ID :
201808
Wed, 08/17/2011 - 08:57
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/201808
The shortlink copeid
Education minister vows to speed up college restructuring
SEOUL, Aug. 17 (Yonhap) -- Fifteen percent of domestic universities will be stripped of state financial subsidies under a government drive to weed out poorly managed schools to address the problem of rising tuitions, the education minister said.
"Only 85 percent of the country's universities will be eligible for state funds," Education Minister Lee Ju-ho said in an interview with Yonhap News Agency on Tuesday around the first anniversary of his inauguration.
"The remaining 15 percent will lose government support and be forced to go through restructuring," Lee said, noting the list of the top 85 percent of schools will be announced early next month.
The education ministry earlier this month came up with criteria for selecting the colleges that will have their state subsidies denied. The criteria include the employment rate of graduates, the yearly enrollment rate and the number of full-time instructors.
The ministry, together with the Knowledge Economy Ministry, has provided a total of 1.59 trillion won (US$1.48 billion) per year to help the nation's universities promote research and development activities.
The minister also said the government will weed out colleges riddled with "serious" troubles.
"We will single out corruption-ridden universities or those with other serious ethical problems," Lee said. "Now is the time for the government to act in a stern manner, as the consensus for such strong measures is reached not only among the public but also in the education circle."
With the government's decision to relax regulations in establishing colleges in 1996, the number of colleges -- both two-year vocational colleges and four-year universities -- has risen some 150 percent to nearly 400 nationwide, according to government data. About 80 percent of the country's high school graduates opt for tertiary education, doubling the number of college-goers from 1.18 million in 1995 to over 2 million last year, data showed.
The reform drive comes amid growing protests by university students against increasing sky-high tuitions. After months of controversies over the tuition costs, the ministry and the ruling Grand National Party agreed Wednesday to strive to secure 1.5 trillion won of next year's budget to cut tuition by 20 percent for students from households in the bottom 70 percent income bracket.
"Only 85 percent of the country's universities will be eligible for state funds," Education Minister Lee Ju-ho said in an interview with Yonhap News Agency on Tuesday around the first anniversary of his inauguration.
"The remaining 15 percent will lose government support and be forced to go through restructuring," Lee said, noting the list of the top 85 percent of schools will be announced early next month.
The education ministry earlier this month came up with criteria for selecting the colleges that will have their state subsidies denied. The criteria include the employment rate of graduates, the yearly enrollment rate and the number of full-time instructors.
The ministry, together with the Knowledge Economy Ministry, has provided a total of 1.59 trillion won (US$1.48 billion) per year to help the nation's universities promote research and development activities.
The minister also said the government will weed out colleges riddled with "serious" troubles.
"We will single out corruption-ridden universities or those with other serious ethical problems," Lee said. "Now is the time for the government to act in a stern manner, as the consensus for such strong measures is reached not only among the public but also in the education circle."
With the government's decision to relax regulations in establishing colleges in 1996, the number of colleges -- both two-year vocational colleges and four-year universities -- has risen some 150 percent to nearly 400 nationwide, according to government data. About 80 percent of the country's high school graduates opt for tertiary education, doubling the number of college-goers from 1.18 million in 1995 to over 2 million last year, data showed.
The reform drive comes amid growing protests by university students against increasing sky-high tuitions. After months of controversies over the tuition costs, the ministry and the ruling Grand National Party agreed Wednesday to strive to secure 1.5 trillion won of next year's budget to cut tuition by 20 percent for students from households in the bottom 70 percent income bracket.
