The Final Plan for the Liberal Studies Program: Reduced More Than Revised Plan
The final plan for the liberal studies program was announced. The Quota was reduced to 112 students. Students will select their major in high-tech field departments.
The liberal studies program that will be enforced from 2025 has been reduced by one-third compared to the initial plan. The finalized plan is reduced more than the initially revised plan that was proposed after collecting opinions from the campus.
According to the reports by “Channel PNU” on May 3rd, in 2025, Pusan National University (PNU) will select 112 students of liberal studies exclusively for the College of Engineering, the College of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, and the College of Information and Biomedical Engineering. This reflects the reduced plan (revised) and additional adjustments received from the Ministry of Education (MOE) on April 18th regarding the “2025 High-Tech Field Student Enrollment Adjustment Notice.”
Since conducting the “2025 Liberal Studies Program Explanation Session” on March 20th, there had been opposition from some departments. Accordingly, collecting opinions from PNU members, PNU announced the first revised plan on April 12th. The initial plan was to implement two types of liberal studies programs targeting all departments. However, it was revised to accept students for only high-tech field departments, where students choose only their major field when entering university. The recruitment quota also decreased from the initial 381 to 161 students (reported by “Channel PNU” on March 21st, 2024).
The revised plan has been further reduced, reflecting adjustments from the MOE. Some departments in the high-tech field were excluded, and the quota was fixed at 112. The excluded departments are as follows: Dept. of Aerospace Engineering, Dept. of Electrical Engineering Major in School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, and Dept. of Urban Planning and Engineering. Therefore, the 11 departments that will have students of liberal studies are as follows: College of Engineering (Dept. of Polymer Science and Engineering, Dept. of Organic Material Science and Engineering, Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering, Semiconductor Engineering Major and Electronics Engineering Major in School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, and Dept. of Industrial Engineering), College of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (Dept. of Nanoenergy Engineering, Dept. of Nanomechatronics Engineering, Dept. of Optics and Mechatronics Engineering), and College of Information and Biomedical Engineering (School of Computer Science and Engineering, School of Biomedical Convergence Engineering). The MOE has not provided any specific reasons for reducing the target departments.
PNU will reflect the newly adjusted recruitment units in the academic regulations and the implementation plan for university admissions. The finalized student quota table with the changes will be resubmitted to MOE by May 31st.
Reporter Yoon Seo-Young
Translated by Lee Soo-Hyun