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- Restraining Fat stem cell differentiation to avoid child obesity
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Korean researchers have figured out the mechanism for the cause of obesity. This contribution can be led to developing new obesity-curing drugs, especially in child obesity. Here’s the report from Mr. Shin. Last year, it is estimated by the CDC that 10% of children and teenagers are obese. Once the fat cell has been created, it never vanishes causing adult obesity. Prof. Choi, Min-kyu(Hallym Univ. Medical Center) Chile obesity is mainly caused by increasing fat cells. It often leads to adult obesity and increases possibility of hypertension or diabetes. Local researchers presented in the acdemic journal that they found the mechanism how protein induces fat cells to cause obesity. ‘S6K1’, a signal transmitter in the body, was dyed in green to observe the fat stem cells. S6K1 is activated by food intake, causing excessive fat cells. It seems that a new medicine can be developed to prevent S6K1. Prof. Han, Jung-hwan(Sungkyunkwan University) “If we can restrain S6K1 from going into the nucleus, it will be a safe medicine to cure child obesity problem.” In fact, the mouse that had restrained S6K1 weighted less than half of the mouse without restraint. Also, visceral fat was only 1/4. If it is possible to prevent excessive differentiation from the stem cell to fat cell, the stem cell can differentiate into the bone or muscle, lessening the possibility of obesity. -
- 작성일 2016-05-04
- 조회수 3197
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- Successful launch of Korean led space telescope
- The Soyuz rocket successfully launched from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia, on the morning of April 28th. One of the satellites the rocket was transporting loaded the space telescope, which is designed for observing gamma-ray bursts. The telescope was developed by a joint-research team consisting of five countries, led by Sungkyunkwan University’s, Professor of Physics, Il Hung Park. Prof. Park explained; “It is almost the first time we produced satisfactory results in the field of space through international joint research. I will study the space flash including gamma-ray bursts during the next three years, whereafter I will share my findings with the public".
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- 작성일 2016-05-04
- 조회수 3067
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- Fall in Love with Korean Language - Korean Writing Contest Held in Ho Chi Minh City
- Fall in Love with Korean Language - Korean Writing Contest Held in Ho Chi Minh City Students Utilize the Topic 'Seed' to Show off Their Korean Writing Skills “Just as a seed in the ground grows towards the sun, we have to work hard for our future.” (Ding Thi Nga, Ho Chi Minh Human Science University) “There are no bad seeds in the beginning; the important thing is where we plant them.” (Line Sreinit, Royal Phenomph University) The ‘SungKyun Korean Writing Contest’, hosted by Sungkyunkwan University with the goal of spreading interest and proficiency in the Korean language, was held on the 25th of this month at Eden Saigon Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. There were 37 students chosen from 15 universities in 4 countries in Southeast Asia such as Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand. It was filled with the enthusiasm of the local university students eager to display their skills and win a chance to study in Korea. The students used the ‘seed’ metaphor to write about the future and the concept of hope. Even though the writing wasn’t perfect, the students’ love for the Korean language was reflected in each letter. Chief Examiner, Prof. Jae Ho Sung, of SKKU’s School of Law said, “We have chosen seed as the topic because we wish that the contest will be a bridge that connects not only the economics but also the social culture and humanitarianism of Korea and Southeast Asia.” Lee Yeon Le (21) from Ho Chi Minh City University of Social Sciences and Humanities who is majoring Korean studies said, “It regrettable that I spent too much time thinking about how to write about the subject ‘seed’ because it has various meanings.” Ding Thi Nga (23) won first prize and the other twenty-three students were honored with prizes as well. The first, second, and third prize winners were awarded full scholarships to attend Sungkyunkwan University’s master’s course. The Vice President of International Affairs and also the Chairman of the Writing Contest Committee, Dr. Suke Kyu Lee, said, “There have been lots of changes since we have been holding the writing contest four times a year. For example, Vietnamese middle schools and high schools have chosen to have Korean taught as a second foreign language from this year.”
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- 작성일 2016-05-02
- 조회수 3112
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- Early Adoption of Software Based Education in SKKU, Ewha, and KU
- The leading universities in Korea have begun to reorganize their Computer Science departments to incorporate software technology. These efforts are intended to satisfy the demands of technicians working in the software sector. Starting next year, Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU) has decided to increase enrollment in the Department of Software from 50 to 135. On April 8th, a faculty member involved announced, “The decision has been made to expand the Department of Software by downsizing and altering the Faculty of Computer Science & Engineering, in which there are a lot of possibilities such as scholarships and a free exchange student program for students. Five years since it was established in 2011, SKKU’s Department of Software has initiated a special course where bachelor’s and master’s degrees can be directly obtained. The students who undertake the course will have great opportunities such as studying with around thirty major companies in Korea like Samsung and SK Planet and visiting global enterprises like Google and Facebook. There is a full scholarship offered for the top 50 ranked students and a 50% scholarship offered for extra students chosen annually. Ewha University appears to be executing the same plan as SKKU by enlarging its Department of Computer Science and Engineering and reorganizing it as the Department of Software; the amount of enrollment is undetermined though. The university has changed its educational policies starting from the 2016 spring semester so that every freshman, except in the Department of Pharmacology, must take information technology and computer science classes for graduation. These are all related to software technology. A faculty member said, “The Ewha Software Center will be built next year for teaching software technology and promoting female professionals in the field.” In the meantime, Korea University (KU) has been initiating a “Software-friendly Plan” by instituting a new department that combines the studies of language, brain science, and computer technology (LB&C). KU is able to enroll up to 20 students in the new department and they must acquire 36 credits to obtain a degree in LB&C. Dongguk University has also decided to begin fostering software education in the 2016 fall semester. It will offer various classes in the subject by fusing it with Criminalistics, Robot Convergence, and Cultural Art. A faculty member stated that the motivation for developing the new software-oriented majors with the aforementioned subjects was because they have become the primary ones students are interested in at the university.
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- 작성일 2016-04-27
- 조회수 3204
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- SKKUZINE Cover Story - Sungkyun Tutor & Tutee
- < SKKUZINE Cover Story - Sungkyun Tutor & Tutee > The grading systems between universities and high schools show many differences in the methods ofevaluation. A few students may have difficulties studying because they encounter new lecture styles and high level lectures. For those who are stressed out about how to study, this cover story introduces a program called ‘Sungkyun Tutor & Tutee’. Last September, Cover Story reported on the ‘Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL)’. The CTL was established in March of 2001 for the purpose of realizing the school’s long-term vision, a big jump into the world’s top 100 research-oriented universities, by supporting teaching & learning, developing research, and building an effective education infrastructure. CTL has been providing many programs such as learning consultation and teaching & learning support. One of programs CTL provides, the ‘Sungkyun Tutor and Tutee’ program, has been running since the second half of 2009. This program is open every semester. From last year, not only major courses but also liberal arts courses have become subjects in this program. -Members of ‘Sungkyun Tutor & Tutee’ Four different groups participate in this program: CTL, teaching tutor, tutor, and tutee. CTL intermediates between tutor and tutee, and manages the program by supporting teaching & learning. Teaching tutor, which mainly consists of graduate students, is in charge of leading communication between CTL and tutoring groups, and monitoring how tutoring groups work on/offline. The tutor and tutee program is mainly intended for undergraduate students. Those who have taken a course that they want to teach in their first year and have gotten an outstanding grade (GPA over 4.0) in the course are qualified to be a tutor. A tutee should be a student who is taking the course in the corresponding semester. This program is aimed for helping tutees who have difficulties studying certain courses by allowing them to study corresponding courses with those who scored highly in it. Students are allowed to apply for this program by making a tutor-tutee group themselves. -Orientation From 14th of March to 24th of June, the first semester program of this year has a 15 week work period. The first official event for this program is the orientation. To get detailed information that is different year to year, students need to come to the orientation. The orientation will be held on the 23rd of March from 6:00 to 7:00 PM at the Suwon campus and the 24th of March at the same time at the Seoul campus. In the orientation, tutors and tutees will meet for the first time and they will design and plan how to work together. They will decide when and where they will meet and which roles each participant will be in charge of. After students have a learning capability test, the orientation will end. -How they work Tutor & Tutee groups should do their tutoring work over ten times and over 15 hours within 4 months. They are obliged to write an activity report right after every tutoring session. They must hand in their reports through NAVER cafe. Besides activity reports, they also need to hand in evaluation reports between the 6th and 22nd of June. With this, tutors need to submit a final result report and tutees need to submit a review of the program. Tutors not only tutor but also manage a teaching support fund. Tutors can receive supporting funds once they hand in activity receipts and demands for payment between the 20th and 24th of June. Teaching supporting funds will be delivered collectively to the tutors’ bank accounts and the maximum is 100,000 KRW (150,000 KRW once the number of members exceeds 8, including tutors). As this is a national fund, students are bound to submit activity receipts to receive the funds. -Benefits of the program Completion certificates (Non-academic program) will be issued for tutors who actively participate in the program. Students can get this certificate on GLS by themselves. By completing non-academic programs, students can accumulate points that can help them acquire school rewards such as scholarships. Unlike previously when only tutors could obtain benefits, from this semester both tutors and tutees can receive completion certificates and accumulate points. That said, it is restricted to tutees who have been given an evaluation over 3 points by their tutor and teaching tutor. On top of this, their work hours will count as school volunteer time which is needed for the Insung-pum graduation requirement. Students can receive a minimum of 15 hours and a maximum 20 hours of volunteer time as they work. The evaluation report that tutors and tutees submit is referred to when they are awarded. Tutors and tutees are awarded according to the sum of the tutor and tutee’s evaluation (40%) and the teaching tutor and CTL evaluation (30%). First prize tutors will get award certificates and win a prize of 200,000 KRW. Also, they will get additional points when they apply to be exchange students. Second prize tutors and tutees will get award certificates and win a prize of 150,000 KRW and 100,000 KRW, respectively. -Tutoring alteration and withdrawal It is forbidden to withdraw from the program after a tutoring group has been approved. There will be disadvantages someone rejoins the program after they withdraw from it. If a tutor wants to disband their group or enter into another group, they need to submit a disband report or alteration application form to the CTL (ctl_skku@skku.edu). They also need to submit an alteration application form when they want to let tutees in or out. Sungkyun Tutoring not only provides an opportunity for deeper understanding of specific subjects, but is also a chance to meet new people and make new bonds. This is helpful for tutees to lead their studies themselves as well. -Researcher, Yong Jung Sun Researcher Yong, Jung Sun is in charge of the Sungkyun Tutoring Program in CLT. What is the advantage of the points which are given to students when they carry out a tutoring program? Students can accumulate points whenever they take non-academic programs in school. If the points are accumulated according to certain standards, the students will have chances to get scholarships. -What does Sungkyun Tutoring aim to do? We take a lot of one-sided lectures by professors in the university just like we did in high school. We concluded that group studies outside the classroom are a way to differentiate what we do in the university from what we did in high school. What we aim for with Sungkyun Tutoring is not one-sided lectures by the tutors. A tutor is just a student who studied the same thing earlier and leads the exchange. A tutor is not there just to deliver knowledge. We do not want tutees to just passively attend another one-sided lecture. A lot of tutors say that they realized that they did not know everything about the lectures they attended. It would be ideal if tutors also learn from the tutees and tutees motivate each other and generate positive influence. That is where the group study starts. And tutors say, through group study they experience what it is like to be a leader and learn how a good leader should act. It is best to lead group studies into active, spontaneous learning. I think group study is possible outside the classroom. What you can gain from Sungkyun Tutoring is not only a good GPA, but also new relationships. It is hard to participate in something in the university without drinking. I think that it would be a fresh pleasure to meet new people and become friends without involving alcohol. A lot of tutors and tutees are saying that it was a bit weird at first, but now it is quite fun to discuss and debate about academic issues. Sungkyun Tutoring is a program recommended for SKKU students who want to achieve a high GPA, build relationships, volunteer in an activity, and make money all at once. This program usually starts receiving tutor applications two weeks before the semester starts, and recruits tutees on the 2nd week of a semester. Tutoring for first semester of 2016 has already ended, but if you are interested, please check the application period for the next semester and participate. Schedule Program Contents 2. 15 ~ 3. 4 Program notice and tutor recruitments Online & offline notices and application 3. 4 Tutor and subject approval Confirmation for tutoring plan (tutor’s grade, subject, etc.) Reviewing tutor’s plan and subject approval 3. 7 ~ 3. 11 Tutee and teaching tutor recruitments Online application 3. 14 ~ 3. 18 Group matching and guide for OT Tutee approval Group matching Guide for Orientation 3. 23 ~ 3. 24 Orientation [Suwon] 3. 23 (Wed) 18:00 ~ 19:00 [Seoul] 3. 24 (Thu) 18:00 ~ 19:00 Meeting with tutor, tutee, and teaching tutor Guide for tutoring activity 3. 14 ~ 6. 24 Tutoring work Activity report (online) Monitoring of teaching tutor 6. 6 ~ 6. 22 Tutee: Learning capability test, evaluation for tutor, review for program Tutor: Learning capability test, evaluation for tutee, final result report 6. 13 ~ 6. 24 Activity receipt submission 6. 20 ~ 6. 24 Prize awardee selection Prize awardee selection 6. 24 Awards Ceremony Awards Ceremony 7. 15 ~ 7 .24 Advantages Tutoring activity funding Volunteer time and additional points when applying for exchange students Certificate of completion
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- 작성일 2016-04-14
- 조회수 3148
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- Into the Class / Creative Design and Applications
- Q. What do students learn in this course? A. This course focuses on practice rather than theory. Students design hardware using bricks and make programs to materialize it. This helps students cultivate real-work abilities such as creative design and utilization through debugging. After students practice the basics, they try to recognize real life problems and formulate ways to solve them. Then, by actually creating products and making them operate, they experience the full impact of creative design. Q. What basic knowledge should a student have to attend this course? A. The course does not require any basic knowledge. Q. How is the class conducted? A. Before the midterm, students will learn to understand graphic programs as well as make and move basic robots. Through this process they debug the hardware and can enjoy the programming process. After that, the students start a team mission. They make two-person teams and make color sorts that recognize and assort colors. The students learn problem recognition and how to develop solutions within three weeks. For the last five weeks, they recognize real life problems and try to solve them through team activities such as designing and debating. Through this process, some items available for commercialization are made. It is possible to apply for patents for the items. Q. How can this course help students in the future? A. The experiences students have by taking this course can help compliment their interest in numerous fields. Hardware and software fusion can be utilized in various ways. If a student learns the JAVA language, for example, they will be able to operate LEGO Mindstorms EV3 using smart phones’ Android OS. If a student has interests in apps, he/she can create an app themself and operate robots. [Pictures from Class] [Results from Class] - Presentation Themes - 1. Can Compression Separation System - 2. Automatic Warning Triangle Installing Robot - 3. Pet Care Robot - 4. Braille Block for Visually Impaired People - 5. Walking Assistance Robot [Related Videos] - Creative Problem Solving Methods & Development of Programming Abilities - Samsung New Employee Training Program - Lecturer: Kang, Hyun Woong (Hands-on Technology Representative) - Related link: http://www.huffingtonpost.kr/2015/01/21/story_n_6513298.html # Student Interview When I first heard the name ‘Creative Design & Applications’, I was worried about whether or not I could do it because I was a liberal arts student, but the actual class was about developing engineering- related thinking abilities by playing with Legos. I recommend this course to students who are interested in computers and machines, but are apprehensive about working with them. You will think, “Have I been wrong about how difficult engineering is?” In the course, students learn not just how to play with Legos, but how to utilize the techniques in real life and actually try to make what you build possible. Unlike many liberal arts courses where books are the main material for studies, I was able to produce prototypes by myself which was a fascinating experience. I highly recommend this course. (You, Jae Yeon Business Management 12)
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- 작성일 2016-03-29
- 조회수 3062
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- AI Generation Liberal Arts Freshmen, Come and Play with SW!
- “First of all, we need to figure out why we need software, and today we will learn to understand how the software works. Let’s play with software!” Computer Thinking and Software Coding’s first class was opened on the 17th of March in Sungkyunkwan University Hoamgwan’s multimedia studio, with 20 students who were ready to learn. They were all liberal arts students but they didn’t hesitate to study SW. Instead, they regarded coding SW as mandatory. After AlphaGo, the Artificial Intelligence (AI), won against Se Dol Lee the ninth grader in Go, it motivated the students to study. Dong Un Kim (19, Freshmen in Global Economics) said, “After the match between AlphaGo and Se Dol Lee, I realized that we could use AI to solve problems in various fields and if I think I need better software skills after completing this class, I will consider taking the advanced SW course as an interdisciplinary program.” At Sungkyunkwan University, from this year all students have to take a SW course. Students studying Humanities and Social Sciences have to complete 4 credits in order to graduate. 16 SW-related courses are offered this semester for non-major students and 2,517 students are enrolled. There are 124 SW tutors who are in their third or fourth year of their undergraduate studies and completed the tutor-training program. They are helping students in the class as teaching assistants. The reason why Sungkyunkwan University has applied SW as a mandatory course is to foster integrated talent and improve students’ thinking abilities. “The goal of SW education is not to foster developers but to build thinking ability. The process of analyzing problems and solving them by making algorithms with computing principles will help the students cultivate logical and analytical thinking skills,” said Dr. Jae Hyoun Kim, professor of Computer Education. Moreover, the Professor mentioned, “I hope the students don’t get stressed out by the mandatory course and find a way to utilize SW knowledge in their individual fields of study.”
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- 작성일 2016-03-25
- 조회수 2983
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- Study Shows It Is More Effective to Read Long Text in Paper Form
- Most people think they read more after the advent of SNS and internet, but the effect of reading is more effective in paper form, especially when the text is long and complicated with implicative content. Chosun Daily Newspaper and Professor Myung Won Choi (German Language and Literature and Human ICT Convergence) of Sungkyunkwan University held an experiment to verify how long and how accurately the information stays in the brain when reading a text by smartphone. The experiment showed both groups were better when reading with paper than with SNS. The effect was stronger when the text was longer and complicated. American university professor, Dr. Naomi Baron said, “After experimenting reading through mass media, 85% of people tend to slack off while reading on a screen which is a higher percentage than reading those reading paper (26%) and it also reduces concentration.” One of the students in the experiment conducted by the journal said, “I have tried to read an article on Facebook, but an advertisement popped up and I struggled to get rid of it. Also, it was hard to concentrate because I kept getting messages from my friends”. Prof. Myung Won Choi said, “This experiment shows that reading through digital screens through SNS is not so much ‘reading’ but is actually closer to simply ‘seeing’.”
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- 작성일 2016-03-25
- 조회수 3130
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- Lithium-ion Battery with 5x Capacity Developed
- New lithium-ion batteries have been invented that have five-times the capacity as current ones opening a new path for the development of batteries used in electric devices such as smart phones and notebooks. A joint research team that includes Prof. Ji Man Kim of Sungkyunkwan University’s Department of Chemistry and Prof. Won Sub Yoon of the Department of Energy Science discovered that if they use molybdenum oxide combined with a nano constitution to create a cathode, they can increase the capacity of a battery by five times. The research team was the first to investigate the mechanism of lithium being saved in ‘metallic cluster’ form in molybdenum oxide. Professor Ji Man Kim said, “The newly discovered mechanism overturned the established theory related to lithium-ion batteries and is the result of several years of experiments and modifications. We can now develop new electrode material for lithium-ion batteries that surpass the limit of the preexisting theory”. The results of the research were published in ‘Nature Communications’ on March 22, 2016. http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2016/160322/ncomms11049/full/ncomms11049.html
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- 작성일 2016-03-25
- 조회수 2967
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- Employment rate over 95%... The 1st in scholarship offerings in private universities in Korea
- Employment rate over 95%... The 1st in scholarship offerings in private universities in Korea Park, Ji-hye, Chosun Edu Sungkyunkwan University has been ranked 118th in QS(Quac-quarelli Symonds) World Rankings, 153rd in THE(Times Higher Education) Rankings 2015; The 1st private university in Korea. Engineering Department has been ranked 51st worldwide, 49th in Chemical Engineering. Other departments such as new materials, mechanics, civil engineering, architecture marked around 50 in world rankings. With collaboration with Samsung, Sungkyunkwan University is leaping towards innovation to change the dynamics of education. The outstanding breakthrough derives from the field of engineering. Sungkyunkwan University began its innovation through developing students in the engineering field with Samsung. STP(Samsung Talent Program) is a good example, with a group of 10 students annually. The students in the program receives 4 year full scholarship, with a chance to work in Samsung when they graduate. For that, Sungkyunkwan University and Samsung aims to obtain core faculties, research funds. The annual scholarship amount per student is 4990,000 Won, and the scholarship per tuition fee amounts up to 42.3%. It ranks the first in private universities in Korea. Sungkyunkwan University obtained core programs such as CK-II, LINC, WISET, BK21+. In the Department of Engineering, there are Creative Convergence Material and Specialized Process Program, and the Global Architectural Engineering Program. Besides that, there are many experiments and guest lectures from celebrities ongoing to raise experts in materials and process area. In research field, there are 6 main agencies and 3 main teams in the BK21+ program. The Future Nano-based Convergence Talent team and the ICT Convergence Facilities Management Talent team were selected to be funded which amounts up to 7,800,000,000 Won. High education and the research basis affected the outcome in research index. International SCI papers recorded 4,420, with the research fund amounting up to 3,200,000,000,000 Won. It has increased dramatically compared to the outcome in 2010, that had only 2,780 SCI papers and 2,200,000,000,000 Won of research fund. The patents regarding graphene, as known as the ‘Dream material’, recorded 147(2013.6), the biggest number among the world’s research institutes. It is just slighly behind the patent number of Samsung’s, the leading patent owner as a company. Sungkyunkwan University has reached the world-level in nano field as there are new institutions such as SKKU Advanced Institute of Nano Technology, SKKU Institute of Convergence, or IBS(Institute of Basic Science). The employment rate is also outstanding. 100% in Architecture department, 99.1% in Chemical Engineering, 97.9% in Mechanical Engineering, 94.9% in New Materials department. Academic and research exchange is also remarkable. According to a staff, “SKKU has ongoing agreements with prestigious universities such as MIT, Beijing University, and so on” Also, SKKU has the Asian R&D center of BASF, the world’s best chemical company, and the one of SABIC, the 4th leading chemical company in the world. “Around 50th in QS Rankings... Aims 20th in the future” Last year, the Engineering department of Sungkyunkwan University was amazing. Engineering Department has been ranked 51st worldwide, 49th in Chemical Engineering. Other departments such as new materials, mechanics, civil engineering, architecture marked around 50 in world rankings. In research area, SKKU achieved more than the original plan. Two large-scale projects were hosted. Six main agencies and Three main teams were selected in the BK21+ program, showing off the best performance in Korea. In the international field, there had been practical establish of agreement with Nagoya(Japan), Pennsylvania State(United States), Beijing University(China). Besides, there is a peer-studying program in association with HKUST(Hong Kong University of Science and Technology). In the industry field, the technology transfer income recorded 1,520,000,000 Won, similar to that of 2014. 420 patents were issued, compared to 227 last year. The year 2015 for the Engineering department was splendid, with 50th anniversary of its establishment as well as various international academic conferences and alliances with foreign prestigious universities. This year, the Engineering department aims to be ranked around 20th in world rankings. With adjusting education, research, industry, international affairs, cultures to the recent level, SKKU aims to become an ‘Entrepreneurial University’ through higher education and research. For this, SKKU is focused on extending creative convergence R&E clusters, creating smart-innovating R&D environments, as well as building up Global Open Innovation Network. Detailed plans have been already set. In cooperation with Samsung Foundation, as well as other institutions such as BASF·SABIC·KANEKA Research center, universities such as Harvard·MIT·Stanford·Beijing University·HKUST·Singapore University, SKKU will pursue its goal for the future. Currently, there are over 4,000 students in the Engineering department. It is our task to make them the most promising talents of the world. We will do our best to make SKKU the Truly, Global Leading University of the world.
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- 작성일 2016-03-25
- 조회수 3409