[2021 National Audit] Remaining Research Funds as Professors' Personal Money?… Science and Technology Institutes Set Aside 4 Billion Won 'Emergency Funds'

Democratic Party Lawmaker Cho Seung-rae's Claims at the National Assembly Audit on the 18th

Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] It has been revealed that some science and technology specialized universities (Science and Technology Institutes) have been accumulating over 4 billion KRW in leftover research funds in individual professors' bank accounts and using them for personal meeting and travel expenses.

On the 18th, Jo Seung-rae, a member of the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting Committee from the Democratic Party (Daejeon Yuseong-gu Gap), analyzed data submitted by the Ministry of Science and ICT and four Science and Technology Institutes including the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST). The analysis showed that the balance accounts operated by three institutes, including the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), amounted to 4.05 billion KRW.

The balance account system involves depositing leftover research funds from completed private consignment projects into individual professors' bank accounts, which can then be used without any time restrictions. Although the names vary, such as personal research support funds or integrated industrial investment projects, the common feature is that the principal investigator can use the funds without restrictions on period or purpose, except in some cases like 'self-payment of personnel expenses.'

The original intent was to allow researchers to freely use leftover funds for exploratory research activities, but there are significant concerns about research ethics violations. Unlike general research funds, there are no usage deadlines or significant restrictions on how the funds can be used. It is akin to an 'emergency fund account' that the principal investigator can freely access at will.

In fact, a full investigation of the balance account expenditures from last year to September this year at GIST, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), and Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), all of which operate this system, revealed that out of 7,311 cases, 4,325 cases (59%) were spent on meeting and travel expenses.

Due to these issues, KAIST decided to abolish the balance account system last year. Internal and external audits uncovered improper accounting and false expenditures, and legal advice found that the system itself had potential legal violations. If research funds remain, the usage period of existing research fund accounts will be temporarily extended for exploratory research activities.

GIST, which operates the largest number of balance accounts (160 accounts, totaling 2.615 billion KRW), faced difficulties due to excessive deregulation. In 2019, it allowed retired personnel to use balance accounts and even attempted further deregulation. At that time, the president was approaching retirement (August 2021), sparking controversy over 'preparation for old age.'

Another problem is that the balance account system exists only at Science and Technology Institutes. Research institutes that conduct both public and private consignment projects, like the Science and Technology Institutes, do not have this system. Leftover research funds are either settled internally or absorbed into institutional operating expenses. Research institutes directly under the Ministry of Science and ICT also return leftover research funds or absorb them as institutional income.

Assemblyman Jo Seung-rae emphasized, “The methods of managing leftover research funds vary by institution, and some institutions are neglecting systems that raise concerns about research ethics violations. It is necessary for the government to organize a system so that research funds are used properly and effectively for researchers' research activities.”