Nobel Prize Season Returns... The Real Reason Why No Korean Winners Emerge? [Reading Science]

Professors Exploit 'Assignment Participation Rate' System for Wage Theft and Other Abuses
"Young Scientists Must Be Guaranteed a Free and Stable Research Environment"
Winners in 6 Categories Announced October 4-11

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] "Even if I devote about 10 hours a day to research, I barely make a living by receiving around 1 million won. So how can I achieve great accomplishments in my 20s or 30s like Nobel laureates from other countries?"

On the 16th, this was a sharp remark made by a young scientist attending a dialogue with young scientists hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT. The Nobel Prize season has opened again this year. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Norwegian Nobel Committee, and others will announce the winners starting with the Physiology or Medicine Prize on October 4 (local time), followed by Physics, Chemistry, Literature, Peace, and Economics. Unfortunately, no Korean names are mentioned again this year. Especially, while Japan has produced 24 Nobel laureates in science fields, Korea has only had the late former President Kim Dae-jung receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Although the event was hosted by Minister Lim Hye-sook of the Ministry of Science and ICT to communicate with young scientists, the topic naturally shifted to the Nobel Prize.

First, Professor Kim Won-jun of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) explained the reality in Korea. According to Professor Kim, Korea’s science and technology level is not low. According to the competitiveness analysis by the Swiss International Institute for Management Development (IMD), as of 2020, Korea ranks 3rd in science and 13th in technology, which is higher than its overall national competitiveness ranking of 23rd. Korea ranks 2nd worldwide in total R&D investment relative to GDP and 1st in researchers per thousand people. However, the scientific infrastructure related to the Nobel Prize is weak. The number of Nobel laureates and laureates per million population (29th), the degree to which laws support innovation, intellectual property protection, and knowledge transfer between industry and academia are all in the mid-range (25th to 30th).

In particular, Korea falls short in many of the "award conditions" mentioned by the Nobel committees and laureates. These include a research environment where young scientists can freely conduct research, funding systems that allow continuous research without fear of failure, investment in research fields that no one has explored before, and sufficient investment in basic science.

Most major Nobel laureates worldwide have been recognized for research achievements made in their 20s or 30s, or at the latest, their 40s. Albert Einstein received the Nobel Prize in 1921 for his photon theory published at age 26 in 1905, and Werner Heisenberg, who won the 1932 Nobel Prize in Physics, made his pioneering achievements in quantum mechanics, including matrix mechanics and the uncertainty principle, at just 25 years old.

But what about our reality? Graduate student researchers attending the event hit the "nerve," embarrassing Minister Lim. Lee Jun-young, a combined master's and doctoral student at the University of Science and Technology (UST), sharply criticized the treatment of graduate students as students rather than researchers. He said, "Because they are perceived as students rather than researchers, a vertical culture forms within labs," and added, "Graduate students are viewed through the student lens, so discrimination in vacation and salary is taken for granted. They should be treated as proper researchers, given stable salaries, and guaranteed creative research like existing scientists."

Choi Ji-hoon, a combined master's and doctoral student in chemical engineering at POSTECH, pinpointed the root cause of the vertical culture, or "gapjil" (abuse of power), in Korean labs. He said, "In terms of research guidance, discussions should be constructive based on the professor’s academic authority, but since salaries, commuting, vacation use, and career paths depend on the professor, it is difficult to have frank discussions," and added, "Of course, some professors maintain horizontal relationships, but when they do not, there is no mechanism to check them. This is a major factor hindering communication and student-led research within labs."

The highlight of the event was the ongoing "tyranny" where professors arbitrarily set and reduce graduate students’ salaries. Currently, in national research projects, student salaries are set as minimums: 1 million won for undergraduates, 1.8 million won for master's students, and 2.5 million won for doctoral students. However, most professors use a system called "project participation rate" as an excuse to cut students’ salaries to about 70%, and some even pay only 1%. The project participation rate is a system designed to allocate salary proportions when a researcher participates in multiple projects, but professors are abusing it to reduce student salaries.

Regarding this, Lee Jun-young urged, "We need to clearly define the legal framework and create a monitoring system." Kim Su-ji, vice president of the KAIST Graduate Student Council, also said, "Famous young researchers who won Nobel Prizes probably did not worry about living expenses," and demanded, "They devote over 10 hours a day to research but have to make a living on about 1 million won a month. It is necessary to raise the minimum salary or mandate a minimum project participation rate."

Until the demands for allowing young researchers to freely select research projects and reduce administrative burdens arose, Minister Lim appeared relaxed. She continued to explain existing policies and responded with intentions to implement or improve them. However, when the project participation rate issue was raised, she seemed somewhat embarrassed. Minister Lim said, "I am surprised that professors consider the student salary guideline as a ceiling. I was not aware of the project participation rate issue before," and added, "I will review whether existing systems are being properly operated."

The conclusion of the event was that for Koreans to win the Nobel Prize, an environment must be created where young researchers can focus on long-term, original, and creative research freely and with economic stability. Hopefully, in the future, every Chuseok holiday, the names of Korean Nobel Prize candidates will be on the dining table, and after much anticipation, the time will come to celebrate the glorious laureates.