The response of school members to Pusan National University's (PNU) vision for the Glocal University Project (GUP) is cold. At the briefing held one week before the application deadline, various complaints poured in, and voices were raised that the project did not reflect the opinions of the school.

On May 24th at 4:00 pm, PNU's Planning Department held a "Business briefing session related to the promotion of Glocal University" in the conference room on the 3rd floor of PNU Head Offices. About 120 members of PNU attended the briefing session, including the faculty members of the PNU Head Offices, the General Students' Association, the Students' Association of the College of Education, and the faculty members of the College of Education. Jang Deok-Hyeon (Dean, Office of Strategic Planning), who gave the presentation, introduced the overall vision of the Glocal University 30 project (Glocal University), including Glocal University 30 project description, progress, and promotion strategy, and collected opinions from members of the school. This was the first Glocal University-related briefing for all school members.

The topic of the briefing session on this day was a joint application with Busan National University of Education (BNUE). This is because the joint application for Glocal University is based on the integration of the two universities. PNU plans to increase the support money from 100 billion won to 150 billion won through the integration with BNUE. According to the Ministry of Education, universities promoting integration can adjust the amount of support based on the number of participating universities and school size.

However, the opposition of the school members are not taken lightly. Holding a briefing session, a week before the project application deadline is interpreted as meaning that it is challenging to gather opinions. It was also pointed out that the integration with BNUE needed to be sufficiently explained to the members. A professor who attended the briefing said, "The faculty members of the College of Education first encountered the integration with BNUE through newspapers. It is difficult to see that communication has been achieved when the department's students do not fully understand the business." Many students at the site also emphasized, "Students do not even know what benefits we have and what losses we have on the contrary."

Some pointed out that it did not fit with the purpose of the GUP, “Bold Innovation.” While other universities are bringing new alternatives, such as the reduction of quotas and autonomous majors for all first-year students, PNU is concentrating its efforts only on integrating with BNUE. Dean Jang said, "Since it is a process of forming a new agenda such as project support and integration with BNUE, other issues that could have impacted on the school were promoted to a minimum. When writing a report on actual designation, we will go through the process of collecting opinions again."

There was also a concern about not being able to obtain the consent of the members. Kim Jeong-Goo (Prof. of the School of Computer Science & Engineering) said, "Members will not cooperate in discussions where there is no consensus. You also need the courage and determination to give up the business if you cannot reach an agreement. " In response, Dean Jang replied, "We cannot proceed without the consent of the members."

"Glocal University 30" is a project of the Ministry of Education that aims to enhance the global competitiveness of local universities. If designated as a Glocal University, it can receive financial support of about 100 billion won from the Ministry of Education for five years and investment from pan-governmental organizations, including local governments (released by Channel PNU on May 12th, 2023). PNU cites joint application between PNU and BNUE, advanced convergence of biomedical R&D complex, guaranteeing various educational options, and establishing a hub for industrial-educational cooperation in the southeastern region, as key plans. Based on the contents, we plan to complete the application on May 31st and wait for the results, which is the result of selecting one and a half times the number of universities that will be designated as Glocal University in June.

Reporter Jo Seung-Wan

Translated by Choi Ye-Won