Pusan National University, Chonnam National University, and Chungnam National University Selected for 'Creating Ten Seoul National Universities' Program

[Financial News] Pusan National University (PNU), Chonnam National University (CNU), and Chungnam National University (CNU) have been selected as the first universities to receive package support under the government's 'Creating Ten Seoul National Universities' project. From 2026 to 2030, the government will inject up to about 100 billion won a year into these universities to fully support talent development and research capabilities in regional strategic industries and artificial intelligence.
The Ministry of Education said on the 1st that the three universities were finalized as the 2026 recipients of the 'Creating Ten Seoul National Universities' package support program at the government-wide meeting on a major spatial transformation of the country, chaired by the Prime Minister, held at Government Complex Seoul.
At the briefing, Minister Choi said, "Under the Prime Minister's oversight, nine ministries, including MOTIE, which is in charge of fostering growth engines, formed and operated a working committee. The three universities to receive support were finalized this afternoon at the government-wide meeting on a major spatial transformation of the country." He added, "We strictly selected universities that can generate the strongest synergy when each ministry's policies for a national spatial transformation, including the full-scale push for mega-projects and the development of 5 Poles 3 Special Growth Engine initiatives, meet the innovation capabilities of universities."■ Up to 100 billion won a year for colleges and AI supportThe selected universities will receive a package that supports industries and AI fields tied to the 5 Poles 3 Special Growth Engine from undergraduate programs to graduate schools and research institutes. About 70 billion won a year will be invested through the package, including roughly 40 billion won per university for branded colleges and convergence research institutes, about 10 billion won for AI hub universities, and about 20 billion won for shared universities under the 5 Poles 3 Special Growth Engine framework. In addition, general fiscal support for undergraduate education reform and other measures will add another 20 billion to 30 billion won compared with the previous year, bringing total annual support to as much as about 100 billion won per university.Branded colleges and convergence research institutes are projects that provide package support for industry-academia-research integration across undergraduate programs, graduate schools, and research centers in the 5 Poles 3 Special Growth Engine sectors. AI hub universities will train specialized and converged AI talent and support the AI transformation of regional strategic industries. Shared universities under the 5 Poles 3 Special Growth Engine will share resources and infrastructure from flagship national universities with local universities to promote joint education, joint R&D, and startups. ■ Three universities to specialize according to regional industriesEach university's specialization direction will differ depending on the industrial base of its region.
PNU plans to establish an Innovation Manufacturing Convergence College covering growth-engine industries in the southeastern region, including shipbuilding and marine engineering, mechanical systems, and aerospace. It will also launch new contract-based departments with LG Electronics and three Hanwha affiliates. The university will create the country's largest AI college and turn its Yangsan Campus into a research campus for industrial AI transformation. Through a shared university network involving 26 universities in the southeast, it will jointly use infrastructure and operate a marine capital convergence major together.
CNU will establish an Advanced Convergence College focused on cutting-edge semiconductors and future energy. It plans to expand industry-participation courses and scale up the model of the Amkor Semiconductor Packaging Joint Research Institute to include Samsung Group and KEPCO. Over five years, it aims to train 4,655 AI and AX professionals, while also promoting hands-on joint education using shared fabs and cleanrooms with 27 universities in the southwest.
Chungnam National University will build a cooperative framework with KAIST to establish the NEXUS College of Science and Technology, and it will create an industry-academia integrated education system in which leading companies and KAIST jointly design and operate the curriculum. Using regional research infrastructure such as the Daedeok Innopolis and government-funded research institutes, it will pursue research aimed at solving industrial challenges and also establish a joint AI research institute with NAVER Cloud. The goal is to train 500 AI convergence specialists a year.
The Ministry of Education plans to separately establish a performance management committee for the large-scale investments in the selected universities and set common key performance indicators with participation from universities, local governments, and the private sector. It will review annual results and manage project performance in connection with differentiated fiscal support.
[email protected] Kim Man-gi Reporter