Seoul National University

Seoul National University  is a national research university located in Seoul, the capital of Korea. The university was founded in its current form in 1946. It located on three campuses: the main campus in Gwanak and two additional campuses in Daehangno and Suwon. The university comprises sixteen colleges, one graduate school, and nine professional schools. The student body consists of nearly 17,000 undergraduate and 11,000 graduate students. Since its founding, Seoul National University is widely considered to be the most prestigious university in the country. According to data compiled by KEDI, the university spends more on its students per capita than any other university in the country that enrolls at least 10,000. 

Seoul National University holds a memorandum of understanding with over 700 academic institutions in 40 countries, the World Bank, and the country's first ever general academic exchange program with the University of Pennsylvania. The Graduate School of Business offers dual master's degrees with Duke University, ESSEC Business School, and the Peking University, double-degrees at the MIT Sloan School of Management and Yale School of Management, and MBA-, MS-, and PhD-candidate exchange programs with universities in ten countries on four continents. The university's international faculty headcount is 242 or 4% of the total.  Nobel laureate Paul Crutzen and Fields Medal recipient Hironaka Heisuke are on the faculty roster.

History Seoul National University:

Seoul National University originates from various education institutions which were established by King Gojong of the Joseon Dynasty. Several of them were integrated into various colleges when later Seoul National University was founded.

To modernize the country, Gojong initiated the establishment of modern higher education institutions. By means of the issue of a royal order, the law academy Beopkwan Yangseongso has been founded in 1895. It produced 209 graduates including the later envoy Yi Jun. Hanseong Sabeomhakgyo (established in 1895), a training school for teachers and Euihakkyo (1899), a medical school, are also considered the origins of respected colleges.

After the proclamation of the Empire of Korea in 1897, Gojong, meanwhile emperor, was motivated to create more modern education institutions. In 1899, a medical school was established. This school changed its name several times to Daehan Euiwon Gyoyukbu and Gyeongseong Euihak Jeonmunhakgyo (Gyeongseong Medical College) and finally became College of Medicine of Seoul National University. In 1901, a department for nursing was established, which was the forerunner of the later College of Nursing.

During the Japanese rule, Keijō Imperial University was established as one of Japan's nine imperial universities. After World War II and the independence of Korea, the name of the university was changed from Keijō Teikoku Daigaku  to Gyeongseong Daehak , Gyeongseong University). The Kanji letters, that were used in the name, were pronounced in the Korean reading and the attribute "imperial" was removed.

Academics Seoul National University:

The main gate of Seoul National University, known by its nickname, the Sha  gate. The shape of the gate is formed by the characters, the initial letters of its full Korean name (Gungnip Seoul Daehakgyo).

Admissions:

Admissions to Seoul National University is extremely competitive. From 1981 to 1987, when an applicant could apply only to one university at a time, more than 80% of the top 0.5% scorers in the annual government-administered scholastic achievement test applied to SNU and many of them were unsuccessful. Students are admitted by major instead of into a general freshman pool.

Academic structure:

Sixteen colleges of the university offer 83 undergraduate degree programs. For master and doctoral programs there is one graduate school with 99 programs from five fields of studies. The interdisciplinary programs are the ones invented and operated by more than two departments. In addition to that, there are nine professional graduate schools.

Campus Seoul National University:

Seoul National University occupies two Seoul-based and one Suwon-based campuses: the Gwanak Campus is situated in the neighborhood of Daehak-dong (former Sillim-dong), Gwanak-gu; and the Yongon Campus is north of the Han River in Daehangno, Jongno District; and the new Campus Suwon, in Iui-dong, Yeongtong-gu.

The main campus in Gwanak-gu was established in 1975 by the SNU Comprehensive Plan. At present, there are about 200 buildings, over half of which have been constructed since 1990. The school’s medical, dental and nursing schools, as well as the main branch of Seoul National University Hospital, are on the former site of Gyeongseong University’s medical department at the Yongon Campus. In 2003, the Colleges of Agricultural and Life Sciences and Veterinary Medicine were relocated from Suwon to Gwanak. In 2009, the Graduate School of Convergence Science Technology (GSCST), which consists of three departments (Nano convergence, Digital information convergence, Intellectual convergence), was established in the new Suwon Campus.

Location Seoul National University:

Gwanak Campus, the main campus, is located in the southern part of Seoul. It is served by its own subway station on Line 2. Yeongeon Campus, the medical campus, is on Daehangno (University Street), northeast Seoul. The defunct Suwon Campus, the agricultural campus, also known as the Sangnok Campus (Evergreen Campus), used to be located in Suwon, about 40 km south of Seoul. The agricultural campus moved to Gwanak in Autumn 2004, but some research facilities still remain in Suwon.

New plans:

In February 2010 Seoul National initiated a memorandum with the city of Siheung to establish a global campus. Signed with the city's mayor and governor of Gyeonggi for administrative assistance, the university acquired 826 thousand square meters (204 acres) of property in the west-coast economic zone, near the Songdo International Business District, Pyeongtaek harbor, international airport, seaport.

The land acquisition will increase the university's size by 58% over its current 1.4 million square meters (350 acres) to 2.2 million square meters (550 acres) and headcount by an expected 10,000 people or 33% of its current figure.[24] Along with lecture halls and additional liberal arts and graduate courses, the initiative will add a medical complex including a research hospital and training centre, research centre for dentistry and clinical pharmacology, dormitories, apartments, an international middle and high school, and other facilities. Planning to open the international campus in 2014, the university intends to share the initiative with other regional national institutions.

Facilities of Seoul National University:

 Library Seoul National University:

Seoul National University Library is located behind the university administrative building in the 62nd block of the Gwanak Campus. In 2009, the library’s collection of books, including all the annexes, was 4 million volumes. The chief librarian, Dr. Kim Jong-seo, professor of religious studies in the College of Humanities, took office in 2009.

The Central Library has constructed a digital library, which in addition to the regular library collection provides access to university publications, ancient texts, and theses. Included here are images of pamphlets, lecture slides, and insects. The digital library offers access to video of university exhibitions, scientific events, symposia, and seminars.

The library was opened in 1946 as the Seoul National University Central Library, inheriting its facilities and books from Kyungsung University. In 1949, the name of the library was changed to the Seoul National University Library Annex. When the main branch of the library was relocated to the Gwanak Campus in January 1975, it was renamed the Seoul National University Library, and then renamed again in 1992 the Seoul National University Central Library.

In 1966, provisions were made to systematize the library's collections. The original library was organized into 12 annexes for each of the university’s colleges: engineering, education, physics, art, law, theology, pharmacology, music, medicine, dentistry, administration, and agricultural sciences. Two years later, in 1968, libraries for newspapers and the liberal arts were added to bring the number of annexes to 14. However, as the main branch was moved to the Gwanak Campus, the education, physics, legal, theological, administrative, newspaper, liberal arts, and pharmacological libraries were combined in a single building.

The following year the art and music libraries were added to the main branch, while the dentistry and medical libraries were amalgamated into one. With the integration of the engineering library into the main branch in 1979, only the agricultural and medical libraries remained as separate annexes. A new law library was established in 1983 with funds from alumni, and in 1992 the Kyujanggak Royal Library was subdivided from the main library as an independent organization and is now known as the Kyujanggak Institute for Korean Studies.

With the transfer of the College of Agricultural Sciences from the Suwon to Gwanak Campus, the Agricultural Library was also moved in 2005. As of 2006 there were seven remaining library annexes for management, the social sciences, agriculture, law, medicine, dentistry, and international studies.

The library has received contributions from seven university libraries (Columbia, Harvard, Hong Kong, Leiden, Michigan, Stockholm, Toronto), three universities (Ohio State, Princeton, and UCLA), three major libraries (Fung Ping Shan Library, Library of Congress, New York Public Library), four institutions (German Research Association, Pro Helvetia Switzerland, Smithsonian Institution, and World Bank), two government agencies (US Information Service and US Operation Mission), the government of Australia, and from private Korean and non-Korean donors. The library underwent significant expansion in 2014.

 Kyujanggak:

The Kyujanggak, also known as Gyujanggak, was the royal library of the Joseon Dynasty. It was founded in 1776 by order of King Jeongjo of Joseon, at which time it was located on the grounds of Changdeokgung Palace. Today known as Kyujanggak Royal Library or Kyujanggak Archives are maintained by Kyujanggak Institute for Korean Studies at the Seoul National University. It functions as a key repository of Korean historical records and a centre for research and publication of an annual journal titled Kyujanggak.

 Museum:

Seoul National University Museum is located at the Gwanak Campus. It opened alongside the university in 1946 under the name, "The Seoul National University Museum Annex." The original 2-story Dongsung-dong building, which was erected in 1941, had served as the Kyungsung Imperial University Museum until it was transferred intact to SNU. When the museum was moved to the sixth floor of the Central Library, in 1975, it was renamed the Seoul National University Museum. The museum was then moved to newly constructed facilities, next to the Dongwon Building, in 1993, which it has occupied to this day. Dr. Park Nak-gyu is the director.

 The new building of the Museum of Art:

Seoul National University Museum of Art (SNUMoA) was established in 1995, with contributions from the Samsung Cultural Foundation, after a proposal from Dr. Lee Jong-sang, a professor of Oriental Art. The building designed by the Dutch architect, Rem Koolhaas, with construction entrusted to the Samsung Group. This 4450m2 structure sits three stories above and below ground. Its major distinguishing feature is the forward area which almost appears to be floating in the air. Construction was undertaken from 2003 to 2005, just off the Gwanak Campus’ main gate while the opening took place on the June 8, 2006. Dr. Jung Hung-min assumed the directorship of the gallery in 2006. More than 1,300 dorm rooms stand newly renovated at Gwanaksa since September 2010.

 Dormitory:

The dormitory of Seoul National University is named Gwanaksa. Dormitories for undergraduate and graduate students as well as families are located here. It was founded August 1975, with five Gwanaksa buildings and one welfare building, which housed 970 male students. The female dormitory was founded in February 1983. By June 2007, there were one administration building, two welfare buildings, 12 undergraduate dormitory buildings, six graduate students’ dormitory buildings, which in total housed 3,680 students. Unlike other schools, there is no curfew hour.

The Yeongeonsa located in Yeongeon campus, which is medical school of Seoul National University. The Yeongeonsa can house 533 undergraduate students, and 17 household of family dormitory.

 Editorial building of the students' newspaper:

The first edition of the paper was launched while seeking refuge from the ravages of the Korean War, on February 4, 1952. In 1953 it was moved to Dongsung-dong in Seoul, where from 1958 even editions for high school were published. Financial difficulties in 1960 led the paper to cease printing for a time. It was relocated to the Gwanak Campus in 1975 where it has been in continuous publication until the present day. At the time of its first launch the paper was sold for 500 won a copy, sometimes twice a week. Now, however, it is distributed for free every Monday. The school paper is not available during schools breaks or exams.