Yoo Chang-su, Deputy Mayor of Administration 2, Lee Dong-ryul, Director of Administration, Kwak Jong-bin, Chief Secretary, Kim Seong-bo, Director of Disaster Safety, and others hold key positions... Kim Kwon-gi of Jongno, Yoo Bo-hwa of Seongdong, Lee In-geun of Dongdaemun among deputy mayors of 25 autonomous districts, occupying 10 positions, forming a dominant trend
A significant number of Seoul city executives are alumni of the University of Seoul, drawing attention.
The University of Seoul is an educational institution that has received substantial financial support from the Seoul Metropolitan Government. Because of this, until a few years ago, graduates from the University of Seoul were sometimes hired through special recruitment for Grade 7 positions in the city government, creating a structure where these individuals have been promoted to Grade 3 or higher and occupy key positions.
Additionally, some have been appointed to high-ranking political positions or passed the administrative (local) civil service exam to become Seoul city executives.
Currently, the highest-ranking alumnus of the University of Seoul is Yoo Chang-soo, Deputy Mayor for Administration 2. Deputy Mayor Yoo is a policy expert who graduated from the Department of Architecture at the University of Seoul and the Graduate School of Environmental Studies at Seoul National University. During Mayor Lee Myung-bak’s administration, he participated in policy development alongside Mayor Oh Se-hoon, establishing a long-standing relationship with Mayor Oh. Notably, when Mayor Oh returned to office after a by-election following a 10-year hiatus, Yoo served as an advisor to the SH Corporation and was appointed Deputy Mayor on February 6 last year, supporting Mayor Oh’s vision for Yongsan development, Hangang 2.0, and overall housing and urban planning policies in Seoul.
Other notable officials include Lee Dong-ryul, Director of Administration, Kwak Jong-bin, Chief of Staff to Mayor Oh, Lee Hoe-seung, Head of the Culture Headquarters, and Han Young-hee, Head of the Seoul Arisu Headquarters. All are civil service exam passers who have been promoted to Grade 2.
In particular, Director Lee is known to hold significant power in personnel and organizational matters under Mayor Oh’s administration and is said to enjoy the mayor’s special trust.
Senior technical officials include Kim Sung-bo, Director of Disaster Safety, Cho Nam-jun, Head of the Urban Space Headquarters, and Jin Kyung-sik, Director of the Facilities Bureau at the Urban Infrastructure Headquarters.
Among the 25 autonomous districts, deputy district heads from the University of Seoul overwhelmingly dominate.
They include Kim Kwon-ki of Jongno, Yoo Bo-hwa of Seongdong, Lee In-geun of Dongdaemun, Yoon Bo-young of Gangbuk, Lee Gye-yeol of Mapo, Kang Ji-hyun of Seodaemun, Kim Jae-yong of Eunpyeong, Kim Hyuk of Yeongdeungpo, Kang Ok-hyun of Yangcheon, and Bae Hyun-sook of Geumcheon, totaling 10 individuals.
Notably, Kim Kwon-ki, Deputy District Head of Jongno-gu, started as a Grade 7 official but has demonstrated strong capabilities, having served as Personnel Officer and Planning Officer, and is known for his outstanding work drive, earning him many junior followers.
Lee In-geun, Deputy District Head of Dongdaemun-gu, is a civil service exam passer in the environmental sector. After serving as Head of the Seoul Climate and Environment Headquarters (Grade 2), he moved to Dongdaemun-gu in January this year to focus on creating a carbon-neutral city.
Thus, nearly half of the 25 deputy district heads are University of Seoul alumni, marking the highest number of deputy district heads from the university in history.
Meanwhile, among elected district heads in Seoul, there are three-term Jeong Won-oh of Seongdong-gu and first-term Seo Kang-seok of Songpa-gu, both University of Seoul alumni.
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