Busan is good

Three University Models from Busan—Kyungsung Univ., BUFS, and KMI-Mokpo Maritime—Preliminarily Selected for the 2025 Glocal University Initiative

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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) announced that three proposals from Busan were selected in the preliminary screening for Phase 1 of the Ministry of Education’s “2025 Glocal University 30” initiative. The selected proposals are standalone models from Kyungsung University and BUFS, and a joint model by Korea Maritime & Ocean University and Mokpo National Maritime University.

A total of 81 universities nationwide submitted 55 applications this year (including 5 integration models, 13 consortiums, and 37 standalone models). From Busan, 12 universities submitted 11 applications (1 integration, 2 consortiums, 8 standalone). Following document reviews and in-person evaluations conducted over May 21–22, 18 proposals were ultimately selected.

Kyungsung University’s model envisions a transformation into an ultra-immersive MEGA (Media/Movie, Entertainment, Gala/MICE, Arts) convergence campus, and promotes a “K-Culture Leading University” concept where the university itself operates a production unit and generates revenue through university-industry convergence. Key initiatives include:

• ●Developing national K-Culture talent through non-departmental, non-year-based ultra-immersive learning with collaborations from master artists and a free-flow learning approach;

• ●Building MEGA Labs centered on creation-driven academic-industrial-research modules (Media/Movie, Entertainment, Gala/MICE, Arts);

• ●Establishing the K-MEGA Production & Co-Production Alliance and hosting global K-MEGA Summits & Festivals;

• ●Creating the Busan Ocean Cinema Theme Street and an urban regeneration Frontier Park in connection with the local community.

BUFS aims to become a global innovation university by standardizing and sharing its foreign language education system (covering over 50 languages) and building a data hub offering information on international culture, markets, and law. Key initiatives include:

• ●Establishing an AI-powered, inter-regional and global education hub (50+ languages) to transform foreign language education;

• ●Creating an ecosystem for multilingual data at a world-class level (by building and opening a multilingual data center);

• ●Developing and supporting customized multilingual solutions for local industries and providing Age Tech education for an aging society;

• ●Building a global industry-academia-research hub by linking overseas and regional R&D efforts, promoting international standardization, and supporting global market entry.

The integrated model of Korea Maritime & Ocean University and Mokpo National Maritime University proposes a unified “One Country, One Maritime University” vision to lead the Great Ocean-Korea (GO-K) initiative. The model seeks to specialize campuses in alignment with regional strategic industries and to expand into advanced maritime fields, thus uniting capabilities across the maritime sector. Key initiatives include:

• 1.Merging into a single maritime university by 2027, integrating academic departments, and expanding into advanced maritime sectors (Busan: AI/autonomous navigation, smart port logistics, advanced industries/finance; Mokpo: eco-friendliness, safety, maritime engineering);

• 2.Establishing a full-cycle talent development system linking high schools, universities, and industries (for faster employment and field-based education);

• 3.Supporting high value-added and globalization efforts for local maritime industries through test-bed campuses, joint graduate programs, and the SEA4 Alliance.

To ensure the success of local universities in the Glocal University 30 program, Busan Metropolitan City has developed a support system that connects local governments, universities, and industries. The city has also organized strategy development workshops and provided a range of policy supports.

Led by the Vice Mayor for Administrative Affairs, a dedicated support team has provided consulting services to the preliminarily selected universities, assisted in preparing implementation plans, and co-developed specialization strategies and initiatives.

This year, as final designations are scheduled, the city plans to further strengthen support by operating dedicated teams (TFs) for each selected university, developing integrated regional development strategies, offering consulting services, and jointly identifying and designing innovation projects.

Busan Metropolitan City will continue coordinating with local governments and industries through integrated working-level meetings to create tailored implementation plans for each university in the areas of talent development, university-industry collaboration, and job creation, in line with regional development strategies.

The selected universities are required to submit implementation plans jointly with local governments and industries to the Ministry of Education by August. Following a joint in-person evaluation between the local government and university, the final selection of up to 10 universities will be announced in September.

Mayor Park Heong-joon remarked, “This year marks the start of the RISE initiative led by local governments, and it is a crucial opportunity for regional-university co-prosperity through locally driven university innovation,” adding, “We will do our utmost to support Glocal Universities in becoming models for university reform and hubs for regional innovation through university-industry collaboration.”