Bank of Korea Monetary Policy Contest... 7 Teams Including Seoul National University of Science and Technology Win Top Prize

A plaque of "Bugaanjeong" is hung in the lobby of the Bank of Korea in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Joint Press Corps

The Bank of Korea announced on the 21st that seven teams, including the 'Tonggeumjikimi' team from the University of Seoul, won the grand prize at the regional preliminary round of the '2023 Monetary Policy Contest' held on the 19th and 20th.

The Monetary Policy Contest, first held in 2003 and now in its 20th year, provides university students with a simulated experience of the monetary policy decision-making process, enhancing their understanding of the Bank of Korea's policies and operations.

Out of 125 teams (from 60 universities) nationwide that applied to participate, 58 teams (from 45 universities) that passed the preliminary screening took part in the regional preliminary round.

The participating teams presented their views on recent domestic and international economic trends and future outlooks, as well as key considerations related to monetary policy, and based on these, proposed opinions on the direction of monetary policy.

The judges evaluated the teams based on their presentations and Q&A sessions, assessing their understanding of the monetary policy framework, appropriateness of economic trend analysis and forecasts, rationality of monetary policy decisions, as well as their expression and communication skills to determine the winning teams.

The grand prize winners were the 'Tonggeumjikimi' team (University of Seoul), 'Agidwaeji Sahyeongje' team (Hankuk University of Foreign Studies), 'Saphilgwijeong' team (Kangnam University), 'Will-BOK' team (Chungnam National University), 'Hwanggeum Riyul' team (Jeonbuk National University), 'Hangyeongje Ilbyeong Guhagi' team (Kyungpook National University), and 'YoriBOKgo JeoriBOKgo' team (Pusan National University).

Depending on the number of participating teams in each preliminary round, one grand prize team, one excellence prize team, and one to three encouragement prize teams were awarded regionally (and by group in Seoul). Winning teams receive a commendation from the Bank of Korea Governor and prize money. Additionally, teams awarded the grand prize qualify to participate in the national finals to be held on the 11th of next month.