University of Seoul Launches Short-Term "Seoul Policy Support Officer Academy" Program

Educational Program Launched to Nurture Practical Policy Talent

The University of Seoul, in collaboration with the Seoul Metropolitan Council, has officially launched the "2nd and 3rd Seoul Policy Support Officer Academy Short-Term Program" starting in July.

Opening ceremony of the 2nd and 3rd Seoul Policy Support Officer Academy at University of Seoul. University of Seoul

This program is a policy education course designed for citizens, aiming to enhance the policy expertise of local councils. It is structured to systematically develop the competencies required for all aspects of legislative activities in local councils, from policy planning to analysis and evaluation.

The purpose of this short-term program is to train prospective policy support officers who can actively work in real policy settings, based on an understanding of Seoul's municipal administration and legislative activities.

The training is divided into a weekday session (five days) and a weekend session (five weeks). It covers key topics such as the structure and functions of local councils, budget analysis, and administrative audits, combining both theoretical and practical approaches.

Participants will acquire practical skills through a hands-on curriculum that includes policy document analysis, practice in drafting inquiries, and expert feedback.

In particular, this short-term program is distinguished from the existing long-term program (over 160 hours) by its format, allowing citizens with time constraints to effectively learn the core content.

Song Heonjae, Director of the Institute of Lifelong Education at the University of Seoul, explained, "The Seoul Policy Support Officer Academy is designed to provide high-quality education to talented individuals who lack experience in the National Assembly or local councils and to continuously foster a pool of policy support officers." He added, "The program is structured to allow participants to intensively acquire the basic competencies and practical skills required of policy support officers, such as budgeting and settlement, administrative audits, and ordinances."

The Seoul Metropolitan Council and the University of Seoul plan to continue offering a variety of practical training programs to ensure the stable establishment of the policy support officer system and to strengthen the policy capabilities of local councils.

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