Universities and Companies Join Hands to Cultivate SW Experts for Busan's Leading Industries... 7.8 Billion KRW Invested Over 4 Years

12 Institutions Including Pukyong National University Promote 'SW Talent Development Project'

Professor No Maeng-seok, Principal Researcher, Department of Big Data Convergence, Pukyong National University.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Hwang Du-yeol] To cultivate specialized software (SW) talent tailored to on-site demand in the Busan region, universities and companies have formed a large-scale consortium to jointly design and operate educational programs and link them to employment.

National Pukyong National University has been selected for the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Institute for Information & Communications Technology Planning & Evaluation’s ‘2022 SW Specialized Talent Training Project.’

The consortium, led by Pukyong National University and composed of 12 institutions including universities and companies, was selected under the project as the ‘Digital Smart Busan Academy.’

With this selection, the academy will receive approximately 7.8 billion KRW in funding over four years to cultivate SW specialized talent for the advancement and smartification of Busan’s leading industries.

The education targets are current students and graduates of Pukyong National University, Dong-A University, and Dong-Eui University who have completed basic SW courses such as Python and deep learning in five educational fields: digital finance, smart healthcare, big data, smart ships and ports, and smart factories.

The academy plans to train more than 670 SW specialized talents over four years through an intensive 16-week technical training program.

In collaboration with companies and universities, the consortium will design and operate five advanced projects based on actual corporate tasks in the Busan area: ▲ development of a balance recharge QR payment app ▲ development of an AI robot-linked nurse workload reduction app ▲ analysis of tourist movement routes in Busan using GIS ▲ AI-based ship arrival time prediction ▲ vision inspection system using deep learning.

The participating institutions and principal investigators in the consortium include ▲ Professor Kim Sang-jin of Dong-A University ▲ Professor Park Yoo-hyun of Dong-Eui University ▲ Executive Director Guseong-gi of global digital company Shinsegae I&C ▲ Team Leader Choi Min-hyuk of BNK System ▲ CEO Seo Chang-seong of Busan-based SME SCT ▲ CEO Bae Jun-hee of Intown ▲ Director Jang Sang-gi of Sonamu Information Technology ▲ CEO Kwon Min-su of ST Research ▲ CEO Seo Young-woo of Toogram Systems ▲ CEO Lee Min-ho of Seoul-based SME Pin Insight ▲ Team Leader Kim Dong-wook of Busan Economic Promotion Agency.

To support employment recommendations and field training, the consortium cooperates with over 50 Busan-based SMEs including ▲ Nexen ▲ Dongwon Development ▲ Sewoon Steel ▲ Hwasung Enterprise ▲ HD ▲ Korea Technology Finance Corporation ▲ Busan Port Authority ▲ Southeast Regional Statistics Office ▲ Dong-Eui University Oriental Medicine Hospital ▲ Busan Public Health Medical Support Group ▲ Medical Information Center of Busan National University Hospital Convergence Medical Technology Institute ▲ Cardiovascular Center of Yangsan Pukyong National University Hospital ▲ Busan Information Technology Association ▲ Global Fintech Industry Promotion Center.

For successful project operation, Pukyong National University will provide advanced educational facilities and operational funds, while Shinsegae I&C will offer SW expert instructors, e-learning, a metaverse-linked education platform, and job matching support with partner companies.

Employees of participating companies such as BNK System will serve as mentors to guide projects and provide career counseling. Pukyong National University, Dong-A University, and Dong-Eui University will mutually recognize credits and share educational infrastructure.

The Busan city government will support employment linkage, the ‘Big Data Innovation Center’ will collaborate with the Southeast Regional Statistics Office to develop educational materials, and ‘Youth Education Institutions’ will provide project practice spaces, linking with the ‘Busan Digital Innovation Academy’ project.

The Korea Technology Finance Corporation will support technology evaluation and guarantees for tech startups and recommend talent to excellent local ventures and innovative companies. The Busan Economic Promotion Agency will support various youth job programs including youth capacity building and customized employment counseling.

Professor No Maeng-seok, the consortium’s lead professor, said, “We will strive to cultivate excellent SW specialized talent jointly with local universities and companies so that they can become key players in the advancement and smartification of Busan’s core industries. We will continuously discover and utilize deepened projects reflecting Busan’s industrial characteristics in education through the operation of SW employment support offices at the three universities.”