🚨 National Chair Professor

Today Korean Social News for Beginners | 2025.09.21

0️⃣ Tenure-Free Top Professor System and Regional University Competitiveness Enhancement Plan

📌 Tenure-Free National Chair Professor, New System to Save Regional Universities Under Full Discussion

💬 The government is pushing a system to designate excellent research professors as 'National Chair Professors' and provide exceptional support without age limits. This is part of a national agenda to spread educational resources concentrated in the Seoul metropolitan area and strengthen regional university competitiveness. It aims to prevent brain drain and achieve regional balanced development while improving on the limitations of the past 'National Scholar' system. Implementation will require amendments to related laws including the Educational Civil Service Act.

💡 Summary

• National Chair Professor is a system that provides top-level support to professors with excellent research achievements without age limits.
• The main goal is to reduce Seoul metropolitan area concentration and improve regional university competitiveness.
• Implementation requires amendments to related laws including the Educational Civil Service Act.

1️⃣ Definition

National Chair Professor means a system where the government designates professors with excellent achievements in academic fields, removes age limits, and provides top-level research support and treatment. 'Chair' means 'a position of high status', and it is a special position given to professors recognized as top authorities in academia.

This system aims to reduce the gap between Seoul metropolitan area universities and regional universities and prevent excellent talent from leaving the country. It seeks to create world-class research environments through practical research support and exceptional treatment, not just honorary positions.

💡 Why is this important?

• It promotes regional balanced development in education by improving regional university research competitiveness.
• It prevents excellent researchers from leaving the country and encourages domestic settlement.
• It strengthens national competitiveness through world-class research achievements.
• It reduces Seoul metropolitan area concentration and creates a nationwide educational ecosystem.

2️⃣ Background and Current Situation of System Introduction

📕 Seoul Metropolitan Area University Concentration and Regional University Crisis

• Educational resource concentration in the Seoul metropolitan area is serious. Key situations include:

  • Seoul metropolitan area universities make up about 30% of all 4-year universities, but over 50% of excellent professors and research funds are concentrated there.
  • Students from regional universities also clearly prefer Seoul metropolitan area universities for graduate school.
  • 'Reverse brain drain' continues, with excellent researchers moving from regional to Seoul metropolitan area universities.
  • Regional universities face enrollment shortages and financial difficulties combined with declining school-age population.

• Limitations of existing policies are becoming apparent. Key problems include:

  • Various policies like regional university specialization projects and key national university development had limits in fundamental solutions.
  • One-time support or short-term project policies made it difficult to secure continuous competitiveness.
  • Lack of incentives to secure excellent professors has caused difficulties in attracting talent.
  • Without improving research environments and treatment, fundamental competitiveness improvement of regional universities is difficult.

📕 Lessons from Past National Scholar System and Improvement Directions

• The achievements and limitations of the National Scholar system have been analyzed. Key contents include:

  • The National Scholar (Star Faculty) system operated from 2006 to 2015 supported excellent researchers with research funds for 5 years.
  • There were some achievements, but support periods were limited and there was no fundamental treatment improvement like age extension.
  • After system termination, it was evaluated as not achieving long-term effects due to lack of continuity.
  • The need for comprehensive and continuous support systems beyond simple research fund support was raised.

• Differentiation points of the new National Chair Professor system are being prepared. Key features include:

  • Removing age limits so researchers can stably focus on research long-term.
  • Providing comprehensive support packages including research autonomy, protocol, and treatment beyond research funds.
  • Clarifying policy goals of regional balanced development through priority designation for regional universities.
  • Securing continuity and stability through national-level institutional support.

💡 Key Challenges in National Chair Professor System Introduction

1. Legal Foundation: Need for Educational Civil Service Act and related law amendments
2. Selection Criteria: Establishing fair and objective excellent professor selection methods
3. Financial Security: Building long-term and stable budget support systems
4. Regional Balance: Balanced placement plans between Seoul metropolitan area and regions
5. Performance Management: Building evaluation systems that can measure input-to-effect ratios

3️⃣ System Design and Expected Effects

✅ Specific System Operation Plans

• Selection criteria and procedures will be systematically prepared. Key contents include:

  • Selection through comprehensive evaluation of international-level research achievements and academic contributions.
  • Quantitative evaluation of paper citations, international academic awards, industry technology transfer achievements, etc.
  • Plans to build multi-faceted evaluation systems considering characteristics of each academic field.
  • Seeking to form social consensus through transparent and fair review processes.

• Differentiated support packages are expected to be provided. Key support contents include:

  • Eliminating age limits so researchers can focus on research without retirement worries.
  • Creating world-class research environments through annual research funds worth hundreds of millions of won and research personnel support.
  • Creating environments focused on research through administrative work exemptions and reduced teaching loads.
  • Guaranteeing social status and honor through national-level courtesy and protocol.

✅ Expected Positive Effects and Impact

• Regional university competitiveness enhancement effects are expected. Key changes include:

  • Regional university research levels and reputation will greatly improve through securing excellent professors.
  • Research ecosystems will be created as excellent researchers and graduate students gather around chair professors.
  • Cooperative research with regional industries will be activated, contributing to regional economic development.
  • Social perception improvement and brand value increases for regional universities are expected.

• This will contribute to improving national overall research competitiveness. Key effects include:

  • Promoting innovative achievement creation by providing optimal research environments to world-class researchers.
  • Preventing excellent talent outflow and even expecting effects of attracting excellent overseas researchers.
  • Promoting balanced development of various fields through research bases distributed nationwide.
  • Long-term leading to Nobel Prize-level research achievements and strengthened national science and technology competitiveness.

4️⃣ Related Term Explanations

🔎 Educational Civil Service Act

• The Educational Civil Service Act is the core law regulating the status and treatment of national and public university faculty.
  • The Educational Civil Service Act is a law regulating the appointment, salary, retirement age, and service of teachers working at national and public educational institutions like kindergartens, elementary, middle, high schools, and universities. It grants special status distinct from general civil servants to guarantee educational independence and professionalism.
  • Under current Educational Civil Service Act, university professor retirement age is set at 65, so law amendment is essential for the core of the National Chair Professor system - 'retirement age limit elimination'. Amendment plans include establishing retirement special provisions for chair professors or enacting separate special laws.
  • There are also regulations on educational civil servant salary and treatment, so legal consistency must be secured for exceptional research fund support or special allowance payments. Legal foundation preparation is the most important prerequisite for successful system establishment.

🔎 National Civil Service Act

• The National Civil Service Act is the superior law regulating basic civil servant status and duties.
  • The National Civil Service Act is a law establishing basic matters regarding national civil servant appointment, service, salary, and status guarantee, and is the basic law applied to all national civil servants. National and public university professors also receive application of this law as educational civil servants.
  • Regarding the National Chair Professor system, regulations like civil servant concurrent position prohibition, profit business prohibition, and political activity restrictions are important considerations. A balance point must be found that guarantees research autonomy and international activities while observing basic duties as civil servants.
  • Especially regarding civil servant salary system consistency, careful system design is needed so special support provided to chair professors doesn't conflict with existing civil servant salary principles. If necessary, establishing exception regulations through special law enactment is also being considered.

🔎 National Scholar (Star Faculty) System

• The National Scholar system is a national project operated to support excellent researchers in the past.
  • The National Scholar system was a project promoted by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology from 2006 to 2015, aiming to attract world-class researchers or support excellent domestic researchers to improve research competitiveness. As shown by the English name 'Star Faculty', supporting star-level researchers was the goal.
  • Key contents included supporting selected researchers with research funds of around 500 million won annually for 5 years, and providing dedicated research personnel and facilities. It targeted excellent domestic and international researchers, combining overseas scholar attraction and domestic researcher support.
  • However, there were limitations including limited support periods, lack of fundamental treatment improvements like retirement age extension, and insufficient continuity after project termination. The National Chair Professor system seeks to build more fundamental and continuous support systems based on these lessons.

🔎 Chinese Academician System

• The Chinese Academician system is a national honorary position given to top authorities in science and technology fields.
  • The Chinese Academician system is the highest academic title given by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering to scientists with excellent achievements in their fields, considered the highest honor in Chinese science and technology circles. Academician means 'academy member' and is a lifelong honorary position.
  • Chinese Academicians receive exceptional treatment including research fund support, retirement guarantee, and national courtesy, and also participate in national science and technology policy decisions. About 60 people are strictly selected annually, based on pure academic achievements rather than political considerations.
  • There are evaluations that the Academician system played an important role in China's rise as a science and technology powerhouse, so Korea's National Chair Professor system is also benchmarking this. However, original system design suitable for Korean circumstances is needed.

5️⃣ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: If designated as a National Chair Professor, can you really work continuously without retirement age?

A: Currently it's in the planning stage, but if the system is implemented, retirement age limits are scheduled to be eliminated.

• The core of the National Chair Professor system is providing environments where excellent researchers can focus on research without retirement worries. Under current Educational Civil Service Act, university professor retirement age is 65, but if designated as National Chair Professor, this limit won't apply. However, legal foundation preparation like Educational Civil Service Act amendment or special law enactment must come first. First, there's a plan to establish retirement special provisions excluding chair professors from retirement age application. Second, methods of enacting separate special laws regulating National Chair Professor status and treatment are also being considered. Third, conditional retirement exemption methods that maintain qualifications through regular evaluation of research performance ability and health status are also being considered.
• The purpose of retirement elimination is not simply extending age but guaranteeing research continuity to create better achievements.

Q: What kind of professors can be selected as National Chair Professors?

A: Professors with excellent international-level research achievements are expected to be candidates.

• National Chair Professor selection criteria haven't been finalized yet, but they'll likely be decided through comprehensive evaluation of world-class research capabilities and achievements. First, paper quality level and international citation numbers will be important criteria. Major international journal publication records and citation degrees by other researchers will be quantitatively evaluated. Second, international recognition like international academic awards or visiting professor experience at famous overseas universities is also important. Third, practical research value like industry technology transfer or patents will also be evaluation factors. Fourth, academic next-generation training records and social contributions will also be considered.
• However, according to policy goals of regional university competitiveness enhancement, plans to give priority or bonus points to regional university professors are also being considered. Expert review committees composed of domestic and international experts will be operated to secure selection process transparency and fairness.

Q: Can this system actually solve the regional university crisis?

A: It's difficult to solve all problems short-term, but positive effects can be expected long-term.

• The National Chair Professor system should be understood as part of comprehensive policies to solve regional university crises. This system alone won't solve all problems, but it's expected to create important turning points. First, if research clusters form around excellent chair professors, other excellent researchers will naturally gather too. Second, as research achievements accumulate, social perception of regional universities will improve and student preferences will also increase. Third, cooperative research with regional industries can be activated, contributing to regional economies.
• However, several conditions are needed for success. Sufficient budget security and continuous policy will are needed, and universities' own research environment improvement efforts must also be parallel. Also, beyond simply supporting individual professors, connection with entire university system innovation is needed to achieve practical effects.

Table of Contents

• Go to Guide