Sungkyunkwan University

South Korea · Higher Education

Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU) established in 1398, the oldest university in Asia is among the top-ranking private universities in Korea. Now in the 21st century, SKKU has modernized, and made substantial advances towards becoming a global leader in research and education. What makes SKKU different from competitors is that SKKU focuses on nurturing students’ soft power, teaching them to be considerate and communicative so that they can cooperate and communicate highly effectively. With Samsung re-joining in SKKU’s management in 1996, SKKU received solid financial and managerial support to realize its academic and research ambitions. In recent international rankings, SKKU has been placed among other globally renowned universities. For instance, according to the QS World University Ranking, SKKU ranked in the top 100s, and the Financial Times ranked SKKU’s Global MBA program as 51st worldwide. These and SKKU’s many unique advanced multidisciplinary, industry-linked programs appeal greatly to global talent. Since the Samsung Group regained the university’s foundation, remarkable progress has been made thanks to the Samsung-style management know how. Such close cooperation between the university and industry, has allowed for significant developments aided by Samsung’s generous support. SKKU and Samsung have launched several innovative programs such as Semiconductor Systems Engineering, Mobile Systems Engineering, Department of Global Construction Engineering, and Embedded Software Engineering. Samsung has thus been able to steadily acquire qualified personnel, while SKKU has made every effort to create a leading model of industry-university cooperation that will help attract talented students as well as activate further develop educational-industrial cooperation in Korea.