," and added, "The Undergraduate College that Seoul National University is promoting aims to dismantle the conventional internal barriers within the university and strengthen education in essential common core and convergence competencies for future society."

He continued, "We will also strive to ensure that the Advanced Convergence Department, launching this year, operates and develops in line with these goals." The Undergraduate College is scheduled to open in March 2025, and the Advanced Convergence Department aims to launch this year.

President Yoo emphasized, "We must further enhance creative capabilities to solve the challenges humanity faces," and said, "In the new year, we will achieve the advancement of research capabilities through various challenges, including building a global cluster and developing an industry-government-academia convergence research platform."

He also expressed his intention to improve administrative organization, operational methods, and work processes. President Yoo stated, "For the university's core activities such as education, research, and social contribution to gain vitality and leap forward, it is essential to enhance the supporting administrative capabilities," adding, "We will pursue a transition to a more agile and horizontal organization and increase investment and education to strengthen staff capabilities."

He mentioned the upcoming '50th Anniversary of Seoul National University's Integration' next year. He emphasized, "The year 2024 is also a time to steadily prepare for the 50th anniversary of Seoul National University's integration, which will arrive the following year," and added, "To realize the ideal of integration that began with the move to the Gwanak campus in 1975, various academic fields must transcend self-centeredness and create synergy."

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