Chonnam National University Graduate Student Found Dead... "Suffered Power Abuse from Professors and Doctoral Student"

Bereaved Family Files Petition Describing Suffering
Police and University Launch Investigations

A graduate student at Chonnam National University was found dead after leaving a note describing suffering from power abuse and excessive workload by professors. Following a petition filed by the bereaved family, both the police and the university have launched investigations into the incident.

The Gwangju Bukbu Police Station announced on July 17 that it had received a petition from the family of graduate student A (26) regarding A's death and had begun an investigation.

Gwangju Bukbu Police Station.

According to the police, the family of A submitted a petition the previous day stating that A had endured ongoing power abuse and excessive work in the laboratory from two professors. The petition also included a suicide note left on A's mobile phone.

The note reportedly named not only the professors but also doctoral student C. In the note, A wrote statements such as, "I can no longer endure," "They keep pulling me back just for their own interests and work," and "I hope no one else becomes a victim of gaslighting or sacrifice." It was also reported that, during A's recent job search, professors pressured A to continue working in the lab even after finding employment.

A was required to come to the lab on both weekdays and weekends and reportedly received work instructions late into the night.

Previously, on July 13 at approximately 5:54 p.m., A was found dead in a dormitory at Chonnam National University in Buk-gu, Gwangju. At the time, there were no signs of foul play or a suicide note found at the scene. After the suicide note was later discovered, the family requested a thorough investigation from both the police and the university.

Chonnam National University immediately suspended the two professors named by A from their duties and formed a fact-finding committee consisting of the dean of the graduate school and the head of the human rights center to begin an investigation. The police are currently investigating the exact circumstances based on the family's petition.

Meanwhile, a similar incident occurred at Chonnam National University's College of Engineering in May of last year. At that time, a foreign student was found dead after expressing distress over academic pressure. Students pointed out the culture of research pressure and excessive workload, calling for improvements. This marks the recurrence of a similar incident within the same college after one year and two months.

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